SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
FL Entertainment expects ‘positive momentum’ for its online betting and gaming segment to continue into 2024 despite hurdles faced by bet-at-home, with the Betclic Everest Group being its primary source of confidence.
The Paris-based pan-European entertainment group, which is the parent company of Betclic and the majority shareholder in bet-at-home, reported group-wide revenue of €2.9m for the nine months ending 30 September 2023 – up 5.6% from €2.7m in 2022.
Meanwhile, adjusted EBITDA for the group rose 6.9% from €446m to €472m, whilst net income rose €5.6% from a loss of €90m to a positive of €21m. Lastly, gross profit stood at €243.8m, 58% up from €154m the year prior.
François Riahi, CEO of FL Entertainment, said: “We delivered solid results in the first nine months of 2023, with top-line growth and profitability reflecting the strengths of our entertainment businesses.”
As mentioned above, FL Entertainment has two operating divisions – one focuses on content and entertainment, and the other on sports betting and gaming, the latter consisting of Betclic and bet-at-home.
Looking at the segment’s performance quantitatively, FL’s online betting division reported revenue growth of 21.6% from €591m to €718.5m, whilst adjusted EBITDA rose 22.6% to €184.8m (€150.8m).
However, operating profit and net income both dropped respectively by 0.1% from €132m to €131.8m and 4.4% from €103.3m to €98.7m. This can be partly attributed to a rise in expenses – for example, external expenses were up 7.5% to €467.3m (€379.2m).
It is important to note that this year has also been a difficult year for bet-at-home, which recently stated that ‘adverse sporting results’ had led to it revising 2023 year-end guidance, expecting revenue of €44m-€48m, less than previous projections of €50m-€60m.
Of significance for FL’s sportsbook operations, Betclic launched a ‘new major version of its app’ in September, which was highlighted by the group as laying the groundwork for momentum to continue into 2024.
Looking ahead, FL expects continuing growth and retention of unique active players as a result of the app, whilst adding that the formerly mentioned ‘adverse sports results’ are in reverse and are expected ‘to be fully offset by the end of Q4 2023 on Q1 2024 at the latest’.
“In online sports betting and gaming, we maintained strong, double-digit growth across all activities,” Riahi remarked. “Our continued focus on growing and retaining Unique Active Players was supported by the successful launch of a highly rated new App that enhances our product offer and user experience.
“Betclic has also become the first player to achieve the GamCare Safer Gambling certification outside the UK, demonstrating our total commitment to responsible gaming. Looking ahead, we are focused on growing our leadership positions in the entertainment space to deliver sustained profitable growth.”
