ONE Championship announced that it has raised an additional US$166 million in the Series D financing round that was led by Sequoia Capital, an investment firm that had already funded the company in 2017.
According to the announcement that was released by the Singapore-based martial arts promotion on Monday, 8 October, new investors, including Temasek, Greenoaks Capital, and other leading institutional investors, also participated in the round.
It is an extremely significant development for ONE Championship as the organization enters 2019 with an ambitious 30-event calendar.
Receiving another financial backing from Sequoia Capital, ONE Championship now has a total capital base that exceeds US$250 million, which further solidifies the organization’s dominant market leadership position in the sports media industry in Asia.
The ardent love of head honcho Chatri Sityodtong for martial arts paved the way to the birth of ONE Championship, which is now widely regarded as the world’s premier martial arts promotion and the largest global sports media property in Asian history.
When he came up with the idea for ONE Championship, he envisioned the entire Asia comprised of over four billion people united under a single sport.
ONE Championship has achieved tremendous success since its inception in 2011, broadcasting to over 1.7-billion potential viewers across 138 countries around the world.
Since its inaugural card in September 2011, it has staged more than 80 live events and has visited 11 different countries, including United Arab Emirates, China, Chinese Taipei, the Philippines, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Cambodia.
Forming a number of key partnerships with the biggest local and global entities in the world, ONE Championship is at pace for a billion dollar valuation and an initial public offering in the next couple of years.
“The objective of our company is to unleash superheroes that ignite hope, strength, and dreams across all segments of society across the region. As one of the most successful venture capital firms in the world, Sequoia has an unparalleled track record of partnering with early-stage companies and helping to build them into global market leaders,” Sityodtong said.
“I am confident that Sequoia’s expertise, network, and resources will contribute significantly to ONE Championship’s success. I am also thrilled that Temasek, Greenoaks Capital, and other leading blue-chip institutional investors believe in both our mission of unleashing superheroes and our goal of becoming Asia’s first multi-billion dollar sports media property,” the ONE Championship Chairman and CEO added.
The lucrative investment puts ONE Championship at a place of power and great influence in Asia as it is set to take advantage of venturing into new markets like Vietnam, Japan, and South Korea as well as multiple destinations in mainland China including Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Beijing in 2019.
In addition, the promotion is positioned for more exposure globally as it seeks to acquire marquee talents available in the free agent market such as former mixed martial arts lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, who is rumored to be close to a deal with ONE Championship.
Sityodtong attributes ONE Championship’s success to its content and its extremely-loyal fans that are growing in number every single day.
“ONE Championship captures the essence of entertainment similar to a show in Las Vegas, but it combines it with the sporting excellence of elite martial artists. Our vision is to become a part of everyday life for everyone in Asia. There is no reason why it should not happen because Asia has always been the home of martial arts,” he stated.
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