For the UK bookmaker is the first acquisition in the country since it formed a joint venture with local betting operator Pianeta Scommesse in the summer.
Chief Executive Chris Bell told the Sunday Times that he hopes to build up an estate of around 200 betting shops in Italy, which would eventually contribute £20m to group profits.
Other popular online betting operators which are trying to take advantage of the upcoming liberalization of the Italian betting market, include Intralot, BetShopItalia, Bet1128, Totosi, Goldbet and Admiral.
According to Agicoscommesse, about 30 online bookmakers have presented offers for the allotment of remote sports betting licenses. In the meantime, the black list of internet betting sites blocked by the Italian ISPs has grown to 621.
The European Betting Association and the Remote Gambling Association see a contradiction between the Italian Government\’s decision to continue blocking access to foreign internet betting sites and the recent auction to assign remote gambling licenses.
The European Commission has already launched an inquiry into the Italian legislation that requires online betting sites looking to operate in Italy to obtain an Italian betting license even if they already have a license in another EU member state.
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