Codere to become official sponsor of Club Atlético River Plate of Argentina
Codere, a leading Spanish multinational company in the private gaming sector across Europe and Latin America, has signed a sponsorship agreement with the Club Atlético River Plate of Argentina for the next four seasons, until August 2025, becoming the Official Betting Partner of the club.
For Carlos Sabanza, Codere’s Sponsorship Manager, “this agreement allows us to reach the Argentine and Latin American public in the best and most direct way possible, providing our current and future customers the best brand experience. This alliance - with one of the most important football teams in the country- allows us to enhance our positioning as a leading online sports betting and omnichannel entertainment provider in this key market”.
2021, gaining momentum after the pandemic
On June 22nd, Grupo Codere reached a merger agreement of its online gaming subsidiary -formed by the parent company Codere Online Luxembourg, S.A. (“Holdco”), Servicios de Juego Online, S.A.U. (“SEJO”) and its consolidated subsidiaries-, with the SPAC DD3 Acquisition Corp. II (Nasdaq: DDMX, “DD3”), that would result in Codere Online becoming the first publicly-listed online gaming operator traded on the US Nasdaq Stock Exchange.
The new company, managed and majority owned by Grupo Codere, will drive the expansion of the digital business in Argentina and other Latin American growing markets.
This objective, strengthened by the sponsorship, will enable Codere to continue promoting its activity in Argentina through the consolidation of its brand by different marketing and promotional actions planned together with the club.
Alberto Telias, Chief Marketing Officer of Codere Online, points out that “this agreement represents a very important turning point for the development of our activity in the country, after a difficult period of protracted closings due to the pandemic. The company is thrilled about this project together with River, with whom we share the fair play and team work values on and off the field, and that will enable Codere to expand its footprint in Argentina and Latin America”.
Jorge Brito, first Vice-Chairman of River Plate Club said, “it is a pleasure to have Codere as a sponsor, a company with a wide experience, global reach and with great growth in the region, which will help us both to continue consolidating our growth, share the same commitment, effort and fair play values”.
Codere in Argentina, a long-term bet
Codere began its activity in Argentina in the early 1990s and is currently the largest gaming hall operator in the Province of Buenos Aires, with 13 gaming halls, in which it operates more than 6,800 casino-slots, in addition to traditional bingo and associated catering services. The group expects to start its online operations in the country as soon as the City of Buenos Aires and/or any of its other provinces authorize it.
The company is committed to Latin America by developing its entertainment offering in Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, Colombia and Panama, as reflected by its sponsorships of the main football teams (in Argentina, the Atlético River Plate Club and in Mexico, the Monterrey Rayados Football Club), in addition to the already existing one with Real Madrid C.F. since 2016. The company also promotes the main sports events with specific campaigns, such as those recently developed for the UEFA EURO 2020 and the CONMEBOL America Cup.
Codere's Club Atlético River Plate sponsorship campaign will be launched this Tuesday, July 27th. You can access it through the following LINK.
Last June, Vicente Di Loreto, CEO of Codere, participated in a meeting between the authorities of Argentina and Spain, together with a group of businessmen from both countries, which highlighted the will to promote investments and continue collaborating in joint business development.
In his words, “the company will continue to focus its efforts and investment in the development of its entertainment offer in this strategic market for Codere, which has great potential with the recent regulation of the online activity and where we have a relevant position.”
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Codere to appear on the shirt of the Club de Futbol Monterrey Rayados of Mexico
Codere, a leading multinational company in private gaming in Europe and Latin America, has taken a step further in its sponsorship agreement with the Monterrey Rayados Football Club, of the MX League of Mexico, raising its category to main sponsor and its denomination from "Official Sponsor" to "Official Betting Partner” of the Club, allowing it to show its logo on the front of the team's shirt.
The new official shirts, now with the Codere brand, were presented yesterday during the friendly match between Rayados and Guadalajara, a preamble to the next Liga MX season, which will begin on July 23.
As such, the Rayados players wore the company logo on the home kit (with the striped shirt), during the first half, and on the away kit (in white and blue), during the second half of the match. Soon, the brand will occupy a prominent place in the club's stadium, in the Codere “Suite” and other highly visible areas of the venue.
Likewise, the Company today launched an important advertising campaign that will be broadcast on television, radio and digital media through different social networks, both from the club and from Codere, designed to connect with both the followers of the team and its sports betting customers.
Access the “History” campaign spot through the following link.
During the coming months, different joint marketing actions will be implemented in order to foster the experience of the club's fans and Codere sports betting customers, with access to the stadium, invitations to matches and VIP plans, among other activities resulting from this perfect match between gaming and exclusive football-related experiences.
