Harsh Jain, co-founder and CEO of Dream Sports, the parent company of online gaming and fantasy sports major Dream11, has said that the company will not oppose the government plan and instead plan to rebuild under a “3.0 model”.

Notably, Dream11 has been impacted by the government’s ban on online real money gaming, after both Houses of Parliament passed the ‘Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill 2025’ last week.

Speaking to Storyboard18, Jain discussed his views on the ban, and what the ₹7,000 crore worth (Bloomberg pegs the worth at around $8 billion) company’s future would look like.

Dream11 CEO ‘ready for 3.0’: What does this mean?

On Dream11 3.0, Jain noted that with 95 per cent of the company’s revenues gone, “aggressive” focus would be on other businesses such as DreamCricket, DreamMoney, DreamSetGo and FanCode.

Why “3.0”? According to the CEO, the company’s non-RMG journey from 2008-12 was phase 1, while the RMG-based phase from 2012-15 was Dream11 2.0; thus Dream11 3.0 will be a new model.

How will this work? Jain is looking to make fantasy sports “more engaging and find a sustainable business model, and maybe even take it global as a Make-in-India product”. With the option of RMG gone, free-to-play would be a factor and as such advertising and sponsorships, as well as expansion to global markets, would be key, he added.

Dream11 will not challenge govt ban: ‘We’ve complied immediately…’

He added that the company would respect the law, stating, “When our business model was constitutionally protected, we ran it. Now that the law has changed, we’ve complied immediately — even before the ban was formally signed. And I can say clearly: Dream11 will not challenge this law in court.”

On legal action, he added, “Today’s law prohibits RMG, so we won’t challenge it. However, if someone tries to retroactively claim our past operations were illegal gambling, we will defend ourselves, because back then we were constitutionally protected.”

Dream11: No layoffs planned, says CEO

“We have 500 engineers who were previously focused on maintaining existing systems. Now, we’ll redirect them toward building for the future — AI-driven innovations in sports content, commerce, merchandising, and fan experiences,” Jain said.

When asked about layoffs, Jain was firm that they had no such plans. “No. The only way out of this hole is by building great products, and that requires great talent… If we ever have to start laying off talent, that would be the day we should consider shutting down. Instead, we’ll cut marketing, advertising, and partnership spends. But our people stay,” he added.

Dream11 pulls out of Indian team sponsorship?

Earlier today, reports noted that Dream11 informed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that it is “is not in a situation to sponsor teams anymore”.

Speaking to Storyboard, Jain confirmed that the company is in the last six months of its contract with the BCCI and have discussed the impact of the ban with them. “We’ve had a decade-long relationship with the BCCI, which we deeply value. Any decision about the partnership will be made mutually. We’ve already discussed the impact of the ban with them, and we’ll work out a mutually beneficial way forward,” Jain told Storyboard18.

A BCCI official told Sportstar that representatives of Dream11 visited their office and informed of their inability to sponsor teams, adding that the Board is “exploring other options” as there is not much time left for the Asia Cup.

When Dream11 replaced Byju’s as the official Indian cricket team’s sponsor in 2023, the three-year deal was reportedly worth ₹358 crore.

View on the online real money gaming ban

Jain in the interview said that he wished the government would have introduced regulations instead of outright banning RMGs, giving the example of how Tamil Nadu mandated KYC, time limitations and player limits to address concerns.

“It (Tamil Nadu laws) addressed all concerns while ensuring government tax revenues and keeping the black market out. I wish similar regulations had been implemented nationally, rather than a ban,” he added.

He added that the entire industry was “caught off guard” by the Bill, adding that its quick progression from being tabled in Parliament to being passed by both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha “was a complete shock”.

But added, “In hindsight, the industry failed to strongly self-regulate years ago… we never united under one. A few of us signed a code of ethics six months ago, but we should have done much more earlier to protect consumers and keep bad operators out.”