Betsson chief sets five-year Spanish target
CEO Ulrik Bengtsson tells EGR Intel firm will launch sportsbook in Spain and could discontinue soon-to-be acquired Premier Casino brand
Betsson plans to “conquer” Spain’s growing market via a five-year plan, its CEO Ulrik Bengtsson has told EGR Intel.
Its acquisition of local operator Premier Casino, announced on Friday, has given the firm a licence to enter the regulated market, a licence which Bengtsson said would see the company offer one sportsbook brand and one casino brand in the country.
However, the chief exec added the firm had yet to come to a decision on the long-term future of Premier Casino, which could yet be scrapped in favour of one of Betsson’s gaming brands.
“I’m not sure we’re going to even keep that [Premier Casino] as the brand name, but that’s a question to be answered a little bit later,” Bengtsson said.
“We will cut out most of the costs that are associated with it locally. There are very few employees in Madrid dedicated to the company,” he added. “We will integrate the operations into the Betsson headquarters in Malta so we will be able to run that casino brand with very little implemented resources.”
Bengtsson said the firm would be able to compete against the best in Spain, particularly in the casino vertical which saw Betsson recently post 20% revenue growth in Q4 2016.
“This gives me a lot of confidence that we will be able to, over time, do the same in Spain,” he added.
News of the Premier Casino deal follows hot on the heels of Betsson’s acquisitions of RaceBets and the Lithuania-facing arm of TonyBet, while the firm is also closing in on the purchase of NetPlay TV.
“This is the fourth acquisition we’ve done in six months, but we will continue to evaluate and follow our strategy to grow primarily outside of Scandinavia in markets that are regulated or have a clear path to regulation,” Bengtsson said.