Subject to receipt of licences and regulatory approvals, the new sports betting law allows Butler National’s subsidiary, subject to regulatory approvals, to contract with three sports wagering platform providers, in addition to offering sports wagering at a retail sportsbook in the Boot Hill Casino.  

The agreement was conducted via Butler National’s wholly-owned subsidiary that manages Boot Hill Casino & Resort in Dodge City, Kansas.

Butler National Corporation’s President and CEO, Clark Stewart, stated: “We are working diligently with regulators to bring sports betting to Kansans by September 1, 2022. We’re pleased with the regulatory efforts by the State of Kansas to implement sports wagering in Kansas.

Upon the launch of sports wagering in Kansas, anyone legally permitted within the geographical boundaries of Kansas will be able to place bets directly from their mobile devices or computers by accessing a participating sports book or visiting a lottery gaming facility.

“Golden Nugget Online Gaming is a recognized and established brand within the gaming industry. We’re thrilled our customers may soon experience all the excitement that online sports betting has to offer with this popular platform,” added Stewart. 

“In addition, we’re excited for DraftKings, as the parent company of Golden Nugget Online Gaming, to be able to bring Kansans a seamless, safe and premium sports betting experience through its Golden Nugget Online Gaming branded sportsbook, subject to receipt of requisite regulatory approvals.”

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It is noted that purchase does not include brick and mortar Golden Nugget casinos, which will continue to be owned by Fertitta Entertainment, however certain rebranding opportunities are to follow.

The pair expect this to occur at selected current and future retail sportsbook locations at the properties, which will become DraftKings branded sports betting entities.

This transaction, said DraftKings, will enable the group to leverage the Golden Nugget brand to broaden its reach into new customer segments and enhance the combined company’s igaming product offerings.

DraftKings will integrate GNOG employees across its business, including Thomas Winter, who will transition to General Manager of North America iGaming, from his previous role as President of the company.

“Acquiring Golden Nugget Online Gaming gives us synergies across our business,” said Jason Robins, Chair and CEO of DraftKings. 

“We anticipate that this acquisition will provide meaningful revenue uplift by utilising our data-driven marketing capabilities and a dual brand igaming strategy, gross margin improvement opportunities, and cost savings across external marketing and SG&A. I am proud to welcome the Golden Nugget Online Gaming team to the DraftKings family.”

It is expected that $300m in synergies will be delivered at maturity, with DraftKings set to deploy a multi-brand approach in a bid to enhance cross-selling opportunities and drive increased revenue growth. The firm will also streamline marketing capabilities and look to capitalise on additional cross-promotion opportunities. 

Furthermore, the Boston headquartered group also plans to bring GNOG onto its in-house technology to reduce third-party platform costs, operating expenses, and vendor costs.

“This will be an alliance unlike any other in the digital sports, entertainment and online gaming industry,” said Tilman Fertitta, Chair and CEO of GNOG. 

“Now that the acquisition is completed, I look forward to what the future will bring for our combined company and am confident this relationship will be a huge success.”

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As part of the deal, Strive will initially power GNOG’s online sportsbook launch in the state of Arizona. Moreover, the partnership will extend into Ontario where the latter hopes to become a regulated online operator – legislation and regulatory approvals permitting.  

“As we rapidly expand our online presence across North America, GNOG needed a PAM partner who could quickly integrate and launch our chosen sports betting engine, without sacrificing any of the flexibility or functionality expected from a top-tier PAM,” explained Thomas Winter, President of Golden Nugget Online Gaming. 

“We are confident in our choice of Strive Gaming and have been very impressed with what we’ve witnessed from both the team, and the platform, to date.”

Strive noted that its PAM solution has been specially developed to meet the compliance needs of “post-PASPA” North American digital operators who desire to conduct a unified customer experience across various US states. 

Max Meltzer, Chief Executive Officer at Strive Gaming, added: “The Golden Nugget Online Gaming team is one of the most experienced online operators in the US. After a thorough examination of the PAM supplier market, GNOG’s choice of Strive is a testament to what we have developed and are now capable of offering via our North American focused services and solutions.”

This partnership with Golden Nugget Online Gaming marks Strive’s third customer who will operate in the US, and now Strive’s second US launch, with its most recent go-live also occurring in the state of Arizona via the Desert Diamond Mobile app for the Tohono O’odham Tribe.

