Ladbrokes and Coral owner Entain has bought sports media group 365scores, marking its tenth acquisition in the past 18 months.
The FTSE 100 gambling giant has agreed to spend $150million (around £120million) upfront for the Tel Aviv-based firm, plus up to £8million in contingent payments.
Started by four former Israel Defence Forces members in 2012, 365scores provides real-time results and statistics across ten different sports, including football, cricket and tennis, and thousands of competitions to sports fans.
Takeover: Ladbrokes owner Entain has bought Israeli sports media group 365scores, which provides real-time results and statistics on ten different sports, such as football and cricket
According to analytics platform Data.ai, the company has more than 15 million active users and is one of the world’s top five most popular scores apps.
Entain, which also owns PartyPoker and Foxy Bingo brands, said the transaction would help broaden the interactive content and experiences on offer to its customers.
It is the second acquisition made by Entain this year, having agreed to purchase software developer Sportsflare from Tidal Holdings for $13.25million in March.
Over the past 18 months, the group has embarked on a takeover spree in order to expand its territorial reach and diversify its product range.
Last year, Entain paid €600million (£507million) to Czech investment management firm EMMA Capital, with whom it runs the joint venture Entain CEE, for a majority stake in Zagreb-based SuperSport.
The company also snapped up Latvian firm Klondaika, Polish sports betting provider Totolotek, and online Canadian brand Avid Gaming, and agreed to attain Dutch rival BetCity in a deal costing a potential £753million.
Before then, Entain entered the Portuguese market by acquiring the website Bet.pt, and expanded its presence in the Baltic and Nordic regions through the takeover of online gaming operator Enlabs.
‘The sports betting and gaming industry is no stranger to inorganic growth,’ said Victoria Scholar, the head of investment at Interactive Investor.
‘But [the 365scores] bolt-on is slightly different, pushing Entain into sports media content, underscoring the importance of data when it comes to targeting new audiences.’
Entain was itself the subject of an £8.1billion bid two years ago from MGM Resorts, operator of iconic Las Vegas resorts like the Bellagio and MGM Grand, which it rejected for being too low.
Five years ago, the two groups formed BetMGM to capitalise on the legalisation of sports betting across multiple US states.
For the last financial year, BetMGM’s net gaming revenue jumped by 71 per cent, compared to 12 per cent growth overall for Entain.
The company said it expected the joint venture to make between $1.8billion and $2billion in revenue this year, compared to $1.44billion in 2022, and turn a positive underlying profit during the second half of the period.
Entain shares were 0.5 per cent higher at 1,260.5p on Wednesday afternoon. They have expanded by almost 180 per cent over the past three years.
