Gambling operator Flutter is staying tight-lipped about a potential joint Italian lottery bid.
Rumors are swirling that Flutter might have reached an agreement to enter a joint Italian lottery bid via its in-house brand Sisal, collaborating with Scientific Games and private equity firm Brookfield, according to Gambling Insider.
When pushed on the subject, the operator highlighted a quote from its analyst call earlier this month. On the call, CFO Rob Coldrake said: “We’re not going to talk about our bidding strategy. It’s commercially sensitive. We will be very disciplined, and to the extent that we go ahead, we will put on as good a show as we can.”
The speculation of the potential bid comes after Flutter acquired Pluto (Italia), the parent company of Snaitech, an online casino operator, this month. The deal is still undergoing final approval from regulators after being met with concern from local campaigners.
What is the opposition to the Italian lottery bid?
There are fears that Flutter could engage in cross-selling between Snaitech and Sisal. Critics have described such a situation as a “harmful and aggressive” commercial strategy. Because of the criticism, the topic came up in the aforementioned analysts’ call.
At the same time as Flutter reported an annual revenue of $14.05bn for the financial year of 2024 and a net income of $162m (an increase of 113%), CEO Peter Jackson confirmed that the operator would continue “pulling thoughts together” before making its final decision on the lottery application. The process closes on March 17.
Despite that, some within the industry believe the decision has already been made, backed by input from international lottery provider Scientific Games. The company recently signed a 10-year contract to provide the New Mexico Lottery, with ongoing contracts in the UK as well.
With the potential to expand into Italy in this rumored deal, there are similar fears from critics that Scientific Games could use its multiple deals and services to pursue possibly harmful commercial strategies.
Featured image: Midjourney
