Fanmaker
Fanmaker is a family-owned B2B SaaS company that provides a purpose-built loyalty and payments platform for professional and collegiate sports organizations, powering 200+ programs across the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and NCAA.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2007
- HeadquartersMinneapolis, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Fanmaker does
Fanmaker is a B2B SaaS company that provides a loyalty and payments platform purpose-built for sports organizations. Founded in 2007 as row27 Studios and rebranded to Fanmaker approximately a decade later, the Minneapolis-based, family-owned company powers 200+ custom-branded loyalty programs across professional leagues (NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, MiLB, MLS, AHL) and NCAA athletics. The platform combines points-based loyalty, mobile wallet/payments, beacon-driven location engagement, ticket lotteries, prize stores, kids/affinity clubs, and a 23-report analytics suite, with deep integrations into 13+ POS systems, major ticketing providers (Ticketmaster, Paciolan, SeatGeek), Shopify, Apple/Google Wallet, and SSO providers. The 2025-2026 ground-up platform rebuild reportedly delivers 10-12x faster load times, and SDK 2.0 enables embedding the loyalty experience directly inside partner team apps via OEM relationships with app providers such as SIDEARM Sports, Yinzcam, and FanReach.
Fanmaker monetizes through annual enterprise SaaS subscriptions with custom quote-based pricing per sports organization, supplemented by implementation/professional services and SDK integration work. Go-to-market is direct enterprise field sales ("Book a Demo" CTA on the website), supported by a Partner Activation Team, with a strong partner referral network and content marketing (blog, case studies, webinars) as secondary acquisition channels. Customers include marquee organizations such as the Kansas City Chiefs (190,000+ members, $1.5M+ member-driven concession/merch spend), Edmonton Oilers (145,000+ members including 60,000+ added in the 2025 playoffs), Nashville Predators (10+ year customer), Professional Bull Riders (200,000+ members), and a long collegiate tail led by Florida State, Mississippi State, and Alabama. The company reports 92% partner retention, has no outside investors, and operates with 11-50 employees under founder & CEO Jonathan Dusing, COO Logan Haen, and CTO Chris Rieck.
Fanmaker firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Fanmaker
- Legal name
- Fanmaker
- Website
- https://fanmaker.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2007
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Fanmaker is a family-owned B2B SaaS company that provides a purpose-built loyalty and payments platform for professional and collegiate sports organizations, powering 200+ programs across the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and NCAA.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Fanmaker industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Sports Fan Loyalty & Payments Platform
- NAICS
- Spectator Sports (71121)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Customer Support, CRM & Fan Engagement for Ticketing (MPAGAJAI)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Fan Membership, Subscriptions & Patronage Platforms (MPACABAF)
Keywords
Where Fanmaker is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Minneapolis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Fanmaker business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- SaaS Platform Licensing: Fanmaker operates as a B2B SaaS platform providing sports loyalty and payment technology to professional and collegiate sports organizations. Teams pay for access to the platform which includes loyalty programs, mobile apps, SDK embedding, and admin tools. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and appears to be quote-based per organization.
- Professional Services & Implementation: Fanmaker provides implementation and onboarding services including setup, customization, integration with existing ticketing and POS systems, and ongoing partner activation support through its dedicated Partner Activation Team.
- SDK Integration Services: Custom SDK development and integration work for partners embedding the loyalty program within their primary team apps, as exemplified by the custom SDK developed for the Kansas City Chiefs to host Chiefs Kingdom Rewards within their team app.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Enterprise SaaS platform — custom pricing per sports organization |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Fanmaker product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Fanmaker operates a cloud-based B2B SaaS loyalty and payments platform purpose-built for professional and collegiate sports organizations. The platform combines points-based loyalty programs, mobile wallet payments (stored value, loaded tickets, gift cards, credit card linking), beacon-triggered location engagement, and embeddable SDK widgets that allow teams to track fan spending across tickets, concessions, and merchandise via live integrations with 13+ POS systems and all major ticketing providers.
Product overview
FanMaker is the Fan Loyalty and Payments Platform for Sports, providing a B2B SaaS platform to professional and collegiate sports organizations. The core platform combines loyalty program management with digital payment solutions accessible via mobile apps, SDK integration within partner team apps, and point-of-sale integrations. Key products include the FanMaker Platform (core loyalty engine), Mobile Wallet (digital payments and stored value), Loyalty Programs (intelligent points-based rewards), and SDK 2.0 (embeddable loyalty). Add-on modules include Stories (interactive content), Offers (sponsor discounts), CrowdCameo (fan photos), Punch Cards (attendance tracking), Kids Clubs (youth engagement), Beacons (location detection), Check-In Kiosk (event registration), Prize Store (fulfillment), Watch Rewards (remote engagement), and 23+ Pre-Built Reports (analytics). The platform integrates with 13+ POS systems, all major ticketing providers, Shopify, Apple/Google Wallet, and supports custom integrations via API. FanMaker powers over 200 custom-branded programs for NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, MiLB, and NCAA organizations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- FanMaker Loyalty Platform Core cloud-based B2B SaaS loyalty and payments platform for professional and collegiate sports organizations, providing intelligent points-based rewards, challenges, streaks, and punch card promotions, with live integrations to all major ticketing providers and 13+ point-of-sale systems, credit card linking, intelligent segmentation, and 23+ pre-built analytics reports.