Alberto Telias, Chief Marketing Officer of Codere Online, said, “We are convinced that this long-term alliance between both companies will allow us to grow together and achieve important goals. We could not have found a better travel companion in our expansion journey in Mexico than the Rayados de Monterrey Football Club.”
Meanwhile, Pedro Esquivel, Executive Vice-President of Rayados, welcomed having Codere as the Club's Official Betting Partner, calling it “a new stage that will undoubtedly boost the team, its supporters and football and sports fans." He also added that "the presentation of the new jersey kicks off a stage of optimism and enthusiasm to face the next season of the Mexican League."
Mexico, a model for Codere's expansion in Latin America
Since its arrival in Mexico in 1998, Codere has maintained a leadership position in the regulated entertainment gaming offering in the country. The sponsorship with Rayados, boosts the company's growth objective in Latin America.
Codere's omnichannel gaming portfolio in the country included (prior to Covid-19 related temporary closings) 95 gaming halls, 93 sports betting shops and nearly 21,500 gaming machines, in addition to its online gaming platform, codere.mx, which offers sports betting and
casino games. Likewise, the company operates the Hipódromo de las Américas, the Granja Las Américas and the Citibanamex Convention Center (converted since last year until very recently into a field hospital for Covid-19 patients).
Carlos Sabanza, Codere’s Sponsorship Manager, highlights the importance of this sponsorship in the evolution of the group after an extraordinary year marked by the strong impact of the pandemic on the entertainment sector, especially on the gaming industry with the closing of gaming halls and the postponement of sports competitions. Consequently, he points out, “our deal with one of the main Liga MX clubs on top of maintaining our agreement with Real Madrid CF, as Official Betting Partner, since 2016, allows us to continue expanding our international brand and achieving our ambition to be the leading company in the Spanish-speaking sports betting and gaming market.”
Codere and Monterrey Rayados Football Club will share the winning entertainment combination, the best gaming and the best football, with their sports fans and sports betting customers in Mexico for the next four seasons.
On June 22, 2021, Codere Online (the online subsidiary of Grupo Codere) and DD3 Acquisition Corp. II (NASDAQ: DDMX, DDMWU, DDMXW), a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, entered into a definitive business combination agreement that would result in Codere Online becoming the first publicly-listed online gaming operator in Latin America.
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Codere Online to become the first publicly-listed online gaming operator in Latin America via business combination with DD3 Acquisition Corp. II
Codere, a leading Spanish multinational company in the private gaming sector, have entered into a definitive business combination agreement of Codere Online Luxembourg, S.A. (“Holdco”), Servicios de Juego Online, S.A.U. (“SEJO”) and its consolidated subsidiaries, with the publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company DD3 Acquisition Corp. II (Nasdaq: DDMX, “DD3”), approved this Monday by its Board of Directors.
This merge will result in Codere Online, of an estimated enterprise value of approximately $350 million, becoming a public company, traded on the US Nasdaq stock market. Existing Codere Online management to continue operating the business and Codere Group to maintain majority ownership post-business combination.
“We are proud of this deal, which will provide our online team with the financial resources needed to grow Codere Online and take it to a new, higher level. It is a good signal of the value we have been able to create in the last three years with the fostering of this business”, explains Vicente Di Loreto, CEO of Codere Group.
On his part, Moshe Edree, Managing Director of Codere Online, affirms “we are thrilled to partner with DD3. This deal brings together the renowned Codere brand and our deep expertise in growing online gaming businesses with a world-class sponsor like DD3 that has a proven track record of building businesses through a team of seasoned investors. By going public and with the new capitalization, we will be in a superb position to leverage our online business in our core countries of Spain, Italy, Mexico, Colombia and Panama, as well as the City of Buenos Aires, where we expect to start operating in late 2021, to fuel our further expansion in other high-growth Latin American markets.”
In this way, Codere Online seeks to take its business model in Spain and Mexico as a base to promote its development in other markets where the company is already present, such as Colombia, Panama or in the City of Buenos Aires, where it will soon begin its operation; as well as being a pioneer in those environments in which the activity could soon be regulated, such as Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay or other regions of Argentina. At the same time, it will analyze options for accessing the Hispanic online gambling niche in the United States.
Martin Werner, founding partner of DD3 Capital Partners said, “we are excited to partner with Moshe and his team to bring Codere Online to the public markets. The omnichannel presence of Codere, paired with the expansive addressable market and limited competition from global gaming operators, gives Codere Online a unique advantage in their expansion across Latin America.”
Transaction overview
The business combination values the combined company at an estimated enterprise value of approximately $350 million, or 2.3x Codere Online’s estimated 2022 revenue of approximately $150 million, and an implied equity market capitalization of approximately $500 million.
