2013

Year

Media

Sector

Opta Sports Data Limited

Client

Perform Group plc

Acquired By

Opta Sports Data Limited / Perform Group plc

Cavendish is pleased to announce the sale of Opta, the leading provider of rich sports data to the media sector, clubs, leagues and federations, to Perform Group plc, the global market leader in the commercialisation of multimedia sports content across multiple platforms.

The sales price was £40 million plus a further management incentive of up to £7 million. For the financial year ending 30 June 2013 Opta generated £12.5 million of revenue (2012: £10.8 million) and £1.3 million of EBITDA (£2012: £0.9 million).

Opta provides two principal product suits, Media Products and Professional Products. Media Products is a range of data feeds that can be integrated directly into clients’ websites, broadcast feeds and databases, typically through use of easily integrated modules. Professional Products, provides two key products aimed predominantly at the professional football market. Data Scout is an online database with detailed statistical and performance information on over 10,000 players, allowing teams to make informed, data driven scouting decisions. Video Scout is an online subscription portal that tracks player’s match performances, ensuring that clubs fully understand their own players’ form, fitness, strengths and weaknesses.

In 2013, Opta became the official data partner of Football Data Co (UK based football leagues), DFL (the Bundesliga) and Eredivisie (Dutch football league), which together with the 2014 World Cup, is expected to deliver a significant increase in Opta’s revenues and profits for 2013 and beyond.

The sale will enable Perform to maximise the significant consumer opportunity in rich data by integrating Opta’s suite of products into Perform’s direct to consumer platforms, including leading global football site, Goal. It will also accelerate Opta’s growth in the global sports data market.

Cavendish’s other recent noteworthy digital and media transactions have included the sale of Primal Pictures Limited to Informa UK, The Profile Group Limited to Centaur Media plc and Hawkeye to Sony Corporation. The deal was led by Cavendish partners, Linda Sullivan, head of digital and media, and Andrew Jeffs.

Linda Sullivan commented: “The sports data sector is one of the hottest areas in M&A at the moment, which is reflected in the global level of interest we received for Opta.”

Aidan Cooney, CEO of Opta said: “Cavendish ran a very tight process and generated real bidding excitement. Opta is seen by Perform as the missing piece in their content jigsaw.

Key Contacts

Andrew Jeffs

Partner & Head of Business Services

View profile

Recent Deals for Media Sector

What can we help you achieve?

Get in touch

Thank you. We will be in touch soon

There was an error with the form. Please check and try again.