Fanatics is opening its first Middle East office in Doha, Qatar, as part of its aim to establish a presence in the region. The company hopes to partner with global sports brands seeking to grow their businesses and reach fans through the company’s offerings in fan gear, collectibles and live events. The new presence will be announced later Thursday.
In February, Fanatics and the government of Qatar announced a strategic partnership headlined with a five-year deal to sponsor Fanatics Fest, a fan experience event taking place in New York Friday through Sunday. This includes an exclusive lounge for top-level executives and athletes to use during the three-day event at the Javits Center in Manhattan.
The Doha office is expected to be just the start of Fanatics’ influence in the region. Expansion into the Middle East should help Fanatics establish deeper ties with sovereign wealth funds and quasi-governmental agencies that have made sports investment one of the pillars of their strategy. Qatar Sports Investments, for example, bought into in the Washington Wizards and Capitals, and it owns soccer’s Paris Saint-Germain along with a slice of Portugal’s S.G. Braga. Additionally, Qatar hosted the men’s soccer World Cup in 2022.
Elsewhere in the region, Saudi Arabia has committed huge dollars to sports, luring stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo to its domestic soccer league and investing hundreds of millions of dollars to accumulate vast esports holdings. In the United Arab Emirates, the Abu Dhabi wealth fund Mubadala has helped take Endeavor Group private, and it invested in a Brazilian soccer league. Last month, Mubadala announced it is investing $10 billion into TWG Global, which houses Mark Walter’s investment in the Dodgers, Chelsea FC and the new Cadillac Formula 1 team, among other assets. On Thursday, Walter reached an agreement to buy the L.A. Lakers at a record $10 billion valuation.
The Doha office will be Fanatics’ eighth outside of the U.S. The company has European offices in London, Paris and Milan, as well as offices in Tokyo, Melbourne, Panama City and Hyderabad, India.
Fanatics produced revenue of $8.1 billion in 2024 and is valued at $25 billion in private market transactions.
(This story has been updated Fanatics’ valuation to $25 billion in the final paragraph, as well as with information about Walter’s agreement to buy the L.A. Lakers on Wednesday.)
