Board game behemoth Asmodee reportedly up for sale

Asmodee, one of the biggest board game publishers in the world, could be up for sale.

That’s according to “people familiar with the matter” speaking to Reuters, which reports that the French tabletop giant is looking into the possibility of being acquired.

The price suggested would make the company worth more than €1.5 billion (£1.3bn), over ten times the amount paid by current owner Eurazeo five years ago, when it bought Asmodee in 2013 for €143 million (£126m). According to Reuters' sources, Asmode's yearly earnings are around €100 million (£88m) before tax and other deductions.

Of course, Asmodee has been busy in the time since, gobbling up plenty of companies and games itself, including Pandemic home Z-Man, Plaid Hat and Pretzel parent F2Z Entertainment, Rory’s Story Cubes, Dream Home studio Rebel, various European firms, and the entire library of games from former Agricola publisher Mayfair.

The recent acquisitions added to an already heaving list of studios under the Asmodee banner, including X-Wing and Arkham Horror maker Fantasy Flight Games, Catan Studio, Ticket to Ride label Days of Wonder and many, many more.

Asmodee’s buying spree and this new rumour have sparked a run of the same joke: who will buy Asmodee, if not Asmodee?

It remains to be seen if the sale will go ahead and, if so, who will be interested – and able – to pick up the enormous family of studios. But, if it does, it could potentially lead to some significant changes to one of the hobby’s most influential creators of games.