Flutter Entertainment is buying The Stars Group to create the world’s biggest online betting company. Flutter is acquiring the Canadian betting firm in an all-stock transaction valued at $6 billion, or an estimated $11 billion when including assumed debt.
The combined group’s annual revenue would have been $4.7 billion in 2018, which would have ranked highest among global online betting operators. Flutter’s assets include FanDuel, Irish bookmaker Paddy Power, U.K.-based gambling company BetFair, and Sportsbet Australia. Flutter will now also own The Stars Group’s assets, including PokerStars and Sky Betting & Gaming.
In May, The Stars Group signed a 25-year partnership with Fox Sports to build the network’s betting platform. FOX Bet has already launched in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. That deal gave Fox Sports a 4.99% equity stake in The Stars Group in exchange for a $236 million investment. As part of the Flutter-TSG merger, Fox Sports will have the right to acquire an 18.5% equity stake in the FanDuel Group in 2021, further boosting the network’s interests in the U.S. sports betting space.
“Our FOX Bet partnership is off to a great start, and teaming up with Flutter and FanDuel will allow us to build on that strength and jointly capture the significant market potential ahead of us. We’re excited to be able to expand our partnership into FanDuel, which together with FOX Bet, will be a leader in sports wagering in the US” said Lachlan Murdoch, executive chairman and CEO of the Fox Corporation, in a statement.
Flutter and TSG’s merger won’t be completed until approvals have been granted by regulators in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, the U.S. and Canada. According to Bloomberg, the combined company's dominant U.K. presence could create antitrust concerns.
