Evolution inks live casino deal for UK

In a move that enhances its established relationship with British land-based and online sportsbook operator Entain plc (LSE: ENT), formerly GVC Holdings, Evolution Gaming Group AB has taken its online casino services live across the London-listed company’s Ladbrokes and Coral brands.

The strategic deal that builds on the partnership that already sees the Sweden-based company supply Entain across key European and U.S. gaming markets, will follow with the operator’s Gala Casino and Gala Bingo online casino brands in the UK.

Significant expansion:

Gaming Director for LadbrokesCoral, Richard Barr commented on the launch in an official press release stating that they are “enormously excited” to provide their thousands of players in the UK and globally with Evolution’s “world-class online games.”

Evolution will, under the enhanced agreement, launch its complete suite of iGaming products on Ladbrokes, Gala and Coral online platforms in the UK, with a selection of its unique live game shows, including Crazy Time, the multi-layered, bonus-packed game that launched in January 2020; and live roulette variant, Lightning Roulette; going live at Coral.co.uk and Ladbrokes.co.uk.

In coming weeks, the Swedish iGaming innovator’s entire offering of live casino games and game shows, including the soon-to-be-released Spanish explorer-inspired adventure, Gonzo’s Treasure Hunt Live, as well as the group’s first-person RNG (random number generator) games. All of the games are/will be available to players on tablet, desktop, and smartphone.

Along with the new Evolution games line-up, Ladbrokes, Gala and Coral players already enjoy online slots titles from the B2B operator’s NetEnt and Red Tiger brands.

Key market:

Explaining that the UK market is a “particularly important market” for them, Commercial Director, Europe for Evolution Gaming, Gavin Hamilton said…

“We are delighted that Ladbrokes, Coral and Gala customers will now have access to the full breadth of Evolution Group online games, including our very latest gaming innovations.”

Improved op revenue:

The announcement comes on the heels of the April 27th release of Evolution Gaming’s Interim Report for the period January-March 2021, which for the first quarter of  2021 (Q1 2020) report a swell of 105 percent in operating revenues to EUR 235.8 million (115.1); EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) to EUR 160.1 million (64.1), an increase of 150 percent; while profit for the period amounted to EUR 132.0 million (54.2) and earnings per share (before dilution) totaled EUR 0.62 (0.30).

Tabcorp bid:

Meanwhile, Entain recently improved on its earlier opening offer of AUS $3 billion to purchase the wagering and media business of Australian bookmaker Tabcorp Holdings Limited, after revising the bid to AU$3.5bn (€2.2bn). The all-cash move labeled labelled as “grossly undervalued” by the Tabcorp Holdings board would have seen the FTSE100 firm gain immediate control over its estate of roughly 4,400 land-based sportsbooks spread across Australia.

According to one source, interest in Tabcorp’s TAB wagering division has also been expressed by private equity group Apollo and media heir Lachlan Murdoch, while one of the biggest names in Australia’s wagering sector, Matthew Tripp, has also purportedly aligned himself with Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Corp. (NASDAQ:FOXA) in a possible deal.

The performance of the wagering arm has reportedly been a source of frustration for investors, with the division giving up ground to online rivals such as Ladbrokes and Sportsbet for more than a decade, ever since its 2017, AU$11bn merger with Tatts Group.