Flutter Entertainment has announced that its prominent online poker brand PokerStars will have a reduced profile in Brazil beginning in December, when it will become a poker-only brand for that country. The reason is a streamlining and adjustment of brands that Flutter will offer in Brazil, as Brazil launches a new regulatory framework for online sportsbetting and casino-style iGaming (except for online poker) early in 2025.
Brazil is one of PokerStars.com‘s most vibrant markets, where PokerStars offers online sportsbetting and casino games in addition to its core service of online poker. Except for the poker, those services will end on December 16, 2024, weeks before Brazil’s regulatory regime goes into effect in January.
Stars parent Flutter is not abandoning sports betting and casino games for its Brazilian customers, however, as its Stars customers will instead be directed to other Flutter brands that have applied for licensing in those segments. The most prominent of the new brands is likely to be Betnacional, under which Flutter’s sportsbetting services will be gathered.
Flutter prepared for upcoming regulation with NSX Group acquisition
Last month, Flutter paid $350 million to acquire Betnacional’s corporate parent, NSX Group, with its eye on the upcoming regulatory shift. Betnacional is already Brazil’s fourth-largest online sportsbetting brand, as noted in a Flutter update on the acquisition published last month. According to Reuters, Betnacional currently holds a 12% share of Brazil’s online sportsbetting market.
The pickup also fits to Flutter’s current corporate strategy of acquiring brands and operators that are also among the market leaders in their respective jurisdictions, in what the company refers to as its ‘local hero’ approach.
Flutter is also launching a new division, Flutter Brazil, under which the NSX Group operations including Betnacional will be gathered. According to Flutter, ‘The strength of the combined Flutter Brazil business will position it exceptionally well to capitalize on the opportunity in this attractive market.’ Stripping down the PokerStars offerings in Brazil brings cost savings as well, by eliminating redundancy in licensing fees.
PokerStars will also be offering some extra promotional incentives to keep its Brazilian customers happy. It will soon be launching some exclusive online tourneys for Brazilian players, with plenty of tie-ins to the Stars-branded Brazilian Series of Poker (BSOP) likely to be a focal point. Other promotions and incentives have been promised as well.