Billionaire Sir Leonard Blavatnik has pumped another $800m (£640m) into his streaming service DAZN as the “Netflix of sports” continues to post large losses.

Sir Leonard, who is Britain’s second-richest man, injected a further $827m into the company in 2023, taking his total investment in the company to more than $6.7bn.

DAZN was founded in 2016 with a mission to steal away sports viewers from traditional broadcasters. It has spent heavily to snap up the rights to sports including boxing and basketball, as well as major European football leagues and the NFL outside the US.

But the London-based company has so far failed to make its investment pay off. DAZN’s losses deepened to $1.4bn in 2023, according to accounts seen by the Financial Times, from $1.2bn the previous year. That was despite revenues increasing from $2.2bn to $2.9bn.

DAZN, which is led by Shay Segev as its chief executive, has outlined plans to reach 1bn global users. Last year, it attracted 300m regular viewers, of which 20m are said to be paying subscribers.

Sir Leonard, whose net worth stands at more than $29bn according to the Sunday Times, has funded DAZN through his investment group Access Industries.

However, the company is reportedly close to securing a deal to sell a 10pc stake to Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund for $1bn.

Despite its heavy losses, DAZN has cemented its status as one of the world’s largest sports streaming services through a number of high-profile deals.

The company last year inked a deal to buy Australian pay-TV service Foxtel from Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, giving it a major foothold in the market.

It also paid $1bn to acquire the rights to the Fifa Club World Cup , which will take place this summer. The free-to-air deal means DAZN will waive its monthly £16.99 subscription fee for the 63-match tournament.

Bosses have set out plans to turn the streaming service into the “global home of sport”. This means expanding beyond broadcasting rights to offer news and analysis, live betting and ticket purchases on the app.

Mr Segev said: “Twenty Twenty-four was a landmark year for DAZN but we are only getting started. As we step into 2025, our ambitions are bigger than ever.

“Our aim to reach 1bn global users reflects the scale of our vision and – as the only global direct-to-consumer sports platform – we are well-positioned to make this a reality.

“Through bold investments, cutting-edge innovation and strategic partnerships, we are reshaping the sports entertainment landscape and steering it to a digital future.

“Do not underestimate the scale of what we want to achieve at DAZN as we continue to reimagine the fan experience and lead the industry.”