The bidding contest to take over Britain’s National Lottery, one of the most lucrative public-sector contracts in the U.K., is heating up as the race enters its final stretch ahead of an expected award from the Gambling Commission as soon as this month.
Bidders include Sky Bet owner Flutter Entertainment, which wrote the gambling Commission last week to stress the importance of awarding the contract to a U.K.-based company. Flutter is in the process of acquiring Sisal, one of the leading contenders in the takeover race, for £1.6 billion.
In a letter to the commission, Flutter Chief Executive Peter Jackson said there should be “no doubt as to Flutter’s commitment through Sial to the future success of the lottery,” according to the Daily Telegraph.
Czech-based Allwyn, formerly Sazka Entertainment, is another of the front-runners in the bidding. British Peer Lord Coe, who in September assumed a non-executive role at Allwyn, quit the House of Lords last week, though he insisted the lottery bidding is unrelated.
Both companies are competing with Camelot, the incumbent operator that has controlled the lottery since its inception in 1997.
The Gambling Commission will determine the winner based on scorecards assessing the strength of each bid, has banned bidders from talking about their plans publicly.
