TAB signs 25-year partnership with international betting company Entain

The NZ Herald reports that international betting company Entain is set to take over the day-to-day operations of the New Zealand TAB in a 25-year deal.

Entain, which runs the Ladbrokes and Neds brands in Australia, has beaten out huge market rivals Sportsbet and Tabcorp to be the preferred partner for the New Zealand TAB, with the two organisations signing their strategic partnership agreement on Monday morning.

That agreement still has to be approved by Racing Minister Kieran McAnulty but that could happen as soon as this week provided the minister is happy with the terms of the deal.

One of McAnulty’s primary concerns, the retention of jobs in New Zealand, has been allayed with the Entain deal guaranteeing all 450 TAB employees jobs for at least two years.

The minister will also have to be satisfied the deal meets his requirements around the TAB meeting its obligations to the racing industry and sporting codes as well as winning punters being protected from being more restricted in placing bets.

He will also need to be sure the deal meets harm minimisation (problem gambling) standards as well as the safeguards around money laundering legislation, both now key areas of betting agency governance.

But if all those requirements are met it will be a major surprise if the minister does not sign off on the deal and a new era in New Zealand gambling will begin.

The TAB has been left with little option but to seek a partnership with one of the overseas betting giants as its costs continue to rise, key customers are poached by offshore companies and the gambling marketplace changes so rapidly, with a huge move toward online betting.

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by Michael Guerin, reprinted with permission of the New Zealand Herald