Allwyn Group completes rebranding
The former Sazka has completed its rebranding to Allwyn Group.
Czech Republic.- The Czech lottery and gaming giant Allwyn Group has finished its rebranding from its former name, Sazka. The operator, which has a strong presence in the Czech Republic, Greece and Austria but has won the tender to run the UK National Lottery from 2024, has completed the transformation of its corporate identity across all core business units.
The company announced the rebranding at the end of 2021. The Allwyn name was initially used only for the UK-facing unit of the business as it developed its bid for the National Lottery, but it was then rolled out to replace the Sazka name, reflecting the company’s aims to expand internationally.
The Switzerland-based management company SAZKA Entertainment AG has now transferred its identity to Allwyn AG. The company’s European lotteries portfolio (with the exception of the UK) will be managed as Allwyn International AS, headquartered in the Czech Republic. This comprises OPAP in Greece and Cyprus, Lotteries Austria and Lotto ‘Gioco’ Italia. The UK business will operate as Allwyn Services UK Ltd.
Sazka’s original Czech gambling business will now operate under the Allwyn CZ domain.
Allwyn Group CEO Robert Chvátal said: “We have decided to rename our key entities’ legal names to align with our new Allwyn brand.
“Please note that only the legal names were changed. The ownership structure, the holding structure and the activities of the companies remain the same. Our games will continue to be offered under the iconic local brands which our customers love.”
In January, the board of Allwyn confirmed that it was seeking a NYSE listing through a SPAC merger with Cohn Robbins Holdings Corp (CRHC), run by former Goldman Sachs COO and President Trump advisor Gary Cohn. CRHC has yet to provide details, but it’s expected that Allwyn will target a $9.2bn+ valuation.
In the UK, Camelot has launched a High Court appeal against the Gambling Commission’s decision to choose Czech Republic’s Allwyn as its preferred applicant for the next National Lottery licence.
Chief executive Nigel Railton said the company wanted to know why Camelot’s bid didn’t win despite scoring highest in an evaluation phase of the tender. Camelot has run the UK National Lottery since its inception in 1994.
The new, fourth licence period will begin in 2024, the lottery’s 30th anniversary year. The other contenders in the Gambling Commission’s tender were Italy’s Sisal, which is in the process of being acquired by Flutter, and Richard Desmond’s Northern & Shell.
