Another big NSW pub has transacted, with Sam Arnaout’s Iris Group taking the title for the Sportsman’s Hotel in Blacktown from Paul Irvin Hotel Group.
The Sportsman’s is a large-format single storey pub near Blacktown train station, around 37 kilometres west of the Sydney CBD. The pub plays to its name, offering cold beer and hot sports entertainment to the local populace.
Located in a precinct that counts a Top100 and three Top200 gaming pubs, the Sportsman’s holds 30 machines but finds itself at #336 on the Liquor & Gaming list, ahead of only Adam’s Tavern out of the six pubs in the suburb.
Joe Irvin’s PIHG has owned the Sportsman’s since 1999 and was in the process of finalising a DA to renovate and reposition the Hotel, until an unsolicited offer brought about the sale agreement.
Irvin has been expanding the Group’s portfolio in Queensland, in August taking the famous Coolangatta Sands Hotel.
Eyeing further expansion in the north, he accepted the deal from Iris for circa $23 million.
“It will be sad to see it go,” he says.
“We’re going to look for some other opportunities, in Queensland, predominantly … nothing specific at this stage, but if and when something comes up. In the meantime we’ll pay down some debt.”
Iris continues its dominance in the Newcastle region, and expansion where opportunity takes it. In June it picked up the Cambridge Tavern for $56 million, and in May the iconic Steyne Hotel for $62 million.
Arnaout suggests big things are in mind for the Blacktown venue, on a greater than one-hectare site in greater Sydney heartland.
“Our plans are to unlock the full potential that the site has to offer, with its advantageous location and attributes that are often sought yet seldom found,” he said of the acquisition.
“We are very excited about what the Sportsman’s will become once works are complete.”
