MGM Resorts’ CEO & President Bill Hornbuckle believes that his company’s move to acquire LeoVegas Group for €575m will help its vision to be the world’s premier gaming entertainment company.

On Monday US casino operator MGM Resorts announced plans to acquire Swedish online gaming firm LeoVegas in a €575m deal which has already been unanimously recommended by the LeoVegas board. MGM’s offer is a 44.1 per cent premium on the LeoVegas closing price of SEK 42.32.

Hornbuckle thinks the acquisition of LeoVegas will provide a unique opportunity for the company to create a scaled global online gaming business.

“We have achieved remarkable success with BetMGM in the US, and with the acquisition of LeoVegas in Europe we will expand our online gaming presence globally. We believe that this offer creates a compelling opportunity that allows the combined teams of MGM Resorts and LeoVegas to accelerate our global digital gaming growth and fully realise the potential of our omnichannel strategy. We look forward to being able to welcome the LeoVegas team to our MGM Resorts family.”

MGM has identified three key reasons for the acquisition; strategic opportunities to accelerate growth and product offerings outside of the US; the presence of an experienced online gaming management team and superior technology capabilities; and a commitment to continued profitable growth given it has operated profitably as a high-growth platform since 2014.

Headquartered in Stockholm, LeoVegas has licences in eight jurisdictions primarily in the Nordics and rest of Europe. LeoVegas generated 393m euros in revenue and 48m euros in adjusted EBITDA during the last twelve months ended March 31, 2022.

The Board of Directors of LeoVegas has given consent to MGM to offer a management incentive plan for certain key employees of LeoVegas and notes that MGM has obtained a statement from the Swedish Securities Council confirming that the proposed incentive plan is compatible with the Takeover Rules.

Where the new acquisition leaves MGM Resorts’ highly successful joint venture with Entain Group, the BetMGM sports betting operation in the US, remains unanswered for now, but acquiring LeoVegas will definitely strengthen MGM’s hand globally.