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Under the former, Golden Nugget and OtherLevels will expand into the state of West Virginia and continue to deliver personalised messaging to activate players on the operator’s igaming platforms and digital sportsbooks.

“Golden Nugget has been a valued strategic partner to OtherLevels for six years, and we look forward to further expanding our relationship as Golden Nugget’s gaming operations launch in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and other new states in the US market,” explained Brendan O’Kane, CEO of OtherLevels.

“Over the next two years, we will leverage our cross-channel messaging and optimised content delivery capabilities to ensure that personalised, relevant content is reaching the right players on the right channel at precisely the right time.”

OtherLevels has provided omnichannel marketing and real-time messaging services to Golden Nugget since 2015, enabling the operator to drive its igaming player activity both in and out of session, including during its latest statewide deployment in Michigan.

The engagement specialist has also helped the operator optimise its approach to player engagement by supplying players with personalised content based on previous gaming behaviours, preferences, and other parameters. 

Samir Banerjee, GNOG’s director of marketing, added: “Our continued partnership with OtherLevels demonstrates the commitment of GoldenNuggetCasino.com to always provide our online casino patrons with a personalised messaging experience that is best-in-class.”

Alongside this, GNOG also linked-up with Leander in a content agreement which will see the North American gaming operator take seven of latter’s slots on an exclusive basis until the end of 2023. 

The digital slot titles available will include Viking Raid Zone, Cash Up, Silk Road Riches, Star Stacks, Fortune Fireworks, Patrick’s Jackpot and Diamond Blast Zone.  

“The huge importance of this deal is that it gives Leander games prominence with one of the leading operators in the US online gaming space,” noted Steven Matsell, CEO at Leander Games. “Golden Nugget is among the top-tier of digital casino operators in the US.  

“We are delighted to be associated with such a marquee brand and organization and we look forward to offering this selection of games to GoldenNuggetCasino.com players across North America.” 

Echoing the words of Matsell, GNOG’s president, Thomas Winter, stated: “We look forward to expanding our digital slot offering with these new exclusive titles and are honoured to be introducing Leander’s games to US players. With this agreement, we will further enhance both the variety and exclusivity of our market leading content portfolio, a key part of GNOG differentiation strategy.”

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This has brought the launch of OpenBet sports technology across New Jersey and Virginia with the US casino operator, as well as a dual integration of digital sports betting and igaming in West Virginia.

“Launching OpenGaming with Golden Nugget in West Virginia is exciting news for us,” stated Robert Hays, vice president commercial of Americas digital at Scientific Games.

“Our mix of land-based inspired igaming content and innovative games has proven very successful with the operator in other states. 

“We’re sure that Golden Nugget players in West Virginia will love the range of new online games that are now on offer to them in the digital space.”

Golden Nugget is to launch digital sports betting technology to deliver its new online and mobile sportsbook offering in both Virginia and West Virginia, with the deployment in the latter also set to be complemented by OpenGaming.

The company’s online casino offering in the state features content developed by Scientific Games’ in-house studios, along with games supplied by an array of third-party providers

“We are proud of our ongoing partnership with Golden Nugget, one of the world’s most recognisable brands in the casino space,” noted Cathryn Lai, chief commercial officer at OpenBet.

“We are equally honored that they continue to entrust OpenBet to power their digital and retail sportsbooks across multiple states. The entire team worked tirelessly to facilitate these new state launches, and we look forward to working with Golden Nugget across new projects in the future.” 

Earlier this year, Golden Nugget launched its new mobile sportsbook in New Jersey powered by OpenBet technology and content, and Scientific Games is set to follow this up over the coming months by delivering its retail solutions to the operator’s hotel and resort in Atlantic City.  

Thomas Winter, president of GNOG, added: “Existing customers of Golden Nugget have truly embraced legalised sports betting and igaming since we first introduced our online offering. 

“Thanks to the continued support of Scientific Games and its modern OpenBet technology and OpenGaming platform, we are very excited to announce these range of launches. 

“We know the robust and powerful capabilities that both solutions provide and are looking forward to delivering yet more unmissable betting and gaming experiences to even more players across the nation.”

