Alisports Valuation, Funding & Investors
Alisports is valued at $1B as of April 2017.
Last Alisports valuation
$1B
Series A · Apr 2017
Last Alisports funding round
$174M
Series A · Apr 2017
Cumulative funding Alisports raised
$174M
across 1 funding round
Key investors in Alisports
YF Capital
China Taiping Insurance
About Alisports
Alisports is the sports division of Alibaba Group, launched in 2015 to build a sports industry platform spanning content, e-commerce, events, ticketing, and media rights in China. It has held exclusive broadcast and marketing rights for events such as the FIFA World Cup in China and has organized its own properties, including the World Electronic Sports Games and World Online Running Alliance. The company expanded into fitness through its 2018 acquisition of Ledongli, a Chinese fitness app and wearables company with tens of millions of users.
Founded
2015
HQ
ChinaWebsite
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2C & B2B
Revenue model
Commission, Advertising
Valuation
$1B (Apr 2017)
Alisports Valuation
Alisports is currently valued at $1B, based on its Series A in April 2017.
The $174M round was led by YF Capital, with participation from China Taiping Insurance.
Alisports valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Apr 2017 | Series A | $1B |
Alisports Funding History
Alisports has raised a total of $174M across 1 funding round.
Alisports funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2017 | Series A | YF Capital (lead); China Taiping Insurance | $174M | $1B | Alisports, the sports division of Alibaba Group launched in 2015, secured a Series A funding round of over RMB 1.2 billion (approximately $174 million) on April 11, 2017, led by Yunfeng Fund (also known as YF Capital or Jack Ma's VC firm), with participation from Taiping Guofa (Suzhou) Capital Management, matching China Taiping Insurance affiliation, and Shanghai Qianheng Venture Capital. The round valued Alisports at a post-money valuation of RMB 7 billion. As part of Alibaba's cultural and entertainment group, Alisports focused on expanding in China's sports sector through sponsorships like the exclusive title rights for the World Cup in China from 2015 to 2020, partnerships for ticket booking, e-commerce, training, and event promotion, and initiatives such as the World Electronic Sports Games and World Online Running Alliance, with plans to invest RMB 600 million in esports over three to five years. Alisports aimed to develop into a comprehensive sports industry platform, though early traction was modest, exemplified by its Tmall shop generating only RMB 2,212 in transaction value during Alibaba's RMB 120.7 billion Singles' Day sales in 2016. Alibaba founder Jack Ma envisioned Alisports eventually generating RMB 1 trillion in revenue, highlighting ambitious long-term goals amid the funding's intent to accelerate growth in sports content, e-commerce integration, and events. The investment underscored Alibaba's commitment to diversifying beyond e-commerce and cloud into sports amid China's burgeoning sports market. Subsequent developments included an acquisition of fitness app Ledongli in 2018 and the launch of a 'calorie bank' rewards program tied to Alibaba's ecosystem, attracting over 14 million users by October 2019. Some later reports reference varying round sizes around $190-191 million and valuations like RMB 8 billion or USD 1.27 billion, potentially indicating post-money adjustments or USD conversions, but primary 2017 coverage confirms the RMB 7 billion figure for this specific round. |
Who has invested in Alisports?
2 investors have backed Alisports across its funding rounds, including YF Capital and China Taiping Insurance.
Lead investors include YF Capital.
Alisports Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all 2 Alisports investors. Start Free Trial | ||||
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Start Free TrialAcquisitions by Alisports
Alisports has acquired 1 company to date.
Last acquisition by Alisports was on April 4th 2018. Alisports acquired Ledongli for undisclosed valuation.
Latest Acquisitions by Alisports
| Description | Ledongli is a Beijing-based developer of mobile fitness applications and wearable devices operating in China's digital health market. The app tracks steps, running routes, cycling distances, and calories burned, integrating with smart bands, watches, and body scales for comprehensive data analysis. Ledongli features social challenges, virtual coaching programs, and partnerships with sports venues across major cities like Shanghai and Guangzhou. The company launched its core app in 2015 and expanded into smart fitness mirrors and yoga mats manufactured in Shenzhen factories. |
| HQ Country | |
| HQ City | Beijing |
| Deal Date | 4 Apr 2018 |
| Valuation | undisclosed |
| EV/Revenue | |
| EV/EBITDA | |
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Alisports acquisitions and their M&A valuation multiples. Start Free Trial | |
Alisports Competitors
Alisports competitors include listed companies like Ollamani and Parken Sport, and private ones like Suning Sports, Premiership Rugby, ONE Championship and WTA.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nanjing | Private | - | - | $2.6B | - | |
 London | Private | - | - | $944M | - | |
 Singapore | Private | $128M | - | $1.4B | 10.5x | |
 St. Petersburg, FL | Private | $143M | - | $750M | 5.2x | |
 Mexico | Publicly listed | $378M | $39M | $684M | 1.9x | |
 Denmark | Publicly listed | $290M | $87M | $305M | - |
Alisports Public Comps
Alisports is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Grupo CIE, Juventus FC, GL Events, Funshine Culture Group, PVR INOX, Pursuit, Ollamani, Fiera Milano, Maoyan Entertainment and Beijing Jingxi.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $317M | $99M | 2.5x | - | 7.9x | - | |||
| $602M | $125M | 2.1x | 2.2x | 10.1x | 10.3x | |||
| $2B | $791M | 1.2x | 1.1x | 3.0x | 7.0x | |||
| $36M | $1M | 10.2x | - | 263.3x | - | |||
| $689M | $225M | 2.8x | 2.7x | 8.7x | 8.3x | |||
| $452M | $110M | 3.6x | 3.4x | 14.7x | 12.6x | |||
| $378M | $39M | 2.1x | 1.9x | 20.5x | 11.3x | |||
| $437M | $150M | 1.9x | 1.8x | 5.5x | 6.2x | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Alisports competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Alisports
| When was Alisports founded? | Alisports was founded in 2015. |
| Where is Alisports headquartered? | Alisports is headquartered in China. |
| Is Alisports publicly listed? | No, Alisports is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is Alisports' valuation? | Alisports was last valued at $1B in its Series A in April 2017. |
| How much funding has Alisports raised? | Alisports has raised $174M across 1 funding round. |
| What was Alisports' last funding round? | Alisports' last funding round was a $174M Series A in April 2017, led by YF Capital. |
| Who are Alisports' investors? | Alisports' investors include YF Capital and China Taiping Insurance. |
| Which companies are comparable to Alisports? | Companies comparable to Alisports include Suning Sports, Premiership Rugby, ONE Championship, WTA, Ollamani and Parken Sport. |
| How many companies has Alisports acquired? | Alisports has acquired 1 company, including Ledongli. |
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