PickGuru, the new venture of Stats Perform and DAZN Co-Founder Oliver Slipper, has completed its seed funding round securing an enterprise investment of £2.6 million. 

The start-up’s angels, which includes Paddy Power, have backed Slipper to deliver a ‘social gaming disruptor’ that will bridge real money wagering engagements with live sport.

Launching his latest venture, Slipper has gathered a heavyweight team of sportech and media veterans to crack live sports gaming conundrum, which to date has proved an expensive graveyard for deep-pocketed start-ups.  

Slipper leads PickGuru’s enterprise team formed by Paul Cobley the ex founder of Matulo Software as CTO and former Sportsquake and Stats Perform financial lead Paul Watkins as COO.

PickGuru is further supported by Pitch International founders Jon Owen and Jon Youell and Masomo Games, alongside Adam Perrin, Co-Founder of Masomo Games and ex-brand director at Paddy Power

“With a concept built and refined by some of the most successful sports entrepreneurs in the UK, PickGuru will allow users to test their knowledge to win big cash pots for small stakes in nationwide leagues or compete with their friends in mini-leagues,” – read PickGuru’s press statement.  

Completing its successful seed round, PickGuru secures a £6 million valuation, as the business is backed by figurehead sports, tech and igaming angels of Paddy Power (Ex-Communications Director, Paddy Power), Simon Wear (Founder and Chairman of Global Cycling Network), Oliver and Alexander Kent-Braham (Founders of recent unicorn, Marshmallow) and Will Neale (Founder of Grabyo).

Turbocharging its operations, Pickguru seeks to fill: “10 roles across development, compliance and marketing with a view to recruit a further 20 roles over the next 12 months.”

“I certainly didn’t expect things to take off less than a year after sending out a simple game to friends but the massive popularity of it convinced me that I was onto something.” Slipper commented. 

“Following months of hard graft and huge investment, we’re proud to be building the first UK-focused platform that uniquely combines elements of fantasy sports, gaming and live-action, and strongly believe users will love the result.”

He continued: “I’m delighted that some of the most successful sports entrepreneurs shared our vision and I thank them for backing our ambitious plans for the business.”