D-Bat Franchise Failure Rate
SBA 7(a) loan default data, FY2010–FY2019 · Updated 2026
D-Bat franchisees defaulted on 15.0% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 3 of 20 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is higher than the Sports and Recreation Instruction industry average of 7.5%.
- 15.0%SBA default rate3 of 20 loans
- 20loans resolvedapproved FY2010–FY2019
- 7.5%Sports and Recreation Instruction averageall SBA loans in the industry
- 3rd lowestindustry rankof 4 Sports and Recreation Instruction brands
| SBA default rate | 15.0% |
|---|---|
| Loans approved | 20 |
| Loans charged off | 3 |
| Date range | FY2010–FY2019 |
| Industry | Sports and Recreation Instruction |
| Industry average | 7.5% |
| Total initial investment (FDD Item 7) | $503,450–$995,100 |
| Data source | U.S. SBA 7(a) FOIA loan data |
Most SBA default figures published online use loans approved since 2020 — loans that have had six years or less to fail — so those rates are floors, not outcomes. Every rate on this site is computed from the matured FY2010–FY2019 cohort: loans that have been paid in full or charged off, so the result is settled. Loans approved since 2020 are shown as counts so early charge-offs are visible without being mistaken for a rate.
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Figures also in the comparison table below.
About 1 in 7 D-Bat SBA borrowers failed to repay — well above the Sports and Recreation Instruction average of 7.5%.
What is the D-Bat franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
D-Bat is a Sports and Recreation Instruction franchise. This page reports the outcome of every SBA 7(a) loan the U.S. Small Business Administration's public FOIA file attributes to D-Bat franchisees: 20 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 3 were charged off. Loan statuses are as of June 30, 2026, and the cohort has matured, so these are settled outcomes rather than projections.
- SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY201920
- Charged off3
- Charge-off rate15.0%
- Sports and Recreation Instruction franchise benchmark7.5%
- Brand vs industry2.0x
- All-franchise SBA benchmark10.2%
- Average loan size, 2010s cohort$671,375
- New SBA loans since 202086
- Early charge-offs since 20201
How does D-Bat compare with other Sports and Recreation Instruction franchises?
The table sets D-Bat's charge-off rate beside its Sports and Recreation Instruction peers and the two economy-wide benchmarks. All figures use the same cohort — SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026 — and the same denominator of resolved loans, so they are directly comparable.
| Measure | D-Bat | Sports and Recreation Instruction | All franchises | All SBA borrowers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default (charge-off) rate | 15.0% | 7.5% | 10.2% | 8.0% |
| Loans in sample | 20 | — | — | — |
| Defaults | 3 | — | — | — |
| Average loan size | $671,375 | — | — | — |
What would D-Bat's royalty and ad fund cost at your sales level?
From D-Bat's FDD Item 6 (2026): royalty % of sales. Royalty and ad fund only · illustration. Other Item 6 fees, fixed or percentage, and local marketing minimums are not included. D-BAT charges no sales-based royalty; Item 6 lists a monthly Management Fee of 40% of Membership Fees, or up to 12% of Gross Revenue for defaulting or low-performing Facilities.
| Annual sales | Royalty |
|---|
What has D-Bat SBA lending looked like since 2020?
Since 2020, D-Bat franchisees have taken 86 new SBA 7(a) loans. 1 has already charged off. Early defaults on loans under six years old are worth noting. Most SBA failures take longer to develop.
Loans approved since 2020, by fiscal year — counts only: 1 has charged off to date and most are still outstanding, so no rate is drawn.
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026.
Show the numbers behind this chart
| Fiscal year | Loans | Charged off | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2011 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2014 | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2016 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2017 | 2 | 2 | 100.0% |
| FY2018 | 10 | 1 | 10.0% |
| FY2019 | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2020 | 9 | — | outstanding |
| FY2021 | 9 | — | outstanding |
| FY2022 | 15 | — | outstanding |
| FY2023 | 13 | — | outstanding |
| FY2024 | 11 | — | outstanding |
| FY2025 | 16 | — | outstanding |
| FY2026 | 13 | — | outstanding |
How to read this
A charge-off means a franchisee borrowed, operated, and failed severely enough that the SBA wrote off the government-guaranteed loan. Unlike franchisor marketing or Item 19 disclosures, this is an observed outcome recorded by a federal agency. One caveat cuts the other way: SBA borrowers are typically less capitalized than all-cash buyers, so these rates can overstate risk for well-funded operators.
How reliable is this number?
D-Bat's figure rests on 20 resolved SBA 7(a) loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019. That cohort has matured, so the rate is a settled outcome, not a projection. With 20 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 5.0 percentage points. Loans approved since 2020 are excluded from the rate because most are still outstanding; they appear on this page as counts only. Every D-Bat figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.
Based on 20 resolved loans — directional, not precise.
Is D-Bat in financial trouble? What the SBA data shows
D-Bat's SBA 7(a) default rate was 15.0% for loans approved FY2010–FY2019 (3 of 20 loans charged off) — 3rd lowest of 4 Sports and Recreation Instruction brands tracked here. A default rate this far above the Sports and Recreation Instruction average of 7.5% is a signal worth investigating further before investing.
Frequently asked
- What is D-Bat's franchise failure rate?
- D-Bat franchisees defaulted on 15.0% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 3 of 20 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is higher than the Sports and Recreation Instruction industry average of 7.5%.
- How does D-Bat compare to other Sports and Recreation Instruction franchises?
- D-Bat's 15.0% SBA default rate is higher than the Sports and Recreation Instruction industry average of 7.5%. See every Sports and Recreation Instruction franchise ranked on the Sports and Recreation Instruction industry page. Sports and Recreation Instruction franchises →
- What does 'SBA default rate' mean?
- An SBA default rate is the share of SBA 7(a) loans, approved FY2010–FY2019 and since resolved (paid in full or charged off), that were charged off — written off after the borrower failed to repay. It is not a measure of unit closures.
- How much does a D-Bat franchise cost?
- D-Bat's 2026 FDD puts the total initial investment (Item 7) at $503,450–$995,100, including an initial franchise fee of $45,000 (Item 5). The average SBA 7(a) loan to a D-Bat franchisee in the 2010s cohort was $671,375.
- Who owns D-Bat?
- D-Bat is franchised by D-BAT Academies, LLC, according to the brand's FDD (2026).
Source
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 7(a) loan program charge-off data, FY2010–FY2019. Franchise data is matched on the SBA's franchise code / brand name. "Failure rate" here means the share of approved loans (resolved: paid in full or charged off) that were charged off; it is not a measure of unit closures. Last updated September 30, 2026.
Every brand in one table, with percentiles and breakdowns by year, industry and loan size: franchise SBA default rates, all 415 brands.
Cite this page
Franchise Default Rates (2026). D-Bat franchise SBA 7(a) default rate, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 15.0% (3 of 20 loans charged off). Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/d-bat/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)