Four institutional investors (DD3 Capital Partners Baron Funds, MG Capital, y LarrainVial) have committed to a private investment of more than $67 million that will close concurrently with the business combination. DD3 has $125 million of cash in its trust account that, together with the private investment are to be used to fund marketing expenditures, technology platform improvements and expansion into new high-growth Latin American markets.
The respective managing bodies of Codere Online and DD3 have approved the proposed business combination. Completion of the proposed business combination is expected in the fourth quarter of 2021.
Additional information about the proposed business combination is available at www.sec.gov. and in the investors section of the Codere Group website https://www.grupocodere.com/accionistas-inversores/, as well as on the recently launched Codere Online website www.codereonline.com.
Grupo Codere continues with the financial restructuring process started in April
This important operation does not imply any change in the restructuring process of the company communicated to the market in April as a consequence of the severe liquidity problems that the group is going through as a result of the pandemic.
The liquidity that this operation generates will be invested mainly in Codere Online. The rest of the group could only receive up to a maximum amount of 30 million dollars and this, subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions. Besides that, the valuation obtained for our online business is not an adequate reference for the rest of the company assets or its retail operation.
The group will continue to report on the restructuring process as relevant milestones occur and recalls that Codere S.A. will reduce its participation in the new consolidated group to 5% (additionally with warrants that will entitle up to 15% of the capital subject to certain conditions) as expressed in the relevant communications regarding the restructuring. Once completed the financial restructuration, the company expects to proceed with its liquidation, thus losing its condition as a listed company.
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• Shareholders confirm the restructuring agreement reached with the group's creditors, which implies an additional contribution of liquidity of 225 million euros and the capitalization of up to 360 million of debt.
It will be then, with the culmination of this restructuring process, when a new head of the group will be created, through which the creditors of the existing senior guaranteed bonds will have 95% of the share capital and the current shareholders 5%, obtaining warrants that grant them the right to receive up to 15% of a valuation of over € 220M in a possible liquidity event within 10 years.
The company plans to request the liquidation of Codere SA, a process that would allow its current shareholders to have stakes in the capital of the new head of the group or, optionally, an economic compensation that would result from the sale of the proportional part of their actions.
Codere EGM
Codere, official sponsor of the Monterrey Rayados Football Club of Mexico
Codere, leading multinational company in the private gaming sector in Europe and Latin America, has signed a sponsorship agreement with the Monterrey Rayados Football Club, of Mexico's Liga MX, for the next four seasons. The company will reach the category of main sponsor from July, when the Codere logo will appear on the club's kit and shirt.
This agreement will allow Codere to advance in its strategic project of international expansion and brand consolidation, thanks to its visibility in the different marketing and promotional actions planned together with the club.
For Carlos Sabanza, Codere's head of sponsorship, "this agreement represents an important commitment by the company to this strategic market and to boost our gaming offer at the local level."
A long career in the country.
The company has a business history in Mexico, since it started its activity in the country in 1998, as a pioneer in the gaming sector with betting and raffles based on the permits issued by the Ministry of the Interior, which authorize the installation of terminals and gaming halls, betting points and the operation of the Hipódromo de las Américas. Throughout these years the group has maintained its leadership in the country, currently operating in this market almost a hundred gambling halls, the Hippodrome, the Granja de las Américas family park, the Citibanamex convention centre (converted this year into a hospital care centre for patients with coronavirus) and online game.
Mexico is a key market for Codere's development, in fact, at the end of 2019, it represented 22% of the group's global revenues. Thanks to its extensive retail network of gambling halls and its online operation, the company offers a complete omnichannel offer that will allow it to continue growing in this market, especially in the segment of sports betting with a strong connection to football.
Codere, a decided commitment to sport
The agreement with the main team of Mexico’s Liga MX adds to the one that the company already has with Real Madrid CF, as Official Betting Partner, since 2016. Beyond the passion for sports, Codere shares its international vocation and the values of fair play, striving for excellence and leadership on the playing fields.
For Pedro Esquivel, executive vice president of the Monterrey Rayados A.C. Football Club, “it is a pleasure for CFM to begin a relationship with an international brand like Codere, which will help us both to continue consolidating our growth and achieve our goals. We believe in long-term alliances with business partners who share our values and objectives, for which we thank Codere for their trust and we are sure that great things will come for the future.”
For his part, Alberto Telias, Codere Marketing Director, points out that “the agreement with Rayados de Monterrey is an extremely exciting project. We believe that we have common brand values, which we want to exploit together. Partnering with such a successful and important team as Rayados, after a period of pandemic with great impact on the game -not only due to the closure of the rooms, but also due to the postponement of sports competitions at a global level-, is the confirmation of the strong proposal that Codere has for Mexican players ”.
The company will continue to grow its entertainment offering in the Latin American market, especially in Mexico, where it will focus its efforts and investments.
Get to know the new spot Codere - Monterrey Rayados Football Club:
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