A Tech-Driven Approach Alone Can Engage Sports Fans Like No Other

“A billion sports fans want to engage in sports actively. But how can they do that?” asked Abhishek Ravi, CIO of Dream Sports, to kickstart an exciting conversation around leveraging technology to create a world-class fan experience. “It all started with Harsh Jain and Bhavit Sheth’s vision to ‘make sports better’. The duo started Dream 11, India’s biggest fantasy sports platform, and together, they strive to solve sports fans’ largest problems by creating an entrepreneur-led virtuous cycle of investment, innovation and wealth creation for fans, athletes, teams and leagues,” he explained.

The 250 million-strong user-backed sports tech conglomerate Dream Sports, with its wide spectrum including Dream11, FanCode, Dream Game Studios, Dream Set Go, and Dream Sports Foundation, is a testament to the scale and reach of operations.

He is hopeful that 500 million Indian online sports fans in 2020 will grow to 700 million by 2027. Giving a rundown of numbers at Dream Sports, he mentioned that Dream11 has 220 million users, is available in 12 sports and is the world’s largest fantasy sports platform. On the other hand, FANCODE has more than 150 million users, with more than 22,000 matches and more than 45000 hours of live action. The Dream Game Studios is the first FIFA-like AAA mobile game built in India and boasts 4 million users who have played more than 100 million matches. “The Dream Game Studio’s first product, Dream Cricket 24, is already creating a lot of buzz, and user consumption levels are encouraging. It matches international standards, but it is made entirely in India. It is one product to look out for in future,” he said.

To reach out to the grassroots and help them improve at sports, the Dream Sports Foundation has supported 250+ athletes across 10 sports, and they have won more than 280 medals across national and international events. The Foundation’s long-term athlete development programme, Dream Gold, has worked in this field since 2018. Additionally, Dream Set Go is India’s premium sports travel and experiences partner, using technology to provide a bespoke and customizable sports tourism experience to a user.

He spoke at length about how Dream Sports is implementing Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Big Data, & Analytics to innovate and stay ahead constantly. These technologies are used to develop large-scale distributed systems for scalable business growth and safe user experience. Dream Sports was the first to deploy React Native at scale in India and has a collaboration with Columbia University, resulting in the Dream Sports AI Innovation Centre. The company constantly uses in-house tools such as Data Aware, Torque, and FENCE, AI-powered features and personalization with advanced algorithms for deeper fan engagement.

He also discussed the six broad categories where leveraging tech can significantly enhance a sports fan’s experience. “Dream Sports aims to deliver a world-class user experience using personalisation, fan engagement, localisation, safety, innovation, experimentation, and insights,” he added.

The key remains to deliver a world-class user experience with technology. He emphasized the importance of scale, compliance, real-time insights, and the need for experimentation to make the most of the tech-driven approach.