- FanMaker Mobile Wallet Digital payment solution for sports venues supporting mobile wallet, loaded tickets, gift cards, and vouchers, with credit card linking for Starbucks-style automatic rewards at checkout and single-scan application of season ticket holder discounts, coupons, and rewards.
- FanMaker SDK 2.0 Software Development Kit that lets partner team apps embed the full FanMaker loyalty experience, including background check-ins via geofencing, app reward tracking, multiple programs per host app, deep linking, and widgets, built on v3 API infrastructure.
- FanMaker Beacons Tiny Bluetooth beacon hardware that detects fan location within venues even when phones are in pockets, automatically awarding points and sending push notifications as fans walk past beacon locations, with 2-year battery life and BYOB support.
- Digital Tickets & Check-In Kiosk iPad-based Check-In Kiosk system for event check-ins, new member registration, student ID card swipes, and FERPA-compliant registration, plus Digital Tickets that let fans redeem loyalty prizes for entry to special events via QR-code or student-ID scan.
- FanMaker API Comprehensive v3 API enabling third-party integrations for member registration, point management, event lookups, attendance check-ins, member details retrieval, and export of member details, activities, purchases, attendance, and beacon data to data warehouses or CRM systems; also supports custom iPad kiosk implementations such as the Mississippi State Hail State Rewards Kiosk.
- Watch Rewards Remote fan engagement program that awards loyalty points to fans watching events on TV, radio, or live streams, via an "I'm watching" tap button, scheduled point awards throughout broadcasts, and promo code entry for away games.
- Stories (Trivia, Polls, CrowdCameo, Live Video) Interactive in-app content engine delivering Content Stories, Trivia, Polls, CrowdCameo fan photos, and YouTube Live video segments, with audience segmentation for targeted delivery and sponsor integration.
- Partner Offers and Discounts Flexible offers module for presenting member-only deals and discounts from sponsors and partners, supporting limited time/quantity offers, fan segmentation, cooling-off periods between redemptions, geo-fence requirements, and detailed redemption analytics for sponsor reporting.
- FanMaker Kids Clubs Affinity program module for engaging young fans and families, supporting kids reading programs, punch cards, trivia, member-only partner offers, and pet fan clubs such as the Cleveland Browns Barking Backers.
Quantifiable outcome
- Loyalty members spend 12–15% more than non-members
- +13 more outcomes
Companies that use Fanmaker
Customer profileNamed customers26 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Fanmaker technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration12 records
AI capability6 records
Feature15 records
Fanmaker partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- SIDEARM SportscoreSIDEARM Sports is a sports-focused app development provider that implements Fanmaker SDK widgets for dozens of partner organizations. Fanmaker specifically acknowledged SIDEARM Sports for implementing widgets for partners and driving SDK adoption across the network.
- TicketmastercoreTicketmaster is integrated with Fanmaker's loyalty platform, enabling real-time attendance tracking and point awarding based on ticket scan data. The Kansas City Chiefs specifically cited Fanmaker's direct integration with Ticketmaster as a key feature enabling real-time visibility of all transaction and ticket data on game day.
- PaciolancorePaciolan's ticketing system is integrated with Fanmaker, enabling automated point awarding for ticket scans at events. Florida State University specifically ties its student ticketing through Paciolan through Fanmaker, allowing student rewards to be earned through ticket purchases.
- ShopifycoreFanmaker offers full integration with Shopify ecommerce and Shopify POS, supporting all core Fanmaker capabilities both online and at in-person registers running Shopify. This integration extends the loyalty and payment ecosystem to merchandise sales.
- BDA SportscoreBDA Sports is the leader in sports activation and has partnered with Fanmaker to make managing affinity programs (like the Cleveland Browns Barking Backers dog fan club) completely turnkey. Fanmaker automatically transmits kit orders to BDA where kits are manufactured, packaged, and shipped, with fans receiving tracking emails automatically.
Scale indicators27 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Fanmaker competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- VenueNext: VenueNext provides in-venue mobile ordering, payments, and loyalty technology for sports and entertainment venues. It competes directly with Fanmaker's mobile wallet, payments, and loyalty offerings for the same professional sports customer base.
