Kindred Group Expands Sports Betting Capabilities with Stats Perform Partnership Amid Acquisition Talks with FDJ
Kindred Group Expands Partnership with Stats Perform to Enhance Sports Betting Experience
Overview of the Partnership
Kindred Group, a prominent player in the online gambling industry, has announced an expanded strategic partnership with Stats Perform. This agreement enables Kindred to access an extensive array of data and statistics for sports betting, significantly enhancing the offerings available through its Kindred Sportsbook platform.
Under the expanded deal, Kindred is granted full access to the comprehensive product suite of RunningBall and Opta from Stats Perform. This includes a variety of real-time official sports data feeds and statistics that are essential for an elevated sports betting experience. Kindred representatives emphasized that the additional content would lead to improvements in the overall user experience, particularly for in-play betting functionalities.
Enhanced Betting Features
RunningBall provides official in-play sports data feeds crucial for live betting, while Opta specializes in delivering player statistics across a multitude of sports. With this integration, Kindred aims to offer a “frictionless” in-play betting experience, setting a new benchmark in the online sports betting landscape.
Andreas Reimblad, Kindred’s director of sportsbook, expressed optimism regarding the new collaboration. ‘This partnership is a testament to our unwavering commitment to building the Kindred Sportsbook platform with the best data available on the market,’ Reimblad stated. He added that their alliance with Stats Perform would serve as a strong asset as they continue to develop and enhance their proprietary sportsbook.
Stats Perform’s Perspective
The expanded deal has also been positively received by Stats Perform, with Chief Betting Officer Andrew Ashenden highlighting its value for both companies. ‘This new agreement deepens a long-standing and highly productive partnership with Kindred,’ Ashenden remarked. He conveyed enthusiasm for utilizing their market-leading RunningBall and Opta products to further elevate Kindred’s offerings.
Context of the Partnership: Possible Acquisition by FDJ
This announcement of the partnership comes just as news emerged regarding La Française des Jeux (FDJ), the French lottery and gaming giant, proposing an acquisition of Kindred. The offer is valued at approximately SEK27.96 billion (£2.10 billion/€2.48 billion/$2.68 billion) and has been “unanimously” recommended to Kindred shareholders. Acceptance of this offer is expected to start around February 20, with a deadline set for November 19.
Notably, five major Kindred shareholders, holding a combined 27.9% of the total shares, have pledged their support for the FDJ offer. However, the completion of the acquisition is contingent upon various conditions, including acceptance by 90% of Kindred shareholders, regulatory approvals, and no competing bids.
FDJ has indicated that this acquisition would position their combined entity as the second largest operator in Europe’s gaming sector, establishing a “European gaming champion” with enhanced revenue and earnings potential.
Kindred’s Financial Outlook
In conjunction with the acquisition news, Kindred has released preliminary financial results for 2023, projecting a revenue increase to £1.21 billion, marking a 13.3% rise compared to the previous year’s £1.07 billion. The report highlights a growth of 12.4% in gross winnings revenue from B2C activities, expected to reach £1.17 billion. Additionally, revenue from the B2B segment is projected to surge by 49.6% to £38.6 million.
Despite an increase in costs associated with sales — which rose by 9.5% to £530.7 million — the revenue growth is anticipated to result in an underlying EBITDA of £204.5 million, a significant 58.3% increase from 2022.
Following the bid submission, FDJ also issued a trading update of its own, revealing a revenue increase of 6.5%, further highlighting the competitive dynamics within the gaming and sports betting sector.
As both companies move forward with their plans, the implications of the partnership and potential acquisition will be closely watched by industry stakeholders and investors alike.