Bristol sports broadcaster ESPN has acquired the owner-operator of Australia’s largest sports tipping and fantasy games platform to grow the network’s digital position on the Pacific Rim.
ESPN announced the deal to purchase ExtraCorp Pty. Ltd. for its Australian sports Website footytips.com.au. Launched in 1997, footytips offers social tipping  and other fantasy games across Australia’s 20 favorite sports, particularly rugby and Australian rules football.
Tipping is a game similar to sports bracket or pick-the-winner challenges where groups of friends compete against each other to see who can correctly predict the outcome of games.
Social tipping and footytips.com.au is integral to the Australian sports landscape, and the acquisition by ESPN enhances the company’s portfolio with a new diverse audience, said Mike Morrison, vice president and general manager of ESPN Asia Pacific.
Globally, ESPN’s various digital properties reach 65 million sports fans per month.
