Mark Cuban invests in daily fantasy sports analytics company

(PRESS RELEASE) -- Fantasy Labs Inc., a platform of proprietary daily fantasy sports (DFS) data, tools and analytics, announced that it has secured an investment from Mark Cuban, billionaire investor and owner of the Dallas Mavericks NBA franchise. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Fantasy Labs is a leader in providing tools and analytics for MLB, NFL and NBA focused contests, with plans for supporting additional fantasy sports categories in the future, including the growing eSports world. With nearly 57 million people in the USA and Canada participating in fantasy sports last year, in games such as those offered by DraftKings, FanDuel and ESPN, the demand for high-level analytics has grown exponentially.

"We are pleased to have the support of a visionary investor like Mr. Cuban, and are grateful for his support in our goal of creating an environment where fans can easily access and leverage sports analytics for actionable purposes," said Peter Jennings, co-founder of Fantasy Labs. "We're especially excited for how Mr. Cuban's influence on our organizational development will enable us to expand our analytics offerings into new areas like eSports games, as well as continuing to optimize our core competencies."

The integration of advanced analytics offerings into the eSports vertical comes as a natural progression in supporting what Cuban sees as the next frontier of sports.

"The explosive growth of fantasy sports, and its involvement with new categories of competition like eSports, increases the need for high-end resources like the platform offered by Fantasy Labs," said Mark Cuban. "I'm excited to be involved with a company that is working to advance an industry that is poised for huge growth."

"Mr. Cuban's belief in the future of daily fantasy sports, and its ability to positively enhance the viewing experience for fans, make this an ideal partnership for Fantasy Labs," said Jonathan Bales, co-founder of Fantasy Labs. "This new funding will allow us to enhance our product offerings to create the best possible experience for our customers and the rapidly growing population of fantasy sports players."

Recognizing a lack of high-level analytics within daily fantasy sports, Bales teamed up with Jennings, a two-time DFS world champion, to form Fantasy Labs in 2015. Jennings contributes to ESPN as a DraftKings analyst, and was the $1 million winner of the first ever live DFS contest hosted by DraftKings. Bales, also a DraftKings Analyst, is the author of the Fantasy Sports for Smart People book series. He has written for the New York Times, NBC, ABC, and numerous fantasy sports sites.