Entain Doubles Down On iGaming With New Billion Dollar Loan

Sports betting and online casino gambling are growing rapidly across the globe. Industry leaders are looking to capitalize on the growth by beefing up their acquisition strategy. Entain is one of those companies looking to double down on the iGaming and sports wagering industry.

Entain seeking additional loans to secure more acquisitions

Global sports betting and casino entertainment brand, Entain, has announced they’ve acquired a new loan worth $1 billion. The recent announcement comes from the company’s CEO, Jette Nygaard-Andersen.

According to the company’s announcement, the new loan will be used to finance the acquisition of SuperSport and to help maximize Entain’s liquidity. Financing for the loan comes with a 6.2% cash cost until September 2023. 

Entain actually had already been in the process of securing a $750 million loan. The $1 billion loan was an upsize from the $750 million loan initially planned.

SuperSport Acquisition

Entain announced its plans to acquire Croatia-based SuperSport on August 11th of this year and expects the acquisition to be completed sometime in Q4. SuperSport is a “major broadcast aggregator of sporting content across Sub-Saharan Africa,” according to its website.

Entain expected to use $675.44 million of the loan to make the purchase. Entain will have a 75% stake in the company when completed. EMMA Capital is purchasing the remaining stake in SuperSport. Details from the acquisition can be found by visiting this link. 

BetCity acquisition 

It’s reported that Entain will also use funds from the loan to acquire BetCity, a sports betting brand from the Netherlands. According to Entain, they’ve received increased interest from global credit investors, leading to an increased loan amount. The acquisition of BetCity was announced back in June of this year. Entain is expecting to pay approximately $293.6 million in cash, along with a payment in 2024 based on BetCity’s EBITDA. Details from the acquisition can be found by visiting this link. 

More debt = more sustainable?

According to Nygaard-Andersen, the billion-dollar loan was unavoidable to ensure the company remains “sustainable.” Unfortunately, that word is thrown around quite a lot in 2022. Nygaard-Andersen is really referring to the company’s environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) initiatives that the loan will help fund. Entain reported they’ll be using $112.5 million of the loan to fund more ESG initiatives.

The purpose of these initiatives is seemingly to attract more investors for the company. According to Nygaard-Andersen, 90% of potential investors consider ESG first, and 25% of employee candidates say ESG is one of the most important considerations when making a job change. Further information about the “sustainability” ESG initiatives was not provided during the company’s $1 billion loan announcement. 

About Entain

You may not have heard about Entain before, but you likely know one of their largest US partners. In 2018, Entain (at the time GVC Holdings) partnered with MGM Resorts International, a 50/50 joint venture, to create the online casino and sports wagering brand, BetMGM. As many Michiganders know, BetMGM has grown to become the #1 online casino in the Great Lake State. 

Entain currently operates in more than 27 countries. The brand was founded in Luxembourg in 2004 as Gaming VC Holdings. Since then, the company has grown to become the second-largest sports wagering company in the world in terms of revenue. The company generated $4.33 billion in revenue last year, second only to International Game Technology (IGT), which generated $4.69 billion in 2021. 

In December 2020, GVC Holdings underwent a rebranding to Entain. Along with the renaming came a new corporate strategy announced by the company.

Mac Daniel is a Michigan native and freelance writer for PlayOnlineCasino and PlayOnlineSportsBetting. He has experience writing about a wide variety of topics, including healthcare, tourism, non-profit organizations, and most recently casino and sportsbetting news. To check out more of his work, visit: playonlinemichigan.com