Better Collective has taken another major step forward in its international expansion plans in a lucrative and well-established betting market – the UK.
The Danish multinational digital sports media firm has buoyed its position in the country via an acquisition of AceOdds Media and all related assets for €42m.
AceOdds was judged by Better Collective leadership as a good strategic fit for its commercial ambitions. The firm sees its new asset as key to strengthening its UK profile and expanding its presence in US markets.
Synergies highlighted included AceOdds’ “world-class SEO competencies” and proprietary suite of betting tools, comparison features, embedded live streams and popular apps.
Of significance, the AceOdds app will provide important zero and first party data for the UK market to utilise for segmentation and targeting on Better Collective’s internal AdTech platform, AdVantage.
Ian Bowden, Senior Director UK & Ireland at Better Collective, stated: “I am thrilled to announce the addition of AceOdds to the Better Collective group.
“AceOdds fills a crucial gap by offering a vital sports betting affiliation brand in a pivotal growth market for the Better Collective group, along with an app benefiting from hundreds of thousands of instals to further increase the reach we can provide our partners.”
The €42m deal implies a 4x valuation on AceOdds’ EBITDA in the past twelve months of trading. Dealmakers added that a portion of profitability would be reinvested into the product and user experience.
The transaction will be carried out on a net cash/debt free basis, in which Better Collective will reward AceOdds with a €40m cash payment. The remainder of the purchase fee will be rewarded via Better Collective shares priced on Nasdaq Copenhagen, with a share buy back programme initiated to settle the deal.
Making a move in the UK marks a return to focusing on the European betting markets for Better Collective. The firm, like many others, was drawn towards Latin America last year, where it acquired Playmaker Capital in November 2023.
