Independent CMA panel found Spreadex's purchase of Sporting Index
would reduce specialist betting providers from 2 to 1.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has concluded the
deal created a monopoly in the UK licensed online sports spread
betting market, effectively eliminating competition in that
sector.
The CMA published its original Phase 2 decision on this case in
November 2024, finding the deal would substantially lessen
competition in the UK's licensed online sports spread betting
market. Whilst it offered undertakings to sell Sporting Index as
part of this investigation, Spreadex subsequently appealed to the
Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) and in March 2025 the CAT
referred the Phase 2 decision back to the CMA for
reconsideration.
Having obtained further evidence and considered all the evidence
in the round, the independent panel leading the investigation has
concluded the deal created a monopoly in the UK licensed online
sports spread betting market, eliminating competition in that
market. The panel concluded that the merger could lead to a worse
user experience, a more limited range of products and/or higher
prices for consumers in the UK.
Richard Feasey, the chair of the independent panel reviewing the
merger, said:
“We found that the merger substantially lessens competition by
removing Spreadex's only competitor in the sports spread betting
market in the UK. We also found that the only effective remedy
would be for Spreadex to sell Sporting Index to restore
competition in the supply of licensed online sports spread
betting in the UK. Doing so would mean customers in the UK have
greater choice between two independent businesses, rather than
one.”
The CMA will now proceed with one of two next steps: either to
accept undertakings that may be offered by Spreadex to sell
Sporting Index; or to impose an order requiring the sale of the
business to a suitable CMA-approved buyer.
Further details are available on the Spreadex / Sporting
Index case page.
Notes to Editors:
-
Sports spread betting involves customers betting on a range
of outcomes of sporting events rather than the standard ‘win
or lose' outcomes offered by fixed-odds betting. In spread
betting, the closer a customer's bet is to an outcome, the
more money they stand to win, and the further away from the
outcome they are, the more they stand to lose. This means
that, in contrast to fixed odds betting, customers' wins and
losses could be far higher than the amount they bet.
-
Sporting Group Holdings Limited (Sporting Group) is a
subsidiary of La Française des Jeux (FDJ) and was the holding
company of Sporting Index (the business-to-consumer
business). Spreadex acquired Sporting Index in 2023.
-
When the CMA is investigating a merger, the Enterprise Act
2002 enables it to take steps to prevent action which might
prejudice the reference or might impede remedial action
justified by the CMA's ultimate decision. In this case, the
CMA exercised this power and imposed on Spreadex interim
orders to maintain the pre-merger competitive conditions and
ensure that Spreadex and Sporting Index would compete
independently pending the outcome of the CMA's
investigation.
