iGaming Acquisitions - M&A in iGaming industry

Here is an extensive record of all major iGaming acquisitions and mergers to this day. You can learn how the market has changed, what moves companies have made and how the price trend for companies has evolved over the years.

From strategic alliances to game-changing partnerships, iGaming industry is constantly changing. Large companies buying startups, removing competition by merging with them, online casinos expanding into new verticals; there are plenty of stories behind these sales.

You can also find the ten biggest sales of all time and learn more about them.

The biggest iGaming acquisitions of all time

These are the top 10 biggest iGaming acquisitions of all time. They have changed the industry and created powerhouses that have been hard to rival.

You can learn more about these sales below. We go over each sale in more detail.

The most recent iGaming acquisitions (by year)

Here, you can find the major iGaming M&As of the 2000s that we have recorded. Discover how over two decades of bought assets, expansions and corporate purchases have helped reshape the iGaming landscape into what it is today.

All sale prices are calculated at the exchange rate of that time. The prices are not adjusted for inflation. All sales are listed as newest first.

2024

• Number of sales: 16
• Number of undisclosed prices: 6
• Largest sale: Silver Lake acquires Endeavor for $13B
• Sales total: $14,317.8M (£11,212.0M)

2023

• Number of sales: 77
• Number of undisclosed prices: 33
• Largest sale: Aristocrat acquires NeoGames for $1.2B
• Sales total: $7,223M (£5,778.4M)

2022

• Number of sales: 57
• Number of undisclosed prices: 24
• Largest sale: Brookfield Business Partners acquires Scientific Games (US lottery sale) for $5.8B
• Sales total: $19,109.4M (£15,287.5M)

2021

• Number of sales: 53
• Number of undisclosed prices: 13
• Largest sale: Aristocrat acquires Playtech for £2.7B
• Sales total: $11.719.5M (£8,617.5M)

2020

• Number of sales: 18
• Number of undisclosed prices: 5
• Largest sale: Flutter Entertainment acquires FanDuel for $4.2B
• Sales total: $10,842.6M (£8,405.1M)

2019

• Number of sales: 18
• Number of undisclosed prices: 4
• Largest sale: DraftKings merger with SBTech for $3.3B
• Sales total: $4,722.4M (£3,698.1M)

2018

• Number of sales: 28
• Number of undisclosed prices: 6
• Largest sale: The Stars Group acquires Sky Betting & Gaming for $4.7B
• Sales total: $11,201.7M (£8,297.5M)

2017

• Number of sales: 28
• Number of undisclosed prices: 6
• Largest sale: Entain acquires Ladbrokes Coral for £4B
• Sales total: $7,730.3M (£5,946.4M)

2016

• Number of sales: 16
• Number of undisclosed prices: 1
• Largest sale: Tabcorp acquires Tatts for AUD 6.4B
• Sales total: $7,109.4M (£5,468.8M)

2015

• Number of sales: 17
• Number of undisclosed prices: 4
• Largest sale: Ladbrokes merger with Gala Coral for £2.3B
• Sales total: $13,434.4M (£8,780.6M)

2014

• Number of sales: 12
• Number of undisclosed prices: 2
• Largest sale: Scientific Games acquires Bally Technologies for $5.1B
• Sales total: $17,378.7M (£10,532.6M)

2013

• Number of sales: 9
• Number of undisclosed prices: 2
• Largest sale: Bally Technologies acquires SHFL Entertainment for £1.3B
• Sales total: $3,653.1M (£2,341.8M)

2012

• Number of sales: 15
• Number of undisclosed prices: 3
• Largest sale: William Hill & GVC acquires Sportingbet for £485M
• Sales total: $2,092.9M (£1,308M)

2011

• Number of sales: 12
• Number of undisclosed prices: 3
• Largest sale: Betfred acquires Tote for £265M
• Sales total: $1,244M (£777.5M)

2010

• Number of sales: 5
• Number of undisclosed prices: 2
• Largest sale: Playtech acquires Virtue Fusion for £29M
• Sales total: $81.2M (£54.5M)

2009

• Number of sales: 7
• Number of undisclosed prices: 0
• Largest sale: Bwin acquires Gioco Digitale for €115M
• Sales total: $365.6M (£228.5M)

2008

• Number of sales: 3
• Number of undisclosed prices: 3
• Largest sale:
• Sales total:

2007

• Number of sales: 4
• Number of undisclosed prices: 1
• Largest sale: Unibet acquires Maria Holdings for £54M
• Sales total: $163.3M (£81.6M)

2006

• Number of sales: 5
• Number of undisclosed prices: 0
• Largest sale: Lottomatica merges with GTECH for $4.7B
• Sales total: $5,112.8M (£2.840.4)

