Tatts Group is one of the biggest pokie operators in Australia, but the company is looking at opportunities overseas. For the past few months, Tatts has been eyeing the Irish National Lottery, which has been up for sale. Ever since May 2012, Tatts Group has been interested in the purchase of the Irish Lottery. It is only recently that the Brisbane-based operator has confirmed that it would be bidding.
“We stated that Ireland was a jurisdiction of interest,” said Robbie Cooke, Tatts Group’s chief executive. “The process in Ireland has now opened up and we are examining that opportunity.” The Irish National Lottery is auctioning off its 20-year license, and it is expected to sell for €400 million. In 2010, the lottery made €772 million in sales, generating the fifth most revenue of any European lottery.
Over the course of the past two years, sales have dropped – but it is still expected to generate at least €600 million for the winning bidder. "What started as a relatively modest business in March 1987 with just one Scratch Card games and sales of 130 million euros has grown steadily to achieve total sales of over 12 billion euros over the first 25 years," reads the Irish National Lottery's 2011 annual report.
There are several other companies that are interested in purchasing the lottery. Camelot (operator of the UK National Lottery) and GTech (operator of Italy’s Lottomatic) are two other potential bidders. Since both companies have a great deal of experience in operating lotteries, Tatts Group has its work cut out for it. However, the company is prepared to spend as much as it takes to secure the 20-year license the operate the Irish National Lottery.
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