Genius Sports has cited the importance of renewing its contract with the NFL until the end of the 2028 season in fueling its future success and growth.
The remark was made as the sports data and technology group reported its financial results for H1 of 2023, in which it raised its full-year guidance after a healthy trading period.
In its report, Genius Sports declared total revenue of $184.1m, a 17% increase from $157m in the first half of 2022.
Profitability is also edging closer as the firm cut its net loss down by 21% to $35.5m, whilst adjusted EBITDA increased 333% annually from $5.5m to $27.7m.
Breaking down the performance by unit, the group’s betting technology, content and services division recorded the biggest revenue growth rate of 28.6% to $121.6m, whilst the media technology, content and services income rose 2.5% to $40.1m.
In contrast, Genius’ sports technology and services unit registered a loss of 4.3%, down from $23.4m to $22.4m.
The firm has leveraged several partnerships, including the NFL and FootballDataCo, which holds the rights for the Premier League, fueling its performance by boasting flagship leagues in different global sports.
“We enter the second half of 2023 having reached a significant inflection point in our business,“ said Mark Locke, Genius Sports Co-Founder and CEO.
“Following the financial outperformance in the first half of the year and the recently renewed partnerships with FDC and the NFL, we have validated our core strategy, differentiated our technology stack, and proven our sustainable business model.”
The extension of the NFL deal sees Genius remain the exclusive data rights holder for the league as well as holding the rights to distribute official NFL live streams to international sportsbooks.
The “Watch & Bet” function will include the US and Canada. This agreement is a multi-year partnership that allows NFL fans to watch games within sportsbook apps, as the NFL seeks to build upon its dominant position as an entertainment product in North America.
Furthermore, the sports tech and data provider will use its machine learning capabilities to “power enhanced viewing experiences for NFL fans”, as well as further develop its augmented live video betting products.
Owing to a strong performance and a reduction in losses throughout H1, Genius has raised its guidance for the full year, anticipating around $410m in full-year revenue, up from the prior guidance of $400m.
Meanwhile, adjusted EBITDA guidance for the year has been raised to $52m from the previous guidance of $49m.
CEO Locke concluded: “The ongoing success through the second quarter perfectly demonstrates our balanced approach in delivering near-term results while accelerating Genius towards our long-term growth and profit targets.”
