Gaming
NODWIN Gaming and JSW Sports forge pioneering partnership to elevate Indian esports
Mumbai- The world’s leading emerging markets gaming and esports media company, NODWIN Gaming (NODWIN), is announcing a strategic partnership with JSW Sports, India’s largest sports promoter and pure play sports management enterprise, to monetise and market it’s gaming, esports and cultural intellectual properties (IPs). This transformative collaboration is set to redefine and empower the rapidly evolving esports ecosystem within the country.
This partnership further solidifies NODWIN’s strategic focus as a sports media company. With esports and sports having very large audiences and media overlaps in India, this association brings together NODWIN Gaming’s unparalleled expertise in esports operations and esports content creation, complemented by JSW’s extensive experience and footprint across sports, especially their commercial vertical which has established itself as one of the best in the country working with more than 150 clients on sports marketing.
The combined strengths of the two industry leaders are also focused on launching new esports-focused Intellectual Properties in India, educating the market and important stakeholders along creating the right partnership platforms for brands and advertisers.
NODWIN Gaming’s esports IPs are celebrated for their unique appeal, offering a diverse and dynamic range of content to suit the entertainment needs of the community. This collaboration also aims to showcase rich and engaging storytelling within the esports domain, catering to the ever-evolving interests of the gaming community.
Commenting on this strategic partnership, NODWIN Gaming managing director & co-founder Akshat Rathee said, “We at NODWIN Gaming are thrilled to announce our partnership with JSW Sports, a momentous milestone in the esports ecosystem. NODWIN Gaming’s technical know-how and leadership in the esports and gaming domain, combined with JSW Sports’ commercial expertise, positions us to unlock unprecedented opportunities in the distribution and monetization of esports content. Our shared goal is not only to empower the esports ecosystem but also to establish new benchmarks for the future. While there’s much work ahead, the excitement and possibilities are boundless!”
Speaking on the partnership, JSW Sports COO Divyanshu Singh said, “India has one of the largest esports viewing audiences in the world, estimated at roughly 150 million viewers. That number swells up to 290 million when you combine it with both, esports playing titles and fans. Talking more numbers, In 2024, the revenue in the esports market is forecasted to reach US$124.8m, and that number will only grow exponentially in the years to come. In JSW Sports and NODWIN, we see two market leaders with the kind of synergies to capitalize on these trends, and change the game when it comes to distributing and monetizing esports content.”
The strategy spans sponsorship, media rights, activation, and influencers, creating a comprehensive framework to maximize the value of gaming and esports content.
Gaming
Dream Sports sees 100 plus exits after gaming ban forces overhaul
Company splits into eight units as real money gaming law hits revenue.
MUMBAI: For a company built on fantasy leagues, reality has suddenly rewritten the rulebook. More than 100 employees have exited Dream Sports, the parent of Dream11, after the company reorganised its operations following India’s ban on real money online gaming. The shake up came after the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 came into force in August 2025, prohibiting games where users deposit money expecting winnings. The regulation struck at the heart of the fantasy gaming industry and dramatically affected Dream Sports’ core business, wiping out about 95 percent of its revenue and all of its profits.
In response, the Mumbai based company shifted into what chief executive officer Harsh Jain described as “startup mode”, splitting its operations into eight independent business units in December.
Around 700 employees were reassigned across these newly formed ventures based on their experience and interests. However, roughly 15 percent opted to leave the company.
A spokesperson for Dream Sports said many of those who exited were experienced professionals accustomed to running scaled businesses rather than early stage ventures.
“Since some of these employees were experienced with running high scale businesses and not startups, around 15 percent chose to leave and join other scaled companies or start ventures of their own,” the spokesperson said.
Despite the departures, the company noted that the attrition rate is only slightly higher than its earlier level of around 10 percent before the ban. Dream Sports now has close to 950 employees and is not currently hiring, choosing instead to focus on stabilising its existing workforce.
The restructuring has transformed Dream Sports from a fantasy gaming company into a broader sports entertainment platform. The eight units now operate independently, each focusing on different segments of the sports and technology ecosystem.
These include Dream11, sports streaming platform Fancode, sports travel service DreamSetGo, mobile game Dream Cricket and artificial intelligence initiative Dream Sports AI, which includes sports analytics platform Dream Play.
Other ventures include fintech product Dream Money, open source initiative Dream Horizon and the philanthropic arm Dream Sports Foundation.
As part of cost saving efforts, Dream Sports also relocated its headquarters from Bandra Kurla Complex to Worli earlier this year. The new office, called Dream Sports Stadium, brings teams from its various brands together under one roof to improve collaboration and operational efficiency.
Jain had earlier said the company removed bonus lock in timelines for employees hired in recent years, allowing those who wished to leave to exit with pro rata payouts.
“We want people who are fully into the startup mode and willing to work for it, and we will share that reward if it comes,” he said.
Founded in 2008 by Harsh Jain and Bhavit Sheth, Dream Sports was last valued at 8 billion dollars after raising 840 million dollars in 2021 from investors including Falcon Edge Capital, DST Global, D1 Capital Partners, RedBird Capital Partners, Tiger Global Management, TPG and Footpath Ventures.
The new gaming law has forced several companies in the fantasy gaming sector to either shut down or pivot their business models, signalling a significant reset for one of India’s fastest growing digital entertainment industries.
