East Asia Super League CEO Matt Beyer is looking for aggressive growth. Photo: EASL
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https://scmp.com/sport/basketball/article/3204321/east-asia-super-league-secures-us40m-fund-expansion-ceo-matt-bayer-talks-bullish-outlook Basketball
East Asia Super League secures US$40m to fund expansion as CEO Matt Bayer talks up ‘bullish’ outlook
- Crest Sports and Entertainment leads latest round of cash injection into start-up
- League chief Matt Bayer has targeted growth to make basketball organisation one of world’s biggest by 2025
Glen Yang (right) in action for Hong Kong franchise the Bay Area Dragons. Photo: EASL
East Asia Super League has secured US$40 million in its Series C fundraising round from investment group Crest Sports and Entertainment, as it seeks to cement itself among the top basketball leagues worldwide.
Matt Beyer, the league’s CEO, said the latest cash injection had fallen US$10 million short of expectations, but remained “very bullish” on the outlook for the organisation, despite a gloomy economic picture.
“There’s a lot of interest right now from family offices, sports funds and also media companies that want to have an interest in our company and also potentially procure rights going forward,” Beyer told SportBusiness.
Crest, based in Australia and led by US businessman Jared Novelly, will invest some money of its own and work with EASL to seek additional capital from outside sources. The league is aiming to close the latest round of funding, when its Champions Week event in Japan will take place.
Novelly said East Asia Super League had built an “unrivalled brand” from scratch in a short time.
“Our leadership in this round reflects our confidence in the incredible growth opportunities associated with top-quality basketball media entertainment in Greater China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines and beyond, including the opportunity to bring the best Asian basketball to the world,” he said.
Crest joins existing investors The Raine Group, league co-founders Beyer and Henry Kerins, and a group of high-profile basketball athletes, coaches and legends. The co‒founders, Raine and Crest, will be the biggest shareholders after the new funding round.
The funds earmarked for operational costs are a cushion against negative surprises on the commercial front. The league expects to cover operational costs from commercial revenues from season one, although it is still in the process of selling media and sponsorship rights.
While EASL has its sights set on the booming Asia market, Crest’s investment may also pave the way for expansion of the league into Australia. The company will establish an EASL-branded basketball academy to develop Asia-Pacific talent.
The region’s top leagues have signed up to enter teams, including the Philippines’ PBA, Japan’s B.League, Korea’s K League and Taiwan’s P.League+. China’s CBA is set to enter teams once Covid-related travel restrictions are relaxed.
The EASL’s inaugural season will tip off in October next year featuring eight teams from the participating leagues and be played as a series of home and away fixtures. Expansion to 16 teams, including CBA teams, is planned for the 2024-25 season.
Season one will be preceded by a special competition in Japan in March, named Champions Week. This will be in Utsunomiya and Okinawa on March 1-5 and will feature the eight teams that were set to play in the postponed 2022-23 season.