Flutter to buy Boyd Gaming's 5% FanDuel stake in $1.76 billion deal

July 10 (Reuters) - Flutter Entertainment FLTRF.L will buy Boyd Gaming's BYD.N 5% stake in FanDuel in a deal worth about $1.76 billion, giving it complete ownership of the online betting operator, the companies said on Thursday.

The deal gives FanDuel an implied valuation of about $31 billion, Flutter said in a statement. The deal comprises a $1.55 billion consideration for the stake, and another $205 million for revision of existing commercial terms.

FanDuel is the largest online sports betting platform in the U.S. with a 43% market share and is Flutter's biggest revenue generator.

The companies also entered into new agreements, set to run through 2038, under which Boyd will get a fixed fee per state from FanDuel's mobile sports-betting operations in Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana and Pennsylvania.

Las Vegas-based Boyd has 28 gaming entertainment properties in 10 U.S. states. It manages a tribal casino in northern California and operates an online casino gaming business.

The deal, expected to close in the third quarter of 2025, will be funded by additional debt financing, Flutter said.

Flutter had merged its U.S. business with FanDuel in 2018 and raised its stake in the company to 95% in December 2020.

It was engaged in a longstanding dispute with Fox Corp FOXA.O over option price for the media giant to take an 18.6% stake in FanDuel, which culminated in an arbitrator ruling.

Flutter said on Thursday Fox Corp holds the option to exercise that stake on or before December 3, 2030 at a current equation of $4.5 billion.