MGM’s bid for Entain – what now?

The beginning of 2021 saw much anticipation of the takeover bid by MGM Resorts International for Entain, who MGM already work with on BetMGM, the U.S sports betting an online gaming venture with the British company.

The second attempt at a takeover was rejected by Entain’s board who said that the bid of $11 billion “significantly undervalued the company’s future growth prospects”.  The statement, from Entain Chairman, Barry Gibson, wrote to investors to explain the rejection.

News followed that MGM would not submit a revised offer for Entain Plc, who own Party Online Casino, ending speculation of a price way for the company.

Bill Hornbuckle, CEO of MGM Resorts International, stated: “BetMGM, our U.S. sports betting and online gaming venture with Entain, remains a key priority for the Company as we continue to leverage our preeminent physical gaming, entertainment, and hospitality platform to expand digitally.”

“We believe that BetMGM has established itself as a top three leader in its markets and we remain committed to working with Entain to ensure its strong momentum continues as it expects to be operational in 20 states by the end of 2021.”

MGM’s bid comes as the US gambling market is set to open up following the US market rapidly opening up and expanding after a Supreme Court decision to strike down legislation which had previously limited sports betting to just a handful of states.

Betting companies have their eyes on the American market including William Hill whose shareholders approved their company’s £2.9 billion takeover by US casino giant Caesars Entertainment.

Caesars has made it clear it is only interested in William Hill’s American arm and would look to find new owners for other parts of the business.

The casino gaming market in the United States is estimated at around 60 billion U.S. dollars annually. Amongst the leading casino companies in the world are MGM Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, SJM Holdings, Caesar’s Entertainment, the Galaxy Entertainment Group, Genting, and Wynn Resorts.