HLD

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52 Entertainment

52 Entertainment
Tech, Media & Telecommunication
Workforce
270 employees
Community members
15 million

Initially positioned on online bridge, 52 Entertainment has become the specialist in online mind games over the past decade, diversifying into belote, canasta, tarot and even online sailing with Virtual Regatta.

The story of 52 Entertainment began in 2016, when HLD decided to support the development of online bridge brand Funbridge, attracted by the resilience of its fundamentals: an affluent, loyal clientele of subscribers in a relatively protected market where online play was still marginal. Capitalizing on the strong positions Funbridge had in Europe, the group then established global leadership with the acquisition of BBO (Bridge Based Online) in 2018. The group has considerably strengthened its value proposition for bridge players, diversifying its game modes, and developing an online tournament offering for bricks-and-mortar bridge clubs. Building on success in its core business, the group then diversified rapidly through an ambitious external growth strategy, making a dozen acquisitions in less than five years in the area of mind games. Since we invested in the company, we have been working actively with the management to support its external growth strategy and to increase cross-functional expertise within the group.

The company is now the world leader in online bridge and sailing, and offers 10 mind game platforms available in 180 countries.

“52 Entertainment has grown rapidly over the last few years, both organically and externally. Every step of the way, HLD has responded quickly when opportunity knocked, while leaving us the autonomy we need to manage the company.”
Olivier Comte [CEO]
ESG Trajectory
ESG Trajectory
ESG Trajectory

Current initiatives

  • Operational excellence

    Strengthening digital marketing capabilities by hiring data analysts, implementing digital KPIs, tracking player cohorts, and optimizing the marketing funnel.

  • Organic growth

    Fostering expertise in community management and social media

  • External growth

    Diversification into mind games through an M&A strategy targeting products with a strong community component.

  • Innovation and product roadmap

    Roll-out of new game modes on the bridge vertical (live game, competition mode, e-learning modules, etc.).

  • Operational excellence

    Complete overhaul of the platforms’ technical infrastructure and software applications to improve users’ experience.

  • ESG

    Formalization of a CSR policy: scopes 1, 2 and 3 carbon footprint and carbon emissions reduction plan, waste management, employee training.

Achievements to date

  • +9
    acquisitions in the field of other mind games to diversify the business
  • 1,000+
    More than 1,000 partnerships with bridge clubs
  • 25
    Extension of the service to 25 countries
  • x12
    Turnover multiplied by a factor of 12 since 2018
  • 30
    Current portfolio of more than 30 mind games
  • +10
    10 new partnerships with federations since 2020

Latest news

2023
52 Entertainment, one of the world leaders in evergreen games and a recent winner of the French Tech Next 40/120 award, is continuing its growth trajectory, building on a community of over 10 million active players a month. Virtual Regatta's selection for the Olympic e-sports games and its recent acquisitions further enhance the Group's appeal and help to raise its profile, which is already present in 180 countries around the world.
2022
52 Entertainment continues to grow and strengthen its position in board and card games.
2021
The acquisition of Virtual Regatta marks a major step in 52 Entertainment's development towards online games with a strong community dimension. The company's offer is being expanded through external growth and the community of players is growing.
2020
Club closures due to the health crisis are bringing in a flood of online bridge players as 52 Entertainment launches in China and expands its offering to other games.
2019
Acquisitions are strengthening 52 Entertainment's content offering as the management transition comes to a successful conclusion.
2018
Funbridge becomes the world leader in online bridge with the acquisition of BBO.
2017
In the wake of the acquisition, Funbridge professionalized its team and its processes, overhauled its offer and began to digitalize its marketing approach.

Team

52 Entertainment
  • Olivier Comte
    [CEO]
HLD