17 April 2024
Entain
plc
("Entain"
or the "Group")
Group
performance in line with expectations
Good
progress on operational improvements
Entain plc (LSE: ENT),
the global sports betting and gaming group, today
reports trading for the period from
1 January to 31 March 2024 ("Q1").
Key
Highlights:
· We
continue to make good progress improving the operational
performance of the business to drive organic revenue
growth
· Group
Q1 performance in line with our expectations
o Total Group Net Gaming Revenue ("NGR"), including 50% share of
BetMGM1, up +6%cc2,
-3%cc2 on a proforma3 basis
o Group proforma Online NGR (excl US) -2%cc2, supported by 11%
proforma3 growth in active customers
· UK
& Ireland NGR was down -7%cc2, (Online
-9%cc2, Retail
-6%cc2) as we continue to
experience the effects of our regulatory implementation
o Our
actions that are driving operational improvements together with the
levelling of the UK regulatory landscape will position our brands
well for growth into 2025
· International4 NGR was up +8%cc2,
-2%cc2 on a
proforma3 basis (Online -1%cc2, Retail
-8%cc2)
o Positive performance across many of our markets, partly offset
by expected softness in Australia, Netherlands and
Germany
o Encouraging return to good year on year growth in Brazil,
driven by ongoing operational improvements initiated in
2023
o In
spite of strong volume growth, NGR in Italy was impacted by
customer-friendly sports margins
· Entain
CEE5 continued to perform well with NGR up
+11%cc2 (Online +11%cc2,
Retail +9%cc2) on a
proforma3 basis with SuperSport
in Croatia performing particularly strongly
· BetMGM delivered Q1
NGR1 up +2% year on year
with a 14%6 market share in sports betting and iGaming
in the markets where it operates
o Continuing iGaming strength offset by customer-friendly win
margins across online and retail sportsbooks; adjusting for impact
of sports margin estimated Q1 NGR1 would have been high single digit positive
o Strong growth in customer acquisition, supported by successful
Super Bowl and March Madness engagement and improving app and
product capabilities
o With
an enhanced player experience and exciting pipeline ahead,
including more Angstrom powered offerings, BetMGM is well
positioned to invest for future growth
Stella David, Interim CEO of Entain,
commented:
"Our Q1 performance was in line with
our expectations, with growth reflecting both strong performances
in many of our markets as well as known challenges in others. We
are particularly encouraged by the level of customer engagement in
the US following a successful Super Bowl and March Madness, as well
as our return to growth in Brazil following the changes we
implemented.
Overall, we
are pleased with the progress being
made against our plan to accelerate
Entain's operational performance. There is
still more to do, but the team is fully engaged in
delivering operational improvements, product enhancements, as well
as greater organisational agility and efficiency. We look forward
to building on this momentum as we focus
on our strategic priorities of organic revenue
growth, margin expansion and winning in the U.S. We remain
confident that our continued focused execution will drive organic
growth into 2025 and beyond."
Q1 2024
Trading performance:
|
Q1 2024: 1 January to 31
March 2024
|
|
Total
NGR
|
|
Gaming
NGR
|
Sports
NGR
|
Sports
Wagers
|
Sports
Margin
|
|
Reported7
|
CC2
|
Proforma
CC2,3
|
|
Proforma
CC2,3
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
UK
& Ireland
|
(7%)
|
(7%)
|
(7%)
|
|
(7%)
|
(8%)
|
(12%)
|
+0.5pp
|
Online
UK&I
|
(9%)
|
(9%)
|
(9%)
|
|
(8%)
|
(13%)
|
(21%)
|
+0.6pp
|
Retail
UK&I
|
(6%)
|
(6%)
|
(6%)
|
|
(6%)
|
(5%)
|
(3%)
|
(0.2pp)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
International
|
4%
|
8%
|
(2%)
|
|
1%
|
(5%)
|
(3%)
|
(0.5pp)
|
Online Int'l
|
4%
|
8%
|
(1%)
|
|
1%
|
(4%)
|
(4%)
|
(0.3pp)
|
Retail Int'l
|
4%
|
7%
|
(8%)
|
|
23%
|
(10%)
|
2%
|
(2.2pp)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
CEE
|
124%
|
130%
|
11%
|
|
30%
|
6%
|
7%
|
+0.2pp
|
Online CEE
|
128%
|
133%
|
11%
|
|
31%
|
5%
|
8%
|
+0.2pp
|
Retail CEE
|
111%
|
116%
|
9%
|
|
22%
|
8%
|
5%
|
+0.4pp
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Group (ex
US)
|
4%
|
6%
|
(3%)
|
|
(2%)
|
(5%)
|
(5%)
|
(0.1pp)
|
Online
|
6%
|
9%
|
(2%)
|
|
(1%)
|
(4%)
|
(6%)
|
+0.1pp
|
Retail
|
(1%)
|
0%
|
(5%)
|
|
(5%)
|
(6%)
|
(1%)
|
(0.8pp)
|
BetMGM
|
(2%)
|
2%
|
2%
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total Group
inc
50% of
BetMGM
|
3%
|
6%
|
(3%)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2023 quarterly performance presented
in alignment with the new segmental reporting structure, is
available on our website:
https://entaingroup.com/investor-relations/results-centre/
Notes
(1) BetMGM revenues comprise of
sports (Online and Retail) and iGaming revenues
(2) Growth on a constant
currency basis is calculated by translating both current and prior
year performance at the 2024 exchange rates
(3) Proforma references include
all 2023 acquisitions as if they had been part of the Group since 1
January 2023
(4) International segment
comprises of all other countries outside the UK & Ireland,
Entain CEE and US reporting segments, including Australia, Italy,
Brazil, Netherlands, New Zealand, Georgia and
Germany
(5) Entain Central and Eastern
Europe segment (Entain CEE) comprises of Croatia and
Poland
(6) Combined market share for
North America by GGR for last three months ending January 2024
(includes US markets where BetMGM was active and an estimation for
Ontario); internal estimates used where operator-specific results
are unavailable
(7) 2024 results are unaudited,
with the tables presented relating to continuing operations and
including both statutory and non-statutory
measures
Q1 Conference Call &
Audio Webcast
An analyst call will be held today,
Wednesday 17 April 2024 at 9:00am BST. Participants may join via
webcast or by conference call dial in, approximately 10 minutes
before the start of the call.
