Euro 2016 boost sees Unibet Q2 revenues soar 57%

Unibet has reported a 57% year-on-year rise in Q2 revenues following a successful Euro 2016 tournament and strong growth from the operator’s mobile business.

The Stockholm-listed firm recorded gross winnings revenue (GWR) of ?126.6m during the quarter, up from ?80.5m compared to the same period last year, while underlying EBITDA increased from ?19m to ?22m.

On a like-for-like basis, stripping out last year’s Stan James and iGame acquisitions, revenues were up 39% to ?111.9m while EBITDA was down 8% to ?17.4m.

The growth in revenues were driven by a strong Euro 2016 for the operator, which during the tournament recorded ?19.6m in GWR, with a betting margin of 14%.

“As in previous tournament years, we invested heavily in marketing both for new customer acquisition and reactivation of existing customers,” Unibet CEO, Henrik Tj?rnstr?m, said.

“While this has a short term effect in reducing profits, we are confident that this as proven previously will drive sustained growth in gross winnings revenue and profits.”

Mobile was also a key driver for growth after the channel reported a 109% year-on-year increase in revenues during the quarter, accounting for 63% of total GWR.

Unibet’s sports betting arm achieved the strongest growth during Q2, with revenues increasing 61% to ?56.2m, while revenues from casino and games climbed 59% year-on-year to ?64.7m.

The operator’s poker arm continues to show further signs of recovery, with the vertical reporting a 37% year-on-year rise in revenues to ?2.6m.

On a regional basis, GWR increased 48% and 71% in the Nordics and Western Europe respectively, while revenues from Central, Eastern and Southern Europe soared 71%. Revenues from ‘Other’ markets were down 14%.

Last year Unibet acquired the Stan James Online and iGame Group businesses, which together contributed ?14.7m in revenues and ?4.6m in EBITDA during Q2 2016.

Unibet’s share price was down 6.70% to SEK 85.00 on the Stockholm Stock Exchange at the time of writing.