Endeavor Group Holdings Inc. — the parent company of UFC, WME, and IMG — is looking forward to using the recently acquired OpenBet to ratchet up the quality of what's being offered to sports fans and online sports betting sites.
The closing of the approximately $800-million OpenBet purchase from Light & Wonder Inc. by Endeavor was one of the highlights of the latter company's third-quarter earnings report that was released last Thursday.
By folding OpenBet into its corporate infrastructure, Endeavor is following the path taken by other companies that are attempting to harness the synergies found in the convergence between the legal sports betting and entertainment sectors.
Legendary Hollywood mogul and Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel described how the acquisition of OpenBet puts Endeavor on track to launch a new sports data and technology division that will integrate the operations of OpenBet with Endeavor's IMG Arena unit — a leading provider of data and content to online sportsbooks.
"Sports betting is quickly becoming the ultimate live sports viewing complement and yet another way to keep consumers engaged," Emanuel said during Endeavor's earnings call last week. "During the third quarter, we closed our acquisition of sports betting tech leader, OpenBet, helping round out our tech offering in this space. Once again, we have positioned ourselves on the supply side of this industry, working directly with rights holders and sportsbooks to deliver everything from official data, and streaming feeds to betting ads and mobile apps."
Emanuel added that both IMG and OpenBet are already profitable businesses and that combining them is expected to generate "meaningful revenue synergies," noting the former "has the data and the content" while the latter has "player ads" and much more.
OpenBet set to fit in nicely
Upon the original announcement of the closing of the OpenBet deal at the end of September, Emanuel also described how OpenBet, a leading tech provider to sportsbooks, represented a significant strategic move that would broaden Endeavor's reach across the sports ecosystem.
"The addition of OpenBet to our sports betting portfolio will enable us to further capitalize on the massive tailwinds in the fast-evolving sports betting ecosystem and lead the way in defining the future of sports betting entertainment,” Emanuel said in a press release. "In combination with our IMG Arena sports data and content business, we’ll look to create and unlock meaningful value for our rights holders and sportsbook customers, helping deliver the most compelling offerings for sports fans globally."
Emanuel's comments were echoed in September by OpenBet CEO Jordan Levin.
"We’ve been awaiting this day when we can bring together everything OpenBet has to offer with the depth of expertise and relationships that Endeavor and IMG bring to the table," Levin said. "Our focus remains on providing our customers with the most innovative solutions to give their fans the ultimate sports betting complement to live sports. We couldn’t be more excited to lean into the Endeavor network to accelerate and amplify that mission."
Strength in numbers
Endeavor is one of the world's leading sports and entertainment companies that began an impressive expansion program under the direction of Emanuel, starting with the 2009 merger between two of Hollywood's most powerful talent agencies — William Morris Agency and Endeavor Talent Agency — to form WME.
Under its corporate umbrella, Endeavor comprises WME, IMG, and the highly popular mixed martial arts organization, UFC. As of January 2023, OpenBet will be merged into a separate unit together with IMG Arena, the sports division of IMG.
OpenBet is a global company that provides betting-engine technology, player account and wallet solutions, trading, pricing, and risk management tools to some of the world's leading sportsbooks.
The company said it processes 40% of online sports bets in the U.S. market, 46% of digital sports action in Australia, and a commanding 65% of online wagers in the U.K.
OpenBet's client roster includes major U.S. sportsbooks such as DraftKings and FanDuel, as well as WynnBET. It also provides its state-of-the-art platform services to leading U.K. operators SkyBet, Ladbrokes, and William Hill. It has its own content business as well, with offerings such as BetBuilder and the DonBest pricing feeds.
Endeavor looking to make noise in B2B sector
Emanuel was also keen to remind industry analysts during last week's earnings call that his company is uniquely placed now as a business-to-business (B2B) provider, and doesn't have to compete for customers in the highly competitive (and costly) business-to-consumer (B2C) sector of sports betting.
"Just to remind you, we’re in the B2B side of the betting business. We’re not competing like the other players in the space for players and consumers on the supply side to all of them," said Emanuel. "We have multiple touchpoints in the company across sports and the sports betting ecosystem."