2005

• Number of sales: 5
• Number of undisclosed prices: 0
• Largest sale: Bwin acquires PokerRoom & OnGame for $570M
• Sales total: $768.5M (£452M)

2004

• Number of sales: 3
• Number of undisclosed prices: 1
• Largest sale: Sportingbet acquires Paradise Poker for $297.5M
• Sales total: $447.5M (£263M)

2003

• Number of sales: 2
• Number of undisclosed prices: 0
• Largest sale: Rank Group acquires Blue Square for £65M
• Sales total: $129.5M (£80.9M)

2001

• Number of sales: 1
• Number of undisclosed prices: 0
• Largest sale: Sportingbet acquires Sportsbook.com for $51M
• Sales total: $51M (£30M)

_{If there are any missing acquisitions or you feel something needs to be included, you can contact the Bojoko staff, and we will update the list.}

Top 10 biggest deals in detail

Let's take a closer look at the ten biggest acquisitions and mergers of all time.

These are the deals that shook the market and created the biggest waves in the industry.

Below, you can find more detailed information on each of the deals.

1. Silver Lake acquires Endeavor Group Holdings

Silver Lake's acquisition of the outstanding shares of Endeavor Group Holdings was a huge sale, one that immediately skyrocketed to the top of the list. The private equity firm Silver Lake has been making investments in Endeavor previously, starting all the way back in 2012.

Endeavor's portfolio has always been versatile. Endeavor, which mainly focused on entertainment, had previously acquired other iGaming companies, including OpenBet.

• Sale date: April of 2024
• Sale price: $13B

2. Paddy Power and Betfair merger

Paddy Power's and Betfair's merger in 2015 shook the world of online betting. The massive deal created one of the largest online bookies in the world, with more than 7,000 employees.

Combining the strengths of both companies helped them conquer the world of online betting. Paddy Power had a strong physical presence in Ireland and Betfair was a big deal in the UK, so it was just natural for these two companies to start working together.

• Sale date: September of 2015
• Sale price: £5B ($7B)

3. Brookfield Business Partners acquires Scientific Games Lottery

Brookfield Business Partners is a global company focused on owning and operating high-quality products and services. They saw the potential of Scientific Games, a game developer that started back in 1973 and made a substantial long-term commitment. This deal let Scientific Games continue operating with an even larger company backing it up.

Scientific Games had a strong start in the 2020s, showing there was room for even more growth with the right kind of focus.

• Sale date: April of 2022
• Sale price: $5.8B

4. GVC acquires Ladbrokes Coral

GVC (later known as Entain) bought Ladbrokes Coral to create an online-led gambling behemoth. The strategic move was to combine the online and high street operations with GVC's large roster of strong casino brands. Two years prior, Ladbroke Coral Group was created when Ladbrokes and Coral merged.

The gamut of gambling services would range from smaller online options to household names and well-known local shops. Brands like Party Casino, Foxy Games, bwin, Gala Bingo and many others were now under the Entain Umbrella.

Ladbrokes Coral, at the time of the sale, had over 3,500 bookies. Getting access to all this helped GVC grow even more in the following years.

• Sale date: December of 2017
• Sale price: £4B ($5.2B)

5. Scientific Games acquires Bally Technologies

The US gaming industry was reforged when Scientific Games acquired their rival, Bally Technologies. These two companies had been fighting for the top spot in the physical slot machine market in the US market and were both very visible brands in the casino scene.

Scientific Games were able to use this deal as a stepping stone to the Asia and Australia markets, and start also focusing on online services. Both brands have since been growing their iGaming options.

• Sale date: October of 2014
• Sale price: $5.1B

6. Amaya Gaming acquires Pokerstars and Full Tilt Poker

Two years after Pokerstars acquired their biggest competitor, Full Tilt Poker, Amaya Gaming swooped in and purchased their operator, Rational Group. One of the major factors in the deal was the aftermath of the Black Friday of online poker, when online poker operators were kicked out of the US.

Amaya Gaming was able to bring these operators to more licensed markets and hasten their return to the US market.

• Sale date: July of 2014
• Sale price: $4.9B

7. Tabcorp acquires Tatts

Tabcorp Holdings made a huge splash in Australia when they acquired their rival, Tatts Group. This created a gambling powerhouse in the Australian market who had a strong grasp of the available betting services.

Tabcorp saw that the influx of off-shore betting companies could pose a threat to their business, and creating a large single entity would prevent this. Having a well-known sole betting service available could sway the public to trust their domestic company over the off-shore options.

