Flutter bets on Italian gaming market with $2.6 billion Snaitech deal By Reuters

By Dhanush Vignesh Babu

(Reuters) – Flutter Entertainment said on Tuesday it would buy Snaitech for 2.3 billion euros ($2.6 billion), including debt from gaming technology group Playtech ( LON: ), cementing the and the position of the leading gambling company in Italy.

The deal is expected to close by the second quarter of 2025 and will be immediately accretive to earnings per share for Flutter, the world’s largest gaming company.

Also, one of Italy’s largest gaming companies will change hands and let Playtech focus on its operations as a business-to-business software provider.

It is the second deal in a week for Flutter, which announced last Friday that it would buy a 56 percent stake in Brazilian operator Betnacional’s NSX Group for about $350 million to expand into the regulated Brazilian market in soon.

The move comes as Flutter, which has seen an influx of new customers and revenue from the United States, continues its aggressive international expansion.

Earlier this year, the company, whose brands include Paddy Power and Poker Stars, moved its main roster to New York from London.

The acquisition will strengthen Flutter’s position in Italy, giving it an online market share of about 30 percent when combined with its existing Italian operations, Flutter said. Flutter already owns Sisal, one of the largest online gambling operators in Italy.

Flutter is in more than 20 countries globally, including the booming US market, where it operates under the FanDuel brand.

Playtech has operations in 19 countries. Snaitech, its business-to-consumer unit, achieved revenues of 946.6 million euros last year.

The two parties have been in talks regarding Snaitech since August. FanDuel and Paddy Power owner shares rose 0.8% to their highest level since March 2024, while Playtech shares rose as much as 2% to their highest since November 2021. ($1 = 0 .8988 euros)