Entain CEE’s £750m acquisition of STS Holdings gives Entain access to Central and Eastern Europe's (CEE) largest economy, Poland. For Mikolaj Cymerman, head of corporate development at Entain CEE, this is just the first step.
The deal for the Polish sportsbook market leader marks the second acquisition made by Entain CEE, a joint venture between Entain and investment management company Emma Capital.
It’s also a major milestone for the two parties. Getting a foot in the door will allow Entain to make serious inroads in the CEE market, one already somewhat carved out by its first acquisition – of Croatia’s SuperSport – last year.
Mikolaj cymerman, head of corporate development, Entain CEE
“Once SuperSport happened, people were thinking ‘OK, so they’ve bought SuperSport and that’s it’,” Cymerman explains. “But now with STS, this kind of structure starts to unravel and people are seeing that this wasn’t a one-trick pony.”
It was this first acquisition that set the wheels in motio..