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Furthermore, the partnership will also see Boom build a custom and exclusive games library in collaboration with GNOG, which has also participated as a minority investor in the firm’s most recent financing round.

“We are thrilled to enter this long-term relationship with Boom,” said Thomas Winter, president of GNOG. “Boom’s team has an impressive track record in the gaming industry, and we believe this partnership will help GNOG continue to differentiate itself in the market with a premier, unrivalled gaming product.”

As part of this agreement, Boom will integrate its remote gaming server and portfolio of casino games into Golden Nugget. The technology startup will also provide several custom online casino titles to the operator. 

In addition, GNOG will also benefit from Boom’s other assets and capabilities, which include free-to-play gaming, innovative sport betting content, casino technology, and market access.

“We are excited to work with an incredible operator in Golden Nugget,” added Stephen Murphy, CEO of Boom. “Boom’s mission is to fuel the biggest winners in sports betting and casino gaming, whether they are operators, leagues, retail establishments, or media companies. We are excited to add our mark to Golden Nugget’s award-winning product.”

Last week, Rush Street Interactive has made a minority investment in game developer and tech provider Boom Entertainment, which will secure the group access in Louisiana, Mississippi, and New Mexico.

This came after DraftKings entered into a definitive agreement that will see the group acquire Golden Nugget Online Gaming in an all-stock transaction that has an implied equity value of approximately $1.56bn.

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The comments come as the group documents its performance for the three months ending March 31, 2021, which saw revenue increase 54.2 per cent to $26.7m (2020: $17.3m).

Net income came in at $69.6m (2020: $4.1m), after gains on warrant derivatives liabilities of $81.1m, tax receivable agreement liability of $1.3m and debt extinguishment expenses of $2.2m, including the accelerated amortisation of deferred loan costs and debt premium totalling $600,000 associated with the early repayment of $10.6m of the term loan during the period.

Furthermore, during a timeframe which saw market access secured in Colorado and Iowa alongside Maverick’s Z Casino and Wild Rose Casino, respectively, adjusted EBITDA was at a loss of $3.5m compared to $5.9m from one year earlier. 

Tilman Fertitta, chairman and chief executive officer, stated “The future is very bright for Golden Nugget Online Gaming as we achieved another record quarter in revenue and with our newly announced partnerships in Colorado and Iowa, we now have market access in 12 states, representing approximately 29 per cent of the US population.”

Despite acknowledging that the year could represent a key time frame for the group, GNOG stipulates that its previous full-year revenue outlook range of $130m to $145m is maintained for 2021.

“We are very pleased to start 2021 with such strong results across both our established and new expansion markets,” Thomas Winter, president on GNOG, added

“We believe we are well positioned to capitalise on the significant and fast growing market for igaming across North America. We expect that 2021 will be a milestone year for the company as we are on target to be live in six states by the end of the year, including all four key igaming states.”

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Total Revenue for the year is expected to be confirmed as between $90m and $91m, compared to $55.4m in 2019, representing an increase of 63 per cent.

Gross Gaming Revenue for the 12-month period are set to be $101m to $102m, a 67 per cent rise on the $60.9m posted in 2019.

Operating Income is forecast to be $23m to $24m, up 39 per cent on the year prior, in which GNOG had recorded $17.6m.

These positive preliminary results have been boosted further by early performance in Michigan, in which GNOG began operations on January 22, 2021, in partnership with the Ojibwa casino.

Thomas Winter, President of GNOG said: “We are thrilled to be live in Michigan and are optimistic on the revenue opportunity. We have just launched our marketing campaign and are already recording close to $2m dollars in daily casino wagers.

“Michigan is embracing online gaming at a rapid pace and we anticipate that our business in the Great Lakes State will exceed our earlier expectations”.

In a statement, Tilman J Fertitta, Chairman and CEO of GNOG, said: “We are very pleased with yet another year of rapid and profitable growth. 2020 was a transformational year for Golden Nugget Online, which went public, reached $100m in GGR and signed market access agreements in multiple states.

“We look forward to replicating our New Jersey success in many other states and taking advantage of the strong growth of online gaming in the US.”

Additionally, GNOG confirmed that Kevin Vonasek had been appointed to the role of Vice President of Corporate Development. Vonasek, formerly Chief Product Officer Americas at NYX Gaming Group and VP of Business Development Americas at SG Digital, will focus on expanding activities into new states.

