Flutter And The Stars Group Merge To Create Giant Gambling Firm
Flutter Entertainment and The Stars Group have announced a merger to create one of the world’s largest gambling companies.
The two firms announced their merger today, revealing that shareholders of Flutter, which was previously known as Paddy Power Betfair, will own over 50% of the new company while Stars Group shareholders will possess just over 40% of the newly combined company.
Reports have revealed that the new company will be based in Dublin and have a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange and a secondary listing the Euronext Dublin. In a statement, the two companies revealed they would have had combined revenues of £3.8 billion in 2018 and that the deal is expected to create £140 million per year of pre-tax cost synergies.
The two firms have also said that the merger would help them launch in the US market. Currently, The Stars Group announced a partnership with Fox Sports to provide sports betting services to gamblers in the US and Flutter reportedly bought US fantasy sports site DanDuel back in May 2018.
The merger will see staff changes within the company too. Flutter Chief Executive Peter Jackson will become the Chief Executive of the merged firm while Flutter Chairman Gary McGann takes on the role of Chairman of the newly combined group. Jonathan Hill, the CFO of Flutter, wil continue his role as CFO of the combined group.
What They Say
Flutter Entertainment CEO Peter Jackson said in a statement: “The combination represents a great opportunity to deliver a step-change in our presence in international markets and ensure we are ideally positioned to take advantage of the exciting opportunity in the US through a media relationship with FOX Sports as well as our development of US sports betting through Flutter’s FanDuel and TSG’s FOX Bet Brands.
“We are committed to these two high-quality brands to drive the growth of the Combined Group in the US. The combination will turbocharge our existing four-pillar strategy and provide world-class capabilities across sports betting, gaming, daily fantasy sports and poker, as well as greater geographical and product diversification. We believe the combination of Flutter and TSG will deliver substantial value for shareholders. We will have an exceptional portfolio of leading recreational brands and best-in-class products on industry-leading technology platforms.”
Rafi Ashkenazi, the CEO of The Stars Group, said: “This exciting combination will allow us to enhance and accelerate our existing strategy. In recent years, we have transformed TSG from a single product operator in poker, to a diverse global leader with multiple product offerings across poker, gaming and sports betting. The combination with Flutter will further enhance our company’s core strengths, and position us strongly for the future in this rapidly evolving industry. I’m delighted to be joining the Board of the Combined Group and to serve as its COO.”