The Game Day closes $4.5M financing round as it expands sportsbook content and into iCasino

Digital sports media company The Game Day has secured $4.5 million in a Series A financing round, the business announced on Wednesday. The raise comes as the company, which focuses on delivering content to sports fans and bettors, scales to meet strong demand in the North American sports media space.

The capital raised will be destined to support the company’s ongoing rapid growth. This includes commissioning additional marquee talent, the introduction of innovative content formats, driving increased conversations, and opportunities for monetization via new revenue streams, the company said.

The latest round of funding is backed by “a team of several leading sports media and online gaming investors,” according to a press release. Additionally, seven returning investors have continued their financial support of the company.

“The Game Day has seen tremendous growth this past year and we are thrilled to continue to charge forward and drive our business to the next level,” said Matt Heiman, CEO and Co-founder of The Game Day. “This funding and the support of our investors will allow us to increase our scale and engagement and will unlock additional opportunities for monetization and audience conversion through our affiliate partnerships with major sportsbook operators, our content, and our commitment to drive innovation in the sports media space.” 

The CEO cites the current M&A climate surrounding the sports gambling industry, giving Penn National Gaming’s recent acquisition of Score Media as an example, as clear proof that increasing attention is being paid to “similarly fast-growing sport betting media properties” in the US.

“With the rise of legalized sports betting now piquing the interest of a swathe of market-leading investors, and the sports gambling industry's desire to invest in sports betting content properties, The Game Day finds itself ideally positioned between the sports media and online gambling spaces to deliver meaningful audience scale at a particularly crucial time in the industry’s life cycle,” Heiman added.

Its rapid expansion has led The Game Day’s network to amass more than 4 million network followers to date, plus an average of 150 million+ monthly impressions. The company claims it continues “to grow at a consistent rate.”

The company attributes much of its growth to its “ability to amplify the live sports viewing experience” through engaging content, some of it launched through innovative formats across its YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and Facebook properties.

Founded remotely in 2020, in the midst of the global pandemic, The Game Day now features a varied roster of in-house creatives, as well as a range of socially-native creators, athletes and influencers. The company now delivers, on average, “around 20 premium productions” per week.

Early success has led the company to recently expand into the casino space by launching TheGameDayCasino.com. Moreover, the business has now signed a series of partnerships with sportsbook operators. In late September, a deal was reached with Betfred Sports to sponsor The Game Day’s two new NFL shows.