Dream11 is an Indianfantasy sports platform[6] that allows users to playdaily fantasy sports contests, primarily incricket. The platform allowed users to take part in paid and free contests by assembling a virtual team of real-life players, and score points based on those players' actual statistical performance on the field of play.[7][8][9] Paid contests were discontinued in August 2025 after the Parliament of India passed thePromotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025.
In April 2019, Dream11 became the firstIndian fantasy sport company to become aunicorn.[10] In November 2021, Dream11 was valued at $8 billion.[11][12] In October 2023, Dream11 claimed to have 200 million users.[13]
Dream11 was co-founded by Harsh Jain (son of Indian businessmanAnand Jain) and Bhavit Sheth in 2008.[14][15][16][17] In 2012, they introduced freemium fantasy sports in India for cricket fans.[17] In 2014, the company reported 1 million registered users, which grew to 2 million in 2016 and to 45 million in 2018.[18][19]
In April 2019, Steadview Capital completed secondary investment in Dream11. Apart from Steadview, Dream11's investors includedKalaari Capital, Think Investments,[20] Multiples Equity andTencent.[10] In April 2019, they launched FanCode, an ad-free multi-sport aggregator platform offering content, commerce and community engagement.[21]
In 2021, Dream 11's parent company, Dream Sports raised $840 million in a funding round led byTiger Global,D1 Capital, Falcon Edge,DST Global, and Redbird Capital.[22]
In 2017, a case was registered against the company in anIndian High Court. The court, in its ruling, stated that playing the Dream11 game involves superior knowledge, judgement and attention. The Court also held that "the element of skill" had a predominant influence on the outcome of the Dream11 game. However, the law does not allow fantasy sports in a few Indian states likeAssam,Telangana[23] andAndhra Pradesh.[24] A challenge to this judgement was filed with theSupreme Court of India, which dismissed the appeal.[25] The judgement provided legality[26] to the company and allowed them to run their operations throughout the country.[27]
In October 2021, Dream11 suspended its operations inKarnataka after the state prohibited online gambling, betting and wagering.[28] In February 2022, Dream11 resumed operations in the state after theKarnataka High Court reversed the ban on online gambling and repealed a complaint lodged against the company.[29]
Despite it being adjudged to be a "game of skill", experts believe that the company operates in the country's regulatory "grey area".[30][31]
On 21 August 2025, after theParliament of India passed an online gaming bill that outlawed all real money online games, Dream11 paused all paid contests on its platform, which accounted for over 90% of its revenue.[32]
In 2017, the company partnered with three leagues within cricket, football and basketball. Dream11 became the Official Fantasy Partner forCaribbean Premier League,Indian Super League[33] and US professionalbasketball leagueNational Basketball Association (NBA).[6] Later in the year, they partnered with the Indian Super League as their official Fantasy Football Partner.[34][35] In November 2017, the NBA, launched a fantasy basketball game in association with Dream11 and launched their official NBA fantasy game on their platform.[36][37]
In October 2019,New Zealand Cricket (NZC) announced Dream11 as the title sponsor for theSuper Smash domestic Twenty20 competition.[42] In January 2021, this partnership was extended for another six years until 2026.[43]
On 18 August 2020, Dream11 won the title sponsorship rights for the2020 Indian Premier League for₹222 crore (US$29.96 million), afterVivo pulled out for the season.[44]
On 30 June 2023, Dream11 acquired the lead jersey sponsorship rights of theIndian National Cricket Team from July 2023 till March 2026 for ₹358 crore.[45][46]
In 2019, Dream11 signed up seven cricketers and partnered with seven Indian Premier League franchise as part of its multi-channel marketing campaign.[53]
Dream11 provides a fantasy gaming platform for multiple sports such as fantasy cricket,football,basketball,kabaddi,hockey,volleyball,handball andbaseball. It is an online game where users create avirtual team of real-life players and earn points based on the performances of these players in real matches.[57] A user who scores the maximum points in their joined contests attains the first rank on the leader-board. Dream11 offers free and paid contests. A user has to pay a certain fee to join a contest and can win real cash.[58] To participate in a Dream11 game, a user must be at least 18 years old and needs to get their profile verified using their PAN.[59]
₹6,384 crore (US$760 million) (FY23)