• Sale date: October of 2016
• Sale price: AUD 6.4B ($4.9B)

8. GTECH acquires IGT

GTECH's acquisition of IGT was a perfect combination of two gaming industry companies that were the polar opposites of each other.

With minimal overlap, they were able to synergise their operations and improve the gaming experience in all aspects. From better use of R&D to more options for the end user, this deal was able to bring two major players together to form something more powerful.

• Sale date: July of 2014
• Sale price: $4.7B

9. Lottomatica merger with Gtech

Lottomatica made headlines in 2006 when it merged with GTECH. Together, they created the largest lottery group in the world. For Lottomatica, this move allowed them to reach new markets and create a corporate powerhouse that could more easily provide lottery services to players all over the Western world.

At this point, Lottomatica and GTECH remained separate companies, mainly operating in different markets. Later on, in 2013, the company would rename itself as GTECH.

• Sale date: January of 2006
• Sale price: $4.7B

10. The Stars Group acquires Sky Betting & Gaming

The owner of Pokerstars, The Stars Group, shocked the UK market with their purchase of Sky Betting & Gaming.

This deal created the largest publicly listed online gaming operator and gave The Stars Group an increased presence in the UK gambling market. The other key aspect of the deal was access to Sky Betting & Gaming's innovative casino and betting offerings and the highly popular portfolio of mobile apps.

• Sale date: April of 2018
• Sale price: $4.7B

What are the benefits of iGaming acquisitions?

Buying out competition, expanding your market or getting your hands on new technology, are just some of the benefits of iGaming acquisitions.

Acquisitions are common in every form of business, but in the iGaming market, they happen quite often. When the online gaming market started to heat up, there were a lot of fresh operators pushing new casinos to the market, which were either up for grabs or picking up others.

What are the types of acquisitions?

When companies make acquisitions, they usually fall into one of the following four categories.

• Horizontal - A parent company buys out a competitor which is in their own industry at the same level
• Vertical - A parent company buys out a company in the same supply line, either above or below
• Conglomerate - A parent company buys another company which is in a completely different industry
• Congeneric - A Parent company buys another company in the same industry but in a different business line

What is the purpose of iGaming acquisitions?

The purpose of an iGaming acquisition is to get a better foothold in the market as a whole. Be it through entering a new market, as a growth strategy, decreasing the competition or acquiring new technology.

One of the more common things you see in this market is game providers being bought. Big brands buy out smaller competition for their hit games or innovative technologies, which they then can use on their products. Larger studios also buy out others to expand their services. If you can't provide your customers with something, buy a company that can and add it to your portfolio.

Buying out your competition is a powerful move if you can take advantage of the void it leaves behind. This was the case when Evolution Gaming bought out NetEnt's live casino services. They got rid of their biggest rival and were able to fill the space with their own products. We also saw the same when PokerStars bought Full Tilt Poker.

The same patterns are visible on every corner of the market. From larger B2B services to small B2C online casinos and casino groups, they are all looking to get a leg up and find a way to clear the market so they can better serve their customers.

Which is better, mergers and acquisitions vs. organic growth

There is no clear winner when we look at growth through mergers and acquisitions versus organic growth. Both can be viable methods, and it all depends on the circumstances.

When we look at major online casinos, two brands are perfect examples of both paths leading to the same results. Unibet has acquired multiple smaller brands, bookmakers and services to grow into one of the UK's most well-known online casino brands. Videoslots, on the other hand, has grown organically over the years with the help of its sister site Mr Vegas. Videoslots may not be as glamorous as Unibet in design, it's still one of the biggest and best online casinos in the UK and Europe.

What is the difference between an acquisition, a merger and a takeover?

The biggest difference between an acquisition and a merger is who owns and controls the new entity, and a takeover is a different kind of acquisition.

When one company acquires another, they add it to their own corporate entity. Assets, staff and services are integrated while still appearing to be the same entity.

In a merger, the two companies combine to create a brand new entity. If the companies and their brands are previously well-known, they often simply combine their names.

Takeover, on the other hand, is an acquisition where the target company does not consent. The purchasing company must acquire a controlling stake in the company to force the sale.

About the authors

Article by:

Ville Saari

Ville is an industry veteran, who has written thousands of gambling-related reviews and articles since 2009. He is an IT engineer with a passion for game and strategy optimisation, and to teach the world to play better.

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Article by:

Joonas Karhu

Joonas Karhu is a distinguished expert in the online gambling industry with over a decade of experience. A thought leader, Karhu has authored articles for major industry publications and is committed to promoting responsible gambling standards. His career began as an online poker player, leading to various management roles in the iGaming sector. Karhu holds three business degrees: MBA, BBA, and QBA.

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