EQT hires Evercore for Sportradar exit

The Mergermarket report attributed the information to a source close to and a source briefed on the matter.

The GP has yet to indicate the timing of the process, the source briefed said. The sale will kick off in the next 18 months, most likely sooner rather than later, according to another source.

The timing is likely to depend on a US court case, which could repeal a ban on sports betting across the country in the next few months, the source briefed said.

Sportradar reported €61m in 2016 EBITDA, up from €41m in 2015 and €28m in 2014, according to the EQT website. It more than doubled its revenue to €203m in 2016 from €91m in 2014.

The company attracted the appetite of other sponsors, and EQT is keen to take advantage of high-valuation multiples across the sector. KKR was working on a pre-emptive bid for the stake, while TPG Capital is also looking to bid through its entertainment and sports agency CAA.

A US-based strategic player would be the ideal buyer for the stake, another source briefed said.

Sportradar is expected to attract trade bidders specialised in sports rights, information services data and sports data in the US and China. Potential strategic bidders include UK-based Perform Group. Stats, a sports data and technology company based in Chicago, and Australia's WME Group could also consider bidding.

Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were among banks pitching for a sell-side mandate.

CEO to keep stake
EQT drew capital from its €4.75bn buyout fund EQT VI in 2014 to buy shares from Sportradar founder and CEO Carsten Koerl, management and EQT Expansion Capital II. Koerl, still a shareholder in the business, wants to keep his stake. EQT has made final realisations on six of the 18 portfolio companies in EQT VI to date.

The GP had previously acquired a minority stake in Sportradar in 2012 in exchange for a €44m investment from the €474m EQT Expansion Capital II vehicle.

EQT recently made high-profile investments and exits in the data and analysis space. Last year, it sold Bureau van Dijk, a global provider of business intelligence and company information, to Moody's for €3bn.

In 2013, EQT and Singapore-government-owned GIC Special Investments sold Springer Science + Business Media to BC Partners for €3.3bn. It also bought a 56% stake in StormGeo, which analyses weather data to give specific forecasts for workers in the oil and gas industry, in 2014.

The majority stake in Acuris, the parent company of Mergermarket and Unquote, is owned by BC Partners. GIC holds a minority stake in Acuris.

Sportradar employs 1,500 developers and sports specialists across 30 locations around the world. Its global headquarters are in St Gallen, Switzerland; the US operations are in Minneapolis, San Francisco and New York City. Google, Viasat, Lagardere and Paddy Power Betfair are among its clients.

EQT and Evercore declined to comment.

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