XLMedia Exits U.S. Affiliate Market, Sells Assets to Sportradar
XLMedia is making a major move to exit the U.S. affiliate marketing business. The company is selling off some of its biggest North American domains—Crossing Broad, SportsBettingDime, EliteSportsNY, and SaturdayDownSouth—to Sportradar. The deal could be worth as much as $30 million. This comes after XLMedia’s earlier decision to sell its European assets.
A Necessary Shift for XLMedia
The leadership at XLMedia took a hard look at the market and realized their U.S. operations weren’t reaching their full potential. The company’s board concluded that selling these assets to a bigger player like Sportradar would provide a better chance for long-term growth.
It’s no secret that XLMedia was struggling to compete in the U.S. market due to its smaller size. Selling the North American portfolio seemed like the best option to help both companies succeed.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a trend like this. Other major companies have been snapping up affiliate businesses recently.
For example, GeoComply helped Betting Hero’s founders buy back the company from FansUnite for $37.5 million, which marked the end of American Affiliate, a company FansUnite had acquired just a few years earlier, in 2021.
What It Means for Sportradar
Sportradar, already a big name in sports data, stands to benefit greatly from acquiring these domains. It builds on an existing relationship, too—Sportradar and XLMedia teamed up back in 2022, using data to boost sports content.
Now, with full control of these digital properties, Sportradar is in a better position to connect with U.S. sports fans and create more engaging, data-driven content.
For XLMedia’s shareholders, there’s good news as well. An initial distribution of proceeds from the sale is expected to roll out by the end of the year.
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