Ahold Delhaize announces the acquisition of Tesco Czechia and Slovakia, strengthening its position in Europe

Zaandam, the Netherlands, October 30, 2026 – Ahold Delhaize is pleased to announce that it has agreed to acquire 100% of the Czech and Slovak businesses from Tesco, subject to regulatory approval. The acquisition gives Ahold Delhaize a significant opportunity to strengthen its position in the Central and Southeastern European region and expand into the adjacent Slovak market, in line with its Growing Together strategy.

Combining these complementary businesses and their local retail expertise and scale will position Ahold Delhaize to invest further in the customer proposition, associates and communities, while supporting sustainable long-term growth.
 

Strategic rationale 
The transaction increases Ahold Delhaize's scale in the Central and Southeastern European region and strengthens its ability to compete in rapidly evolving grocery markets. Today, Tesco Czechia and Slovakia comprise a network of over 360 self-operated supermarkets, hypermarkets and convenience stores, as well as over 100 franchise stores, generating approximately €3.5 billion in sales, and employing over 14,000 employees.

Following completion, integration and store portfolio remodeling, the combined businesses of local Ahold Delhaize brand Albert and Tesco Czechia are expected to become the leading grocery retail brand in Czechia by market share. It will also establish Ahold Delhaize as a significant player in Slovakia, with a leading brand position. This strengthens Ahold Delhaize’s ability to serve customers, invest in growth and compete effectively over the long term.

Albert has a long-standing track record of acquiring store estates and transforming them into its winning proposition. It will bring proven execution capabilities to a new customer base across an expanded footprint. Local customers will benefit from a strong customer value proposition and omnichannel capabilities, a refreshed store look and feel, modernized and technology enabled customer-facing areas, and an aligned assortment and loyalty proposition.

For Ahold Delhaize, this is an excellent example of our Growing Together strategy in action. It combines our local food retailer expertise with a clear capital allocation policy to deliver shareholder returns through multiple levers.

The combination is expected to generate significant value in market and for the European region through increased scale, operational efficiencies, stronger sourcing capabilities and the sharing of expertise across the organization.

This transaction is complementary, and we remain committed to all our capital allocation ambitions.

Transaction details

• Ahold Delhaize expects to generate significant revenue growth and synergies from the transaction. The expected synergies will create additional capacity to invest in the customer proposition, digitalization, sustainability and the associate experience in both markets.
• Ahold Delhaize will pay an Enterprise Value of approximately €1.2 billion, corresponding to lease-adjusted Enterprise Value of approximately €1.7 billion (post-IFRS 16). On a post-IFRS 16 basis, the lease-adjusted Enterprise Value implies an EV/LTM EBITDA multiple of approximately 7.2x, or 5.0x including synergies.
• In the first year after closing, the business combination is expected to be EPS neutral to Ahold Delhaize.
• The acquisition consideration will be funded with committed financing and existing resources, with the transaction expected to close in Q4 2027 following the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including regulatory clearances. 

Frans Muller, CEO of Ahold Delhaize: “This acquisition is an important step in strengthening our position in the Central and Southeastern European region. It brings together highly complementary businesses with strong local market expertise and gives us the opportunity to expand into Slovakia, an attractive adjacent market. We see significant potential to combine our European scale, capabilities and retail expertise to better serve customers and support sustainable long-term growth. We look forward to working closely with the local teams as we take this next step together.”

Margaret Versteden-van Duijn, CEO Ahold Delhaize Europe & Indonesia: “At the heart of both businesses are strong local teams who know their customers and communities exceptionally well. I am very much looking forward to welcoming our new colleagues across the stores, distribution centers and offices in Czechia and Slovakia to Ahold Delhaize. Together with our Albert colleagues, they bring deep local expertise, experience and passion for retail. I am excited about what we can learn from one another and what we can build together for our customers, our associates and the communities we serve. This acquisition positions us well for further value creation, driving sustainable long-term growth in attractive markets.”

Next steps
The transaction is subject to regulatory clearances under applicable laws and regulations.

Because of Ahold Delhaize’s strong balance sheet, the transaction will have no meaningful impact on ongoing capital allocation and capital return policies. 

More details will be provided during the Q3 2026 Ahold Delhaize analyst conference call on Wednesday, November 4 at 10AM CET.

BofA Securities is acting as financial advisor to Ahold Delhaize; CMS is acting as lead transaction counsel and Crowell & Moring LLP and Havel & Partners as regulatory counsel.