- KORE Software: KORE Software is a CRM, ticketing, and fan engagement platform purpose-built for sports and entertainment organizations. It addresses the same fan data, segmentation, and sponsor activation problems Fanmaker solves, making it a direct competitor for enterprise sports CRM wallets.
- Yinzcam: Yinzcam builds mobile and integrated apps for professional sports teams, including venue, ticketing, loyalty, and content features. It is a direct peer because Fanmaker explicitly lists Yinzcam among its primary app integration partners, competing and collaborating on the same sports team app surfaces.
Emerging players
- Zoomph: Zoomph provides sports sponsorship analytics and social fan engagement measurement. It is an emerging peer that overlaps with Fanmaker on sponsor activation analytics and fan data, though it focuses on measurement rather than loyalty mechanics.
- Greenfly: Greenfly provides digital content workflows and fan/athlete content distribution for sports organizations. It overlaps with Fanmaker on sponsor-driven engagement and content-led fan interaction, though it focuses on content operations rather than loyalty and payments.
- Satisfi Labs: Satisfi Labs offers AI-powered conversational fan engagement and ticketing assistants used by sports teams and venues. It is an emerging peer because it competes for fan engagement wallet share at sports organizations, even though its core modality (chat/AI) differs from Fanmaker's loyalty-led model.
Broad incumbents
- Hawk-Eye Innovations (Sony): Hawk-Eye Innovations, owned by Sony, provides officiating, broadcast, and increasingly venue and fan engagement technology for major sports leagues. It is a broad incumbent because its growing venue tech footprint could overlap with aspects of Fanmaker's in-venue engagement stack.
- Playfly Sports: Playfly Sports is a larger sports marketing and fan engagement company with sponsorship, media, and emerging tech capabilities for collegiate and professional sports. It is a broad incumbent in the same overall market where Fanmaker sells loyalty and engagement solutions.
- Audience Entertainment (formerly AudienceView): AudienceView (Audience Entertainment) is a broader ticketing, CRM, and fan engagement platform serving sports, arts, and live entertainment. It is a broad incumbent because it offers overlapping loyalty and CRM capabilities within a wider portfolio, often competing head-to-head with Fanmaker at mid-market sports organizations.
Others
- SIDEARM Sports: SIDEARM Sports is a collegiate-focused digital agency and app platform that integrates Fanmaker via SDK. It is an adjacent ecosystem participant because while it embeds Fanmaker today, it could potentially develop or partner with competing loyalty solutions, making it both a partner and adjacent competitor.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Fanmaker social profiles
Digital presenceFanmaker financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Fanmaker leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Fanmaker funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Fanmaker M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Fanmaker
What does Fanmaker do?
Fanmaker operates a cloud-based B2B SaaS loyalty and payments platform purpose-built for professional and collegiate sports organizations. The platform combines points-based loyalty programs, mobile wallet payments (stored value, loaded tickets, gift cards, credit card linking), beacon-triggered location engagement, and embeddable SDK widgets that allow teams to track fan spending across tickets, concessions, and merchandise via live integrations with 13+ POS systems and all major ticketing providers.
Is Fanmaker a public or private company?
Fanmaker is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Fanmaker founded?
Fanmaker was founded in 2007. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Fanmaker based?
Fanmaker is headquartered in Minneapolis, United States, in the North America region.
How does Fanmaker make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. SaaS Platform Licensing is the primary driver. The others are professional Services & Implementation and SDK Integration Services.
Who are Fanmaker's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are VenueNext, KORE Software and Yinzcam. Emerging players are Zoomph, Greenfly and Satisfi Labs. Broad incumbents are Hawk-Eye Innovations (Sony), Playfly Sports and Audience Entertainment (formerly AudienceView). SIDEARM Sports is listed as an others.
Does Fanmaker have an API?
Yes. FanMaker offers a powerful API enabling integration with third-party systems and custom campaign functionality. Using the FanMaker API, developers can: register new members, add points to member accounts, look up point totals, get a list of upcoming events, check members into events, look up member details like social network handles, and export member details, latest activities, latest purchases, attendance, and beacon data to a data warehouse or CRM. The API supports custom integrations including iPad kiosk systems (e.g., Mississippi State Hail State Rewards Kiosk built on FanMaker API). Developer documentation is at help.fanmaker.com.
What industry is Fanmaker in?
Fanmaker's product category is Sports Fan Loyalty & Payments Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGAJAI, Customer Support, CRM & Fan Engagement for Ticketing, with a secondary code of MPACABAF, Fan Membership, Subscriptions & Patronage Platforms. Its NAICS code is 71121 and its SIC code is 7900.