Gambling.com to acquire fantasy sports news and insight provider RotoWire in $27.5M deal

Provider of player acquisition services Gambling.com has signed an agreement to acquire Roto Sports, operator of expert fantasy sports news and advice provider RotoWire.com, the company announced on Monday. The move is set to accelerate Gambling.com’s U.S. expansion.

Both parties have entered into a definitive agreement, and the transaction is expected to close “in early January 2022,” according to a press statement. By acquiring the nationally-syndicated sports news and information service, Gambling.com expects to enhance market penetration.

“The acquisition of RotoWire will immediately expand Gambling.com Group's U.S. presence and is expected to create immediate accretion to fiscal 2022 earnings,” the company said. Gambling.com will leverage RotoWire’s existing audience, content library, workforce and media partnerships to accelerate its business in the country’s online sports betting market.

By having acquired RotoWire’s digital assets, Gambling.com believes that, when combined with the group’s digital expertise and technology platform, it will drive substantial, incremental affiliate revenue “in the rapidly expanding sports betting environment.”

The aggregate purchase price is $27.5 million, of which $7.5 million is deferred over a two-year period following closing. This price is expected to be “approximately four times” Roto Sports’ estimated 2021 revenue.

"Over the past 25 years, Peter and the RotoWire team have produced some of the best fantasy sports content in America and have in turn embedded their business into the heart of the American sports experience," said Charles Gillespie, Chief Executive Officer of Gambling.com Group. 

RotoWire, a key player in the U.S. fantasy sports segment, had more than 100,000 paid subscriptions and more than 17 million unique web visitors in the last 12 months, its content reaching millions of additional fans through distribution arrangements with media organizations.

"Commercially, the RotoWire business has three different revenue streams, each generating over $1 million per year, which give it significant reach into sports media organizations as well as with advertisers and individual sports fans,” added Gillespie. “These deep and long-lasting customer relationships are an ideal platform from which to capitalize on the new era of American sports – the betting and gaming era."

Additionally, Peter Schoenke, President of RotoWire and past-Chairman of the Fantasy Sports & Gaming Association, said that by combining forces with Gambling.com Group, RotoWire is also positioned to accelerate its growth.

"The United States is entering a whole new world of sports fandom,” Schoenke said. “Gambling.com Group's resources and experience will help RotoWire rapidly advance its sports betting offerings to take full advantage of this new era.”

Founded in 2006, the Gambling.com Group Limited is a marketing company and provider of digital marketing services for the online gambling industry operating in Ireland, the United States, and Malta. Through its proprietary technology platform, the Group publishes a portfolio of more than 30 websites in six languages, including Gambling.com and Bookies.com.