Pferdewetten plans retail expansion with acquisition of 25 betting shops

The operator aims to expand its Sportwetten brand.

Germany.- Pferdewetten.de AG has announced that it plans a retail betting expansion for its Sportwetten.de brand through the acquisition of 25 betting shops across Germany. The Düsseldorf-based operator told German media it had signed a declaration of intent to buy the outlets from a well-known German sports betting company.

It said it will purchase the betting shops in two phases via a new subsidiary, SW Shops. The first transaction will be a 30 per cent stake in exchange for around €6.3m. The remaining 70 per cent of the acquisition will close by 2026 at a price based on financial results. SW Shops will also create new shops by 2026, with these to operate as Sportwetten.de franchises.

Pferdewetten is the main operator of German horse racing betting terminals. Formed in 1997, it relaunched the Sportwetten.de sportsbook brand in 2018, and now has three of its own retail stores and 108 acceptance locations. It expects the new expansion to impact results from 2027.

CEO Pierre Hofer said: “With this acquisition, we are strengthening the expansion of our Sportwetten.de betting acceptance network and massively expanding our own shop operations.

“In 2023, the focus was on setting up and expanding the retail network as quickly as possible. With 108 locations at the end of the year, we are within our target corridor. In addition to maintaining the pace of expansion, we now want to significantly expand our own inventory, which currently stands at three stores.”

Germany awarded its first federal sports betting licences in 2020.