Vonasek (pictured) said: “For many years I have held the Golden Nugget team and their accomplishments in the highest regard.

“I am very excited to be joining the team and I look forward to helping GNOG expand its market leading position across every US igaming market.”

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The group, which is the parent company of Golden Nugget and Landry’s, expects to use the proceeds from the transaction to accelerate its growth initiatives, general corporate purposes and reduce existing debt. 

In connection with the merger agreement, both parties will undertake certain organisational transactions to exclude from the public company certain businesses and assets that Tilman Fertitta will continue to wholly own on a private basis.

The transaction implies an enterprise valuation for Golden Nugget/Landry’s of approximately $6.6bn, or 9.25x projected 2022 pro forma adjusted EBITDA of $648m, including the value of the GNOG equity to be contributed to the company, based on an assumed per share trading price of approximately $18, which will be subject to adjustment based on the 60 day average price of the stock before closing. 

Estimated cash proceeds from the transaction are expected to consist of Fast’s $200m of cash in trust, assuming no redemptions. In addition, institutional shareholders have committed to invest approximately $1.2bn in the form of a PIPE at a price of $10 per share of common stock of Fast immediately prior to closing.

“The hospitality industry is experiencing the greatest disruption of our lifetimes and Tilman and his team have remained the premiere gaming and restaurant operators in the country,” said Jacob.

“We believe this diverse portfolio made up of full-service dining and entertainment concepts combined with pent-up consumer demand, will find continued success as a public company.”

Tilman Fertitta, sole owner of Fertitta, will continue to lead the Golden Nugget/Landry’s empire and serve as the chairman, president and CEO, as well as being its largest shareholder with an approximately 60 per cent interest and stock valued upon the closing of the transaction in excess of $2bn dollars. 

No other changes to management are anticipated as the existing Golden Nugget/Landry’s management team will continue to lead the group.

Fertitta explained: “I look forward to returning my company to the public marketplace. After taking the company private in 2010, we accomplished a lot. However, in today’s opportunistic world, I determined that in order to maximise the opportunities in the gaming, entertainment and hospitality sectors, it was preferable to take my company public. 

“We first began to explore going public in 2019, as we saw tremendous M&A deals hitting the market. However, the pandemic set these efforts back. Fast provided us with the perfect merger vehicle to allow us to take control of an already existing public company.

“Fast’s capital along with the equity investment from institutional shareholders will strengthen our balance sheet and allow us to pursue our acquisition strategy.”

Adding: “After I compared the opportunities provided by a transaction with Fast, versus the traditional IPO route, it became abundantly clear that we could access the capital markets with more certainty and speed if we did a deal with Fast.

“Working with Doug and Sandy has been a pleasure, and I truly appreciate their time and contribution to this process. At the end of the day, the decision to do a deal with Fast was a no-brainer.”

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Upon completion of the business combination, Landcadia changed its name to Golden Nugget Online Gaming, Inc. The company’s shares of class A common stock will commence trading on Nasdaq Stock Market under the ticker symbol “GNOG” as of today (December 30).  

GNOG began its operation in New Jersey during the fourth quarter of 2013, and is lauded as being the first online gaming company to launch a live dealer in the US. After becoming profitable four years ago it recorded net income of more than $11m in 2019.

Commenting on the combination Tilman J. Feritta, who will continue to serve as the company’s CEO and chairman of the board, said: “I am pleased to see the business combination finally close. We see tremendous opportunity in the online gaming space and are excited to be a part of it.”

Furthermore, Thomas Winter will remain as president and the rest of the Golden Nugget Online Gaming team will continue in their respective roles.  

Jefferies LLC served as the sole financial, capital markets advisor and placement agent to Landcadia. White & Case LLP acted as legal counsel to Landcadia and Haynes and Boone LLP served as legal counsel to Golden Nugget Online Gaming.

The transaction values the combined company at an anticipated pro forma enterprise value of approximately $745m, or 6.1x GNOG’s estimated 2021 revenue of $122m.

Fertitta and Jefferies formed Landcadia Holdings II and took it public last year, raising $316m for an acquisition. Plans to merge it with Fertitta’s online gaming and digital sports entertainment company were made public in June.

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