fuboTV Inc.(NYSE: FUBO), a sports-first live TV streaming platform, executed a binding letter of intent to to buy Vigtory, a Chicago, IL-based sports betting and interactive gaming company.
The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The deal – which is subject to the execution of a definitive acquisition agreement and the satisfaction of certain closing conditions – is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021.
The acquisition will enable fuboTV to launch a sportsbook before the end of the year. The company intends to leverage Vigtory’s sportsbook platform and digital gaming assets, and its betting technology, to advance a straightforward betting experience for customers.
In additional, Vigtory has been in discussions for market access deals in the eastern United States with a deal already secured in Iowa through Casino Queen.
Founded in 2019 by Sam Rattner and backed by SeventySix Capital, Vigtory was founded to tackle the challenge for sportsbooks to build a better betting path while offering the best possible pricing via a tech platform which integrates a backtesting engine, actionable content into the app alongside an innovative customer experience approach.
Rattner is a digital sports entrepreneur who previously founded Engine Sports, a back-testing engine allowing retail sports bettors the ability to build algorithmic betting strategies within an interactive experience.
Scott Butera, who was the president of interactive gaming at MGM Resorts International and helped launch BetMGM, joined Vigtory as Rattner’s co-CEO in 2020. Prior to MGM, he was commissioner of the Arena Football League and held leadership positions at Foxwoods Resort Casino, Tropicana Entertainment, Cosmopolitan Resort and Casino and Trump Entertainment, among other gaming companies.
Under the proposed deal, both Butera and Rattner will join fuboTV’s gaming division as president and COO, respectively.
fuboTV’s online wagering strategy, which was also consoidated through the acquisition (in December 2020) of Balto Sports and its content automation software, will see the company launch a free to play gaming experience this summer in a single app and later integrated directly into the fuboTV user experience. By leveraging these two acquisitions, fuboTV intends to launch a dedicated app and to integrate the sportsbook into its live TV streaming platform.
Led by David Gandler, co-founder and CEO, fuboTV is a sports-first live TV streaming platform offering subscribers access to tens of thousands of live sporting events annually as well as news and entertainment content. The service enables subscribers to stream a mix of 100+ live TV channels, across sports, news and entertainment. The company recently disclosed preliminary Q4 2020 results, including that it expects to have exceeded 545,000 paid subscribers in 2020, an increase of more than 72% year-over-year.