Gaming
Serve and Volley as World Tennis League Sets Bengaluru Match in Motion
MUMBAI: Bengaluru is about to trade traffic for tie-breaks as the World Tennis League (WTL) swings into India for the first time, promising four days of high-octane rallies, bold matchups and a format built for pure adrenaline. Set to take over the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium from 17 to 20 December, the Bengaluru debut brings a snappy, strategy-heavy twist to conventional tennis and fans are already racing to Bookmyshow as Phase 1 tickets go live.
WTL 2025 will roll out a fast, four-set structure covering Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles and two Doubles sets, with captains deciding their doubles line-up right after winning the pre-match toss. The twist continues with a games-won format: it’s not the sets but the total games that crown the winner, putting pressure on every rally and turning even a single break of serve into match-changing currency.
League play will see each team face off once, with the top two advancing to the final. Two ties a day guarantee a steady parade of high-tempo tennis, with traditional scoring retained Deuce replaced by a nail-biting Golden Point, tie-breaks at 6-6, and a fourth-set surge potentially unlocking Overtime. If teams pull level, a Super Shootout settles the score, ensuring no match ends without a final jolt.
THE FIXTURES
Day 1 | 17 December
Match 1: VB Realty Hawks vs Aussie Mavericks Kites
Match 2: AOS Eagles vs Game Changers Falcons
Day 2 | 18 December
Match 1: Aussie Mavericks Kites vs AOS Eagles
Match 2: Game Changers Falcons vs VB Realty Hawks
Day 3 | 19 December
Match 1: AOS Eagles vs VB Realty Hawks
Match 2: Game Changers Falcons vs Aussie Mavericks Kites
Finals | 20 December
Day 1 opens with a clash of style and swagger as the VB Realty Hawks take on the Aussie Mavericks Kites, followed by the AOS Eagles locking horns with the defending champions Game Changers Falcons, a lineup that blends personalities, power and plenty of early fireworks. Day 2 ups the tempo as the Kites return against the Eagles, before the blockbuster Falcons vs Hawks tie takes centre stage, featuring heavy hitters like Medvedev, Bopanna, Shapovalov and Svitolina and promising wall-to-wall drama.
By Day 3, the stakes thicken as AOS Eagles vs VB Realty Hawks sets the tone, paving the way for a Falcons vs Kites duel that looks destined to unleash a flurry of shot-making. By the time the finals arrive on 20 December, the week’s natural rivalries, emotional momentum and championship nerves will have done their work ensuring a finale charged with anticipation.
As Bengaluru gears up for this landmark edition, buzz is building for a format designed around intensity, atmosphere and unpredictability. With global stars, rising contenders and an enthusiastic home crowd converging for a never-seen-before contest style, the World Tennis League’s India debut is shaping up to be a rally worth remembering.
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.
