Gaming
Cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara joins FantasyDangal as brand ambassador
Mumbai: Fantasy sports platform FantasyDangal has announced the onboarding of cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara as its brand ambassador. With the collaboration, Pujara will appear in upcoming campaigns and promote FantasyDangal as an established fantasy sports platform.
Pujara is the second-fastest Indian to reach 1,000 test runs. He has scored 6,792 runs in 96 Tests, including three double centuries and 18 centuries. In India’s first Test Series victory on Australian territory, his three hundreds helped him win the Man of the Series title. He has been a pillar of the Indian batting order for the most of the past ten years.
A batsman of rare disposition, with his love for grinding down attacks, Pujara has been India’s preferred one-down batsman for years. He is also known for his unbelievable attributes of dependability and trustworthiness in the Indian cricket scene. Hence, the partnership between the batting stalwart and FantasyDangal will bring an influx of sports enthusiasts to the platform and further cement the platform’s position as one of the country’s most trustworthy and user-friendly fantasy sports platforms.
The company has also launched a customer loyalty programme, under which participants in fantasy sports are eligible to take entirely sponsored trips outside India for free. In addition to the numerous benefits associated with playing on FantasyDangal, users also enjoy the benefits of lightning-fast withdrawals to enjoy their gameplay.
Speaking on his appointment, Pujara commented, “Sports enthusiasts are increasingly embracing fantasy sports in the country. With FantasyDangal, you are not just playing for entertainment but also learning how to master fantasy sports. As a brand ambassador, I am excited to collaborate with such a dynamic company.”
As a fast-developing fantasy sports platform with over two million current active users, FantasyDangal aims to become India’s next-door online fantasy sports paradise. With cricket and kabaddi in its existing catalogue, it plans to add new sports to its repertoire, like football and basketball, in the coming days. Other than classic fantasy, they also have batting, bowling, and innuendo fantasy. The platform provides second innings fantasy with a twist where one needs to select only seven players, which involves strategy compared to selecting eleven players.
Apart from this, they have a loyalty programme in the industry called the Dangal MVP (most valuable player) programme, which involves cashbacks, rewards, and fully sponsored international trips for the users. Trips abroad and live match experiences from the stadium make this programme unique, where users can experience seeing matches live on their app.
FantasyDangal business head Ankit Anand said, “Cheteshwar Pujara has set some unmatched records in global cricket and is regarded as one of the best batsmen. Besides being a world-class player, he also represents trust and reliability in Indian cricket, which ties in seamlessly with FantasyDangal’s ethos. Our connection with him sets us on a journey where we picture perfection due to our never-ending efforts to excel in our field and provide the best experience to our dedicated users.”
Gaming
MTG gaming chief Benninghoff joins NODWIN board as esports firm primes for IPO
The Gurugram-based esports firm is pursuing a public listing, has returned to profitability and is growing revenues by 42 per cent
GURUGRAM: NODWIN Gaming is moving fast. The Gurugram-based gaming and esports company has launched a pre-IPO fundraising round, appointed UBS as lead adviser for both the round and a subsequent public listing, and landed a heavyweight board director, all in one go.
The new board member is Arnd Benninghoff, executive vice president of gaming at Stockholm-listed Modern Times Group (MTG), who has overseen the group’s strategic investments and portfolio growth since 2014. He is no stranger to building things: Benninghoff has founded and built fifteen companies, served as chief digital officer at ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG, managing director of SevenVentures, and chief executive of Holtzbrinck eLAB. He began his career as a journalist at Deutsche Presse Agentur and various TV networks, holds a Diplom-Kaufmann in business and administration from the University of Münster, and previously sat on the board of Edgeware AB.
The numbers back the ambition
NODWIN is not pitching a story without substance. The company has returned to EBITDA profitability and posted a 42 per cent year-on-year revenue surge, reaching $58.5m in the first nine months of FY2026. The pre-IPO round will combine a primary issuance to fund global expansion through organic growth and acquisitions, alongside a secondary sale to give existing shareholders some liquidity.
Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming, said Benninghoff understands “the entire lifecycle of the gaming and media ecosystem, from the boots-on-the-ground reality of building startups to the strategic complexity of managing multi-billion dollar global portfolios.”
Benninghoff, for his part, said the company “sits at the intersection of sports, entertainment, and technology, making it one of the most exciting players in the global gaming landscape today.”
A portfolio built for the global south
Founded in 2014 by Rathee and Gautam Virk, NODWIN has quietly assembled one of the more compelling esports portfolios outside the Western hemisphere. Its properties include DreamHack India and Comic Con India, and it recently acquired StarLadder, the Ukraine-based tournament organiser behind premier events in CS:GO and Dota 2. The company also serves as a long-term strategic marketing partner for the Evolution Championship Series (EVO), the world’s most prominent fighting game tournament, helping push it into new geographies.
Its geographic focus spans South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Backers include Nazara Technologies, KRAFTON, Sony Group Corporation, JetSynthesys, and the founders’ investment vehicle Good Game Investments.
What comes next
With UBS running the books, a board freshly reinforced with European media and gaming expertise, and revenue heading in the right direction, NODWIN is laying the groundwork deliberately. The esports industry has burned investors before with big promises and thin margins. NODWIN’s return to profitability, combined with a real portfolio of owned intellectual properties across gaming, music and youth culture, gives it a more credible runway than most. The IPO clock is now ticking.
