Michael Rubin Owner of Fanatics (Facebook)
Michael Rubin’s Fanatics sports merchandising company has now hot a $27 billion valuation. The valuation came as Fanatics raised another $1.5 billion in new funding.
Founded by Michael Rubin in Jacksonville, Florida in 2011, Fanatics markets licensed sports merchandise to over 180 countries around the world, runs stores in over 12 languages and supports multi-lingual call centers incorporating 11 languages. Rubin is also the co-owner of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and the NHL’s New Jersey Devils.
Internationally, Fanatics also delivers specific global leadership in event, city center and in-venue retail; providing expertise at leading soccer, rugby and golfing venues. Fulfillment and service infrastructure has also expanded internationally, leveraging the historic expertise of Kitbag in international markets and integrating with the marketing and technology solutions traditionally used by Fanatics across its sites and partners in the U.S.
The news comes at the same time that Michael Rubin’s Fanatics entered into a deal with OneTeam Partners, a company that specializes in commercializing the group rights of world-class athletes. OneTeam will leverage its expertise by partnering with Fanatics to provide current college football players the opportunity to be compensated for inclusion in a broad-scale, multi-school jersey customization program. Fanatics, a global leader in sports licensed merchandise, has built a revolutionary commerce business over the past decade that includes a comprehensive on-demand jersey customization platform. This new officially licensed co-branded jersey customization program featuring current college football athletes is set to launch prior to the kickoff of the 2022 season.
“Broad-scale group rights for college athletes is the only pathway to bring this program forward,” said Derek Eiler, Executive VP of Fanatics College on the deal. “OneTeam is the perfect partner because of their group licensing expertise and their thoughtful approach in college. Aligning with OneTeam was a critical step to developing a scalable and efficient college football jersey program. We are excited to create an even deeper connection between schools, college athletes, and fans through licensed merchandise.”
