Saudi SportsTech Grintafy raises $2.1M Bridge Round
Saudi-based SportsTech and leading football talent discovery platform, Grintafy raises $2.1M to put over 1 million regional players on the map, connect them with professional scouts and tryout organizers, and find new ways to financially support their journey into the big leagues.
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KSA-based SportsTech and football talent discovery platform Grintafy has successfully raised $2.1M ( SAR 8M) in its latest funding round. The Bridge round recorded participation from Wa’ed, the entrepreneurship arm of Saudi Aramco, Alrashed Group (ARG Limited), Areen Investments, and a number of strategic angel investors.
Launched in 2018 by founder and CEO Majdi Al-Lulu, the Jeddah-based sportstech startup enables amateur footballers to build their football CV and join or organize thousands of games and tryouts. Furthermore, players get rated based on their performances, work their way up the rankings, all while viewing and tracking their skills. All these rankings and skills are featured on their Grinta Card, which is viewed by football federations, professional clubs, and scouts. Grintafy also boasts a social engine that connects players that have a love for showcasing their skills from all around the world.
As recorded in our State of Startup Funding- 2022 Emerging Venture Markets Report, Saudi Arabia observed the largest YoY funding growth amongst the Top 3 most active geographies in MENA, signifying the private & public efforts in support of the ecosystem. With a 54% YoY increase in number of transactions closed, the Saudi VC ecosystem was able to cross the $500M mark last year for the first time surpassing Egypt to become the second-most funded geography in 2021. What has been most remarkable about the Saudi ecosystem, aside from the emergence of their first Mega Deal by cloud communications provider Unifonic last year, and their first Tech IPO with Jahez this year, is the concentration and unrelenting support of local VC investors. Saudi backers the likes of Impact 46, Sanabil 500 MENA Seed Accelerator Fund, STV, Vision Ventures, and SVC have been amongst a proactive group of local investors providing its ecosystem with smart investment opportunities. As recorded in our 2022 KSA Venture Investment Report, available for purchase, In 2021, more than 50% of investors backing Saudi-based startups were based in the Kingdom.
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The startup has achieved notable growth recently with over one million players using its platform – making it the largest talent discovery platform in the middle east. Those players have uploaded over 150,000 media files which have been viewed more than 100 million times and have organized and joined over 70,000 games and tryouts. Founder/CEO of Grintafy Maji Al-Lulu shared his appreciation for this remarkable growth saying, ‘I want to give a very special thanks to our current, new investors, and our one million players for sharing our mutual dream. We are here to change the game. We are here to dominate.’
Grintafy aims to use the funds to introduce a game-changing fintech solution, develop a live streaming feature using AI and machine learning, expand its subscription services, and strengthen its reach within the Egyptian market and North Africa where it started operations in 2021. Majdi Al-Lulu concluded with high aspirations for this one-of-a-kind venture, “It is an honor to have multiple strategic investors that recognize the significance of our tractions, achievements, and partnerships. Their confidence in Grintafy has helped us close the bridge round with ease. With this investment, our mission continues to arm our talent with the exposure, technology and tools they need. We will also be allocating funds to create a game-changing fintech solution that will ensure players can achieve their goals. ”
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