Axel Springer SE is selling its majority stake (50.1 percent) in Runtastic GmbH, a provider of mobile apps for measuring sports and fitness data, to Adidas Group. At the same time, the Runtastic founders and co-shareholders are also selling their shares in the Austrian company to Adidas Group, which is thus acquiring 100 percent ownership of Runtastic. The enterprise value for the overall transaction is EUR 220 million.

Runtastic GmbH was founded in Pasching, Austria, in 2009. The company offers a combination of mobile sports apps (e. g. for running and cycling), related hardware and a web portal.

In October 2013, Axel Springer, via Axel Springer Digital Ventures, acquired 50.1 percent of the shares in Runtastic at an enterprise value of EUR 22 million. Over the past few years the company has developed very successfully. With over 140 million app downloads and approximately 70 million registered users, Runtastic is one of the leading providers of mobile sports apps.

Dr. Jens Müffelmann, CEO Axel Springer Digital Ventures: "Runtastic has achieved tremendous growth over the past few years. We are very happy that we have been able to contribute to this success story since 2013 and we would like to thank the Runtastic team for their excellent cooperation. Today, Runtastic is one of the leading providers in its sector and will now enter the next phase of its development. With Adidas, Runtastic has the best possible partner for this purpose and Axel Springer has achieved a very good deal."

Source: Axel Springer