Zeal enters UK prize draw market with £33.8m SevenCanyon acquisition

Zeal Network SE has agreed to acquire SevenCanyon, giving the German online lottery operator a direct entry point into the UK digital prize draw market. 

The transaction covers the remaining 96.5% of SevenCanyon shares not already held by Zeal. 

The deal includes a cash purchase price of approximately £33.8m ($45.3m), subject to post-completion adjustments, alongside an earn-out payment of up to £4.8m over six months after completion.

SevenCanyon operates UK prize draw platforms including 7days Performance, Redline Competitions and UK Carp Competitions. Its products focus on non-cash prizes such as cars, houses and lifestyle goods. In its 2026 financial year, running from April 2025 to March 2026, the operator generated EBITDA of more than £10m.

The acquisition expands Zeal beyond its core German lottery business and follows its stated strategy of reducing reliance on jackpot cycles through games, charity lottery products and adjacent draw-based products. 

Zeal has retained its 2026 EBITDA guidance of €70m to €75m, while adding expected non-recurring transaction costs in the mid-single-digit millions of euros.

The UK prize draw market sits outside conventional gambling licensing where operators meet the requirements for free draws or prize competitions. 

The Gambling Commission states that products failing to meet those requirements may be treated as illegal lotteries.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport also introduced a Voluntary Code of Good Practice for Prize Draw Operators in May 2026, covering operators that offer paid entry alongside a free entry route.

Zeal CEO, Stefan Tweraser, said: "With the acquisition, we hit the ground running in a highly attractive and growing market."

Zeal CFO, Andrea Behrendt, said: "The purchase price will mainly be financed through a new loan agreement."

The financing is supported by a €40m seven-year term loan arranged by Deutsche Bank.

The deal follows Zeal's first-quarter results in May, when the operator reiterated its strategy of reducing reliance on jackpot cycles through product diversification. Revenue rose 6% year-on-year to €54.3m, while EBITDA declined as investment increased in customer acquisition, games and charity lottery products.