Better Collective AS has responded to weekend news reports of its ‘front runner interest’ to acquire Spotlight Sports Group for £500m ($616m) as being “highly speculative in relation to its M&A strategy”.
This weekend, The Sunday Times reported that London private equity fund Exponent LLP, the majority investor of Spotlight Sports since 2016, had placed its racing and betting media asset ‘under starters orders‘ for sale to be executed in the coming months.
Stockholm-listed Better Collective was named as the ‘odds-on-favorite’ to acquire Spotlight Sports, the publisher of horseracing bible’ the Racing Post.
Better Collective issued a response to SBC stating that “the article is highly speculative and given our defined M&A-strategy and track record we are not surprised to be mentioned when there are rumors of sales processes in the industry. However, we do not want to comment or join in speculations.”
As stands, Better Collective’s corporate focus remains on the FY2022 target to become the first igaming/betting publisher to break the $100m revenue mark for North American betting media services.
Declaring its high target, in March, Better Collective acquired the Canada Sports Betting (CSB) network for €22m ($23m) – expanding its existing North American portfolio of The Action Network, Roto Grinders, Scores-&-Odds and VegasInsider that currently operates across sixteen US states.
Rumors of a potential sale of Spotlight Sports had begun to circulate in late 2021 as Exponent revealed to City news sources that it was exploring options to ‘cash in on the surge for betting content and data’.
Exponent has hired NYSE-listed private investment bank PJT Partners to lead the deal, in which it targets £500m ($616m) for the sale of Spotlight Sports and its related inventory.
