Gambling giant Flutter has claimed victory after an American court concluded a long-running legal battle with Rupert Murdoch’s Fox.
The pair have been locked in a dispute since April 2021 over the price that Fox should pay if it buys an 18.6 per cent stake in FanDuel, which is majority owned by Flutter.
The court ruled in favour of Flutter, which argued the holding should be valued at FanDuel’s current market price, rather than the much cheaper amount Flutter paid for its own chunk of the company in December 2020.
Long-running battle: The pair have been locked in a dispute since April 2021 over the price that Fox should pay if it buys an 18.6 per cent stake in FanDuel, which is majority owned by Flutter
The decision is based on FanDuel’s current $20billion (£17.6billion) valuation, putting the value of Fox’s option at $3.7billion (£3.25billion).
The ruling, released late on Friday night, means the FTSE100-listed firm could earn billions from a deal. Analysts believe the company could then pass some or all of the amount on to shareholders.
Fox has ten years to decide whether it should go ahead with the deal.
Flutter boss Peter Jackson said: ‘The ruling vindicates the confidence we had in our position – and provides certainty on what it would cost Fox to buy into this business, should they wish to do so.’
Fox said the court’s ruling gave the company the option to acquire a ‘meaningful equity stake in the market-leading US online sports betting operation’.
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