Flutter completes acquisition of Sisal
Dublin-headquartered Flutter has expanded its European presence with its acquisition of the Italian lottery operator, Sisal.
Ireland.- Flutter has completed its acquisition of the Italian online gambling and lottery operator Sisal after receiving the necessary regulatory approvals. The Dublin-headquartered gambling giant had announced the €1.91bn deal in December.
Flutter says the acquisition forms part of a strategy to expand its leadership in regulated markets internationally. It funded the purchase using debt facilities arranged when it made its offer. They take Flutter’s anticipated average cost of debt for this half to around 3.4 per cent.
Sisal has run Italy’s national lottery, SuperEnalotto, since 1997. It also runs national lotteries in Morocco and Turkey, the latter being a joint venture with Demirören Holding. It also offers online betting and gaming in Italy and now also in Spain where it recently launched in partnership with Sportnco.
It entered the British Gambling Commission’s tender for the next UK National Lottery licence but lost to the Czech lottery giant Allwyn. Flutter had interceded to back Sisal’s bid.
Sisal has reported strong results since Flutter agreed to acquire the company. Its first half revenue was up 58 per cent year-on-year at £402m. EBITDA rose 51 per cent to £120m.
