Hard Rock Florida restart in the balance
Hard Rock Florida restart in the balanceHard Rock’s choices, William Hill figures, Better Collective and EveryMatrix M&A, GM and MeridianBet merger terms +More
Good morning. On the Weekender agenda:
Skipping over the ocean like a stone. Hard choicesCommercial risks cloud Hard Rock’s decision over whether to restart OSB operations in Florida, suggest analysts at EKG. All roads lead: Faced with the likelihood of the Seminole compact case heading eventually to the Supreme Court, the tribe’s Hard Rock business faces a tough choice over whether to restart operations within the state.
Oh baby, baby it’s a wild world: The EKG analysts said it is “very likely” that tribes in other states will follow the Seminole lead and get OSB provisions included within their compacts.
** SPONSOR’S MESSAGE ** Venture capital firm Yolo Investments manages in excess of €600m in capital across 80 exciting fintech, gaming and blockchain companies. The Yolo Investments' Gaming fund, regulated by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission, has taken positions in fast-growth suppliers and operators, including Dabble and Enteractive. Yolo Investments (yolo.io) wants to hear from readers of this newsletter. Get in touch with your pitch, or for a chat about innovative products which can plug into our investment ecosystem. ICYMIIn LosIngresos+Mas this week, the potential for the market in Peru is discussed following the approval of the new regulations. The final law is set to be published later this month, with the market likely to open before the end of the year. In Esprouts, Ollie Ring looks back to an esports-betting conference that took place in May 2016 and wonders why the agenda for the sector has barely changed in the intervening seven years. In Compliance+More: in the UK, Betfair gets criticized by a Coroner over its failures in relation to the suicide of a disordered gambler and the gambling ad ban in the Netherlands comes into force. In Earnings+More’s Startup Month sent earlier this week, the $35m raised by betr at the very end of June managed to bolster an otherwise anemic quarter for funding rounds in the betting and gaming space. (Not) king of the mountainsThe extent of the downturn within William Hill’s online business is laid bare. Hill to die on: William Hill’s online operations saw net revenues dive by 19% in 2022 to £509m, while adj. EBITDA for that arm of the business tumbled by 27% to £112m. William Hill was acquired by 888 in July last year.
Get the picture: For the business as a whole, revenue decreased marginally to £1.24bn while group EBITDA rose on the back of a retail resurgence, which saw revenues bounceback to £514m, up 53%, and adj. EBITDA of £96m vs. just £0.1m in 2021. Operating losses more than halved to £31m. Better buySuper affiliate Better Collective adds another bauble to its collection. The social: Better Collective has splashed out an initial $15m in cash on Florida-based and US-facing social media and sports content provider Playmaker HQ. Including three-years-worth of earnouts, the deal could be worth up to $54m.
Heroic: Playmaker is targeting revenues of $10m in 2023 with EBITDA margins pegged at 20-25%. To hit its $38m of earnouts, the company will need to generate $75m in revenue and $25m in EBITDA over the next three years.
Going deepDeep, deep down: EveryMatrix’s acquisition of the gaming affiliate optimization service DeepCI was completed this week for an undisclosed sum. The company was founded in 2020 by Riaan de Jager and Lewis Civin, and EveryMatrix said this week it was already profitable.
Entain’s Slovenian deal offNo deal: Entain has pulled out of a deal to buy the Slovenian lottery operator Športna Loterija due to concerns over selling the business to a foreign-owned entity, according to local media.
Golden ratioGolden Matrix and MeridianBet amend the terms of their merger. Win some, lose some: The total value of the merger between Golden Matrix and MeridianBet has been upped a couple of notches to $331m, but the upfront cash payment has been lowered to $30m and the timeline for completion stretched out.
Macau recoveryDespite an upturn following May’s blip, investors are likely to remain disgruntled, say analysts. Lull before the storm: A recovery in GGR to 64% of 2019 levels marks a return from the May lull and should mark the point of reacceleration, according to the analysts at Roth MKM.
Best-case scenario: According to data from the University of Macau, the SAR’s GDP will more than double to 44% if tourist figures reach 80% of 2019 levels by year-end. At worst it will grow 30-35% of pre-pandemic levels in H2, it said. ** SPONSOR’S MESSAGE ** Underdog: the most innovative company in sports gaming. At Underdog we use our own tech stack to create the industry’s most popular games, designing products specifically for the American sports fan. Join us as we build the future of sports gaming. Visit https://underdogfantasy.com/careers Sector watch – meme stocksDay traders appear intent on throwing money away on a bankrupt company. Bedtime for bozos: Reddit-reading day traders have reportedly spent almost $200m on what are effectively worthless shares in Bed, Bath & Beyond, the US homewares company, that went bankrupt at the start of May.
Zombie: Speaking to the paper, a Loop Capital Markets analyst said the trading in Bed, Bath & Beyond was “almost a mutation” of the meme stock phenomena that emerged during the pandemic.
🤿 The Roundhill MEME ETF has struggled since launch End of the line: Such is the parlous state of Bed, Bath & Beyond that the company has actually sold its name to online retailer Overstock. As the FT story suggested, the day-traders still punting on the shares are now betting against each other rather than, as was the case with GameStop, hedge funds.
What we’re readingMaking a splash: A P2P platform emerges from stealth mode. Buckle up: MGM’s Bill Hornbuckle says infrastructure funds could be used to help ease congestion on the route into the Strip from southern California. Rock bottom: Gibrlatar’s elite caught up in Globix crypto collapse. ** SPONSOR’S MESSAGE ** What would you do with $100k in cash? Are you game…? NewslinesGenius Sports has extended its rights deal with the NFL for a further three years, meaning it will now run until the 2027-28 season. The deal also now includes the exclusive rights to distribute official NFL Watch & Bet low latency live game video feeds to sportsbooks internationally.
Worldpay is once again in the hands of private equity after owner FIS announced it has agreed to sell a majority stake to GTCR, which values the business at $18.5bn.
Caesars has become the latest operator to open up sportsbook operations in Puerto Rico. Sporting Solutions has renewed an agreement to provide pre-match and in-play trading services and odds tools for multiple sports to Sky Bet. Calendar
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Older messages
Betr tidings lift funding figures
Monday, July 3, 2023
Second quarter funding review, a guide to bootstrapping, inside the raise – PayNearMe +More
PointsBet US sale gets the go-ahead
Friday, June 30, 2023
Fanatics Betting & Gaming buyout waved through, streamer Kick is the subject of sector watch, Nevada's tough comps +More
PointsBet accepts improved $225m bid from Fanatics
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
M&A extra: PointsBet accepts new offer from Fanatics, DraftKings pulls out of the race, betr fundraise
DraftKings gains ground
Tuesday, June 27, 2023
DraftKings makes market share gains in May, overround analysis looks at what the bookies are doing in the off-season, plus recession rumblings +More
PointsBet bidders were in ‘merger talks’
Monday, June 26, 2023
DraftKings/Fanatics report, Genius EPL extension, another New York entrant, startup focus – Split the Pot +More
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