Mumbai-based fantasy sports startup Fanspole has acquired fresh funds from Better Capital to launch its fantasy sports app and improve the product.
Fantasy sports platform Fanspole has raised an undisclosed amount in the pre-seed funding round led by early-stage venture capital firm Better Capital.
The Mumbai-based startup aims to target new customers and widen its reach with its newly launched fantasy sports app. The raised capital will be utilised for product development and marketing purposes.
“India has a market of over 300 million sports viewers and we consider each viewer as a potential fan. We are truly excited to create a holistic E-gaming platform and create a holistic online community for fantasy gamers,” said Aniket Shinde, co-founder and CEO of Fanspole.
Founded in 2015 by Aniket Shinde and Hardik Gondaliya, both graduates of Mumbai’s DJ Sanghvi College of Engineering, the fantasy gaming platform, unlike other major fantasy sports brands, supports both sports and Esports.
Apart from cricket and football, Fanspole features first-person shooter (FPS) games such as PubG, Call of Duty, and Free Fire.
The platform claims to have raced to over 250,000 fans playing more than 70,000 contests with zero marketing spend. That is what caught the attention of the investors.
“The instant adoption Fanspole has seen purely based on word of mouth is a great indication of the gap in fantasy sports in India,” said Vaibhav Domkundwar, founder and CEO of Better Capital.
Better Capital, headquartered in California, is a micro-venture firm that builds and invests in category-defining businesses at the earliest stages such as pre-seed, seed, and pre-Series A.
“Engagement around sports, as well as E-sports, happens when users go beyond watching, and the Fanspole fantasy contests platform is exactly what was missing,” explained Domkundwar.
Users can play private contests with their friends and acquaintances with the freedom to choose the entry fee, member limit, and prize structure. They can also charge a commission if the contests perform well.
“The ‘Play Together’ with friends and people you know is very powerful, and I am excited to be partnering with the Fanspole team,” Domkundwar asserted.
