This week, it was revealed that the US media business Fox Corporation has been working with other investors over a potential offer for certain parts of the Australian gambling operator Tabcorp. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the potential takeover bid would involve Tabcorp’s betting and media unit.
According to people with knowledge of the industry who asked not to be named, Mr Murdoch has been considering possible collaborations with Australian gaming operators. He has already capitalised on some investments into the US betting market. As revealed by the anonymous industry sources, Mr Murdoch has been partnering with a US investment fund over a potential deal for the bookmaking and media unit of Tabcorp.
The US company that is currently run by media mogul Lachlan Murdoch, has already registered a trademark for FOXBet, its betting business, on the territory of Australia. The move has reportedly been taken as a sign that Fox Corporation is interested in a potential takeover of the wagering and media division of Tabcorp.
Rumour has it that bookmaker Matthew Tripp could be involved in the offer, but these claims have been rejected by some sources explaining that Mr Tripp is not working on such a bid with Fox Corporation. The bookmaker himself refused to comment on the matter.
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According to market sources, no approaches have been made to Tabcorp, so there is absolutely no guarantee that such a deal will be discussed at all.
Fox Corporation has been considering a move to the Australian betting market for years. In 2019, it established its joint venture FoxBET in collaboration with The Stars Group and, according to people with knowledge of the talks, has been communicating with local betting operators to discuss potential ways to bring its services to Australia.
Data from the Australian register shows that in October 2020, Fox Media LLC received approval for the FoxBet trademark, which has been taken as a clear sign that the US company is eyeing an expansion and is preparing to make a move to Australia. As The Sydney Morning Herald reported, a spokesperson for Mr Murdoch refused to comment on the matter, and so did Tabcorp.
Currently, the Australian gambling operator is considering at least two offers for its betting and media arm, which have been made by the UK gambling giant Entain and the US private equity firm Apollo. The company that is estimated at AU$10 billion has not yet revealed whether it will proceed with a formal sale process of this specific part of its business. Previously, a large number of investors have encouraged the operator to dispose of its underperforming betting business that has failed to remain competitive with online rivals.
The Australian gambling company combined its wagering and media arm in one unit at the time when it completed its merger with Tatts Group in 2017. The integration of the TAB betting arm with Tatts’ UBET sports betting operation has been finalised only recently.
- Author
Olivia Cole
