Today’s guest columnist is Meredith McPherron, CEO and managing partner of Drive by DraftKings.

Necessity is the mother of invention, and over the past two years during the coronavirus pandemic, we have witnessed long-overdue technology adoption in sports tech and entertainment change how we play, perform and connect with each other.

Record venture funding is flowing into the market, supporting both emerging and rapidly scaling disruptive new ventures. According to the recent SportsTechX VC Report 2021, a record-breaking $8.3 billion has been invested globally in sports tech through September, and $12.7 billion was projected by year’s end. This is more than the previous two years combined. Eleven sports tech unicorns also emerged in 2021 from across the globe, driving an increasing appetite for venture funding to support a sector clearly becoming mainstream.

Their framework complements our thematic focus on human performance, media and fan engagement, and sports and gaming solutions. When you also include igaming, mobile gaming, esports, metaverse and associated blockchain technology, the addressable market and funding in the space are even more significant.

Source: https://www.sportico.com/personalities/executives/2022/2022-sports-tech-investment-1234658025/