SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Intralot SA cites a confident start to year trading as leadership maintains its key obligation to reduce long-term corporate debt in 2025.
Publishing its Q1 accounts the Athens-listed gambling and lottery technology group saw group income stand at €94m, up 10% on 2024 comparatives of €85m.
The tech group’s revenue composition remains lottery-heavy, with Lottery Games accounting for 55.2% of group turnover. Sports betting contributed 25%, followed by VLT monitoring services at 11.6%, and Technology Contracts at 8.2%.
Growth was strongest across B2B activity and Managed Services Contracts. Key markets saw Argentina’s licensed operations grow 65% year-on-year (+106% in local currency), while Turkey saw a 61% uplift in online sports betting turnover, partially offset by lira depreciation. Croatia also delivered steady organic growth in line with wider regional recovery trends.
The group reported EBITDA of €30.2m, flat year-on-year, while Net Income After Tax and Minority Interest (NIATMI) swung to a loss of €0.6m, compared to a €3.9m profit in Q1 2024. Earnings Before Tax (EBT) stood at €3.6m, impacted by higher depreciation charges and FX losses from hyperinflation adjustments.
Group CEO Nikos Nikolakopoulos and Chairman Sokratis P. Kokkalis reiterated the firm’s commitment to deleveraging its balance sheet, underlined by a sharp reduction in net debt.
He commented: “INTRALOT’s 1Q2025 results are characterised by revenue growth and free cash flow generation combined with stable profitability and continuing debt reduction, resulting in a net debt leverage ratio of 2.4x.
Adjusted Net Debt fell by €39m quarter-on-quarter to €316.5m, while the group’s net leverage ratio improved to 2.4x from 2.7x at the end of FY2024. Operating cash flow surged 80% to €48.9m, attributed primarily to the collection of prior-year receivables. Free cash flow was €38.4m after accounting for €5.6m in capex, €10m in interest, and €12.9m in principal repayments.
Of significance, Intralot confirmed it had reached terms with Greek creditors to extend the maturity of its €100m corporate bond to January 2026. As of 31 March, the outstanding balance on the facility stood at €90m. The bond is backed by Piraeus Bank, National Bank of Greece, Optima Bank and Pancreta Bank.
The US market underperformed, affected by a drop in multistate jackpot activity. Nonetheless, Intralot extended its contract with the New Hampshire Lottery through 2033, marking the first US rollout of its Lotos X lottery platform. In New Zealand, a six-year extension for its EMS system was secured through 2032.
On the commercial front, the company renewed key contracts in New Zealand through 2032 and New Hampshire through 2033, with the latter becoming the first US state to install the Lotos X central lottery platform with advanced functionalities.
