Entain has completed the €450m ($484.2m) acquisition of Dutch operator BetCity from Sports Entertainment Media. The deal grants Entain access to the Dutch regulated segment, where BetCity was one of the initial 10 licensees and quickly became a leader after market launch on 1 October 2021, holding a 20% share of the sector in Q4 2021 .
Entain’s brands were unable to launch in the Netherlands as part of the initial batch of licensees due to the country’s “cooling” period for operators who had accepted Dutch customers before the opening of the betting market. While that period ended last year, and Entain initially expected its brands to receive licenses in 2022, this has yet to happen.
“We are pleased to complete the acquisition of BetCity,” said Entain Chief Executive Jette Nygaar-Andersen. “The combination of BetCity’s local expertise and strong brand, with Entain’s global scale and market-leading platform, provides customers with an enriched and broader offering of engaging products, fresh content and new experiences.”
“This transaction underpins our growth strategy to operate and further expand into attractive regulated markets. We look forward to working with [co-founder and chief executive] Melvin [Bostelaar] and the team at BetCity as we execute on the significant opportunities in the Dutch market,” added Jette.
With the closing of the deal, Entain will pay €300 million as initial consideration. It will then pay an amount “once BetCity’s 2022 financial performance is confirmed” and one will bear an amount of 10 times BetCity’s 2023 EBITDA in early 2024.
After that, it will pay a final amount of €50 million “on delivering synergies and successful migration to the Entain platform”. Entain expects the total cost of the acquisition to be €450m, although depending on performance it could reach €850m.
