The Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund is reported to be planning to buy a 10% stake in global streaming business DAZN, the loss-making sports network that is buying Australian subscription Foxtel.
The US$1 billion (A$$1.6 billion) investment had been under consideration by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) for at least one year as DAZN was haemorrhaging cash, according to sources quoted by the New York Times.
Saudi Arabia, under de facto rule by Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, has become the world’s largest investors in sports in recent years as it diversifies its economy away from oil and DAZN has been a key broadcaster of Saudi backed ventures in soccer, tennis and boxing.
London-based DAZN is owned by Len Blavatnik, a British and U.S. citizen who was raised in Moscow and has an estimated net wealth of $US40 billion.
Last month it agreed to buy Foxtel from News Corporation and Telstra for an enterprise value of A$3.4 billion in a deal expected to be completed in the first half of this year.
DAZN is poised to break even after more than $5 billion of accumulated losses, according to media reports.