Sky Bet acquisition boosts owner Star Group's profits to $1.8 billion

Sky Bet's owners The Stars Group on Thursday said the 2018 acquisition of the Leeds operation contributed to gross profits of $1.8 billion last year.

That was up 16.9 per cent from the previous 12 months, while the Candian-based business reported a 24.6 per cent revenue rise to $2.5bn .

The Stars Group, which will create a global betting giant when it merges with Paddy Power Betfair's owner Flutter Entertainment, also pointed to its impact in Australia, where it bought bookmaker BetEasy, as a factor for its fruitful period.

Chief executive officer Rafi Ashkenazi said: "In 2019, we continued to execute on our strategy to deliver long-term sustainable growth and become the world's favourite iGaming destination.

"We not only began to see the full-year benefits of our transformative 2018 acquisitions, but executed on delivering a landmark media partnership in the US with the launch of FOX Bet, strengthening our position in this emerging market."

Rafi Ashkenazi: not resting on his laurels

Ashkenazi, whose firm owns Oddschecker among other betting, gaming and poker brands, added: "We entered 2020 with the full $100 million run-rate of expected cost synergies from our 2018 Sky Betting & Gaming acquisition and earlier this month prepaid an additional $100 million of debt, underpinning our ability to execute on complex integrations and the highly cash-generative nature of our business model.

"In addition to cost synergies, we have detailed plans in place to continue driving revenue synergies and to increase investments in product and marketing, giving us confidence in continued revenue growth in the years ahead.

"In 2020, we plan to further enhance the global appeal of the PokerStars brand, including by launching the PokerStars Sports brand,leveraging the operational capabilities of our Sky Betting & Gaming business, and launching television advertising for PokerStars Casino.

"Lastly, ahead of closing our combination with Flutter, which will enhance and accelerate each company’s growth strategy, we remain focused on our key strategic priorities of integration, execution, and debt reduction."

In a cautionary note, The Stars Group said it was aware of "social responsibility concerns and public opinion" within the industry and to changes in regulation. The company's share price rose slightly on Thursday to 32.11p.

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