Oddschecker has been confirmed as one of the two buyers of Catena Media’s Italian assets for an undisclosed amount.
The purchase of SuperScommese positions the odds comparison giant as the leading sports affiliate in Italy. Its main Superscommese.it portal generated more than 650,000 clicks for operators in October 2023 according to iGBA’s data partner DeepCI.
The CEO of Oddschecker Media Group (OMG), Stuart Simms, said the acquisition would enable the group to “double down” on the continued strong growth of sports betting in the territory. “We see SuperScommesse as the ideal strategic complement to our strong Italian footprint.”
Despite a ban on gambling advertising being in full force since July 2019, “the Italian market allows for odds comparison as a consumer service, and we remain the pre-eminent odds comparison provider”, added Simms.
OMG said the deal would organically complement its existing media partnerships with La Gazzetta dello Sport and DAZN and bolster its new affiliate partnership network, the Confido Network, unveiled earlier this month.
Catena puts strategic review behind it
Catena said that the second transaction for the remainder of its Italian assets for a combined total of €19.8m was due to complete before the end of the year. The dot.it business generated revenue of €7.8m and EBITDA of €3.4m in the year to September 2023.
It added that this territory exit marked the end of the strategic review initiated in May 2022 which drove the sale of €76m of non-core assets, including AskGamblers to GiG for €45m.
Catena will use the bulk of the sale proceeds to pay down debt, which stood at €25.4m at the close of Q3, and reduce its leverage ratio.
The exit was announced on the same day it reported a 28% year-on-year drop in Q3 revenue, which it said reflected the ongoing transition from CPA to revenue share contracts in North America.
Organic growth now the priority
CEO Michael Daly commented that with the strategic review now behind the Nasdaq Stockholm-listed group, he expected organic growth to resume in the second half of the year.
“We are ready and focused to invest in our teams to maintain our edge in organic search. We are deepening our work with media partners, an important revenue driver, and growing our paid and social media marketing.
“Greater foreseeability over future revenue will also give us added assurance when we invest in long-term technology-facing research and development projects.”
Photo by Frans van Heerden