Flutter spends $2.2bn to acquire Italy’s oldest gaming company Sisal
Flutter Entertainment plc announced this week the acquisition of Italy’s oldest gambling company, Sisal. Flutter will purchase the company from CVC Capital Partners Fund VI, aligning its strategy to invest in building leadership positions in regulated markets around the world. The transaction should be completed during the second quarter of next year.
What Sisal Provides Flutter
Flutter benefits from the Sisal acquisition in many ways. The company will secure a solid position in Italy. Combining the two will result in a share of 20% of the online market. Flutter already operates in Italy online via Betfair and PokerStar brands.
Italy is the second-largest regulated market in Europe. Online gambling has increased in the region over the past few years and with the Sisal acquisition, Flutter will be able to capitalize on the market’s overall growth.
The omnichannel product of Sisal will be used by Flutter, giving the company a competitive edge. Flutter will be able to use the retail outlets of the company to offer cash deposits and withdrawals in the retail sector for gambling, which is a plus.
The customer base of flutter will also grow, as the company will take on 300,000 online average monthly players. In the retail sector of Sisal, the company has a strong player base of more than 9.5 million customers.
Flutter Chief Executive Peter Jackson commented on the acquisition by stating: “I am delighted to add Sisal, Italy’s leading gaming brand, to the Group as we look to attain a gold medal position in the Italian market.”
Jackson pointed out the company wanted to achieve a gold medal position in Italy for quite some time. The acquisition allows the company to do just that by using an omnichannel strategy.
Flutter Purchases Tombola Limited
The Sisal acquisition is not the only deal Flutter has been working on. In November, it was announced that the brand spent $540.2 million to acquire Tombola Limited, a top-rated online bingo operator. Flutter will use its Tombola Limited acquisition to expand its position in a product vertical that the company called ‘historically under-in-dexed’.
The deal enhanced the company’s online gaming presence in the United Kingdom and allows it to add a large player base of active customers. Tombola’s player base consists of 400,000 plus users each month. Peter Jackson commented on this deal as well, stating that he is excited to combine the digital marketing expertise of Flutter with the operational capabilities of Tombola Limited in the UK and Ireland.