Flutter Agrees to Acquire Sisal for $2.2 Billion, Continues Its Expansion

Flutter Entertainment has agreed to set terms to buy Sisal, an Italian gaming operator, for a price tag of $2.2 billion. As a statement released today details, Flutter will purchase the company, which is owned by CVC Capital Partners Fund VI in an all-cash deal, set to be finalized in Q2 2022.

Flutter Had a Few Major Acquisitions in the Recent Period

The UK firm is looking to end 2021 on solid ground as it has been making massive moves in the past couple of months. Back in October, Flutter purchased Singular after it acquired 100% of its shares. Then, it strengthened its UK portfolio with a $542.90 million deal to acquire Tombola.

Sisal puts a major focus on betting and gaming services in Italy and some of the most popular games that this brand manages are SuperEnalotto, Totocalcio, and Totip. Jefferies analysts commented on the purchase in a client note by saying that the move is the perfect choice to gain a leading position on the Italian market and benefit from further exposure in other countries as well.

The retail channel of Sisal will be targeted by Betfair and PokerStars, which are Flutter’s existing brands, while the casino product will get access to the in-house gaming content by Flutter.

Before being acquired by Flutter, Sisal was purchased by CVC in 2016 for a price of $1.1 billion. The company also filed for an IPO on the Milan Exchange and as Flutter stated, the expected EBITDA is around $282 million in the 12 months leading to December 2021. This takeover will be financed with debt facilities agreed with Barclays.

Flutter is Also Making Massive Moves in the UK

Recently, Flutter’s shares in early trading in London rose by 2.9%. Not only that, but back in October, the company announced the opening of a ground-breaking technology and innovation hub, located in Leeds, Yorkshire.

Flutter Entertainment UK and Ireland CEO, Conor Grant, stated that the new Leeds office represents the company’s future vision of working and added that he’s looking forward to welcoming colleagues into a new modern workspace that offers agility and flexibility.

The new facility costs $20.7 million and is likely to fill around 1,700 positions across creative, technology, and media industries. Moreover, it is spread across 136,000 square feet on eight floors at 4 Wellington Place in Leeds Dock.

As for the reason why Leeds was chosen as the hub’s location, Grant stated that the Flutter Group has benefited greatly from the technology capabilities that it developed in this city, and hence, the multi-million investment demonstrated Flutter’s commitment to the colleagues and Leeds.