Live audio
webcast link:
Entain Group 2024 Q1 Trading Update
To
participate in the Q&A, please use conference call dial
in:
UK
+44 20 3936 2999
US
+1 646 787 9445
Global Dial-In Numbers
Access Code: 506198
A replay and transcript will be
available on our website:
https://entaingroup.com/investor-relations/results-centre/
Enquiries:
Upcoming
dates:
Annual General
Meeting 24 April 2024
2024 Interim results:
8 August 2024
About Entain
plc
Entain plc (LSE: ENT) is a FTSE100
company and is one of the world's largest sports betting and gaming
groups, operating both online and in the retail sector. The Group
owns a comprehensive portfolio of established brands; Sports brands
include BetCity, bwin, Coral, Crystalbet, Eurobet, Ladbrokes, Neds,
Sportingbet, Sports Interaction, STS, SuperSport and TAB NZ; Gaming
brands include Foxy Bingo, Gala, GiocoDigitale, Ninja Casino,
Optibet, Partypoker and PartyCasino. The Group owns proprietary
technology across all its core product verticals and in addition to
its B2C operations provides services to a number of third-party
customers on a B2B basis.
The Group has a 50/50 joint venture,
BetMGM, a leader in sports betting and iGaming in the US. Entain
provides the technology and capabilities which power BetMGM as well
as exclusive games and products, specially developed at its
in-house gaming studios. The Group is tax resident in the UK and is
the only global operator to exclusively operate in domestically
regulated or regulating markets operating in over 30
territories.
Entain is a leader in ESG, a member
of FTSE4Good, the DJSI and is AA rated by MSCI. The Group has set a
science-based target, committing to be carbon net zero by 2035 and
through the Entain Foundation supports a variety of initiatives,
focusing on safer gambling, grassroots sport, diversity in
technology and community projects. For more information see the
Group's website: www.entaingroup.com`.
Important notices
Certain statements in this
announcement are forward-looking statements which are made in good
faith, including with respect to Entain's current expectations,
intentions and projections regarding its future performance,
strategic initiatives, anticipated events or trends and other
matters that are not historical facts and which are, by their
nature, inherently predictive, speculative and involve risks and
uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on
circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. All
statements that address expectations or projections about the
future, including statements about operating performance, strategic
initiatives, objectives, market position, industry trends, general
economic conditions, expected expenditures, expected cost savings
and financial results are forward‐looking statements. Any
statements contained in this announcement that are not statements
of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward‐looking
statements. These forward-looking statements, which may use words
such as "aim", "anticipate", "believe", "could", "intend",
"estimate", "expect", "may", "plan", "project", "will" or words or
terms of similar meaning or the negative thereof, are not
guarantees of future performance and are subject to known and
unknown risks and uncertainties. There are a number of factors
including, but not limited to, commercial, operational, economic
and financial factors, that could cause actual results, financial
condition, performance or achievements to differ materially from
those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.
Many of these risks and uncertainties relate to factors that are
beyond Entain's ability to control or estimate precisely, such as
changes in taxation or fiscal policy, future market conditions,
currency fluctuations, the behaviour of other market participants,
the actions of governments or governmental regulators, or other
risk factors, such as changes in the political, social and
regulatory framework in which Entain operates or in economic or
technological trends or conditions, including inflation, recession
and consumer confidence, on a global, regional or national basis.
Given those risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to
place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements speak only as of the date of this announcement. Entain
and its affiliates, and any of its or their respective directors,
officers, partners, employees, advisers or agents (collectively,
"Representatives") expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking
to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements,
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise
unless required to do so by applicable law or
regulation.
In particular, no statement in this
announcement is intended to be a profit forecast or profit estimate
and no statement of a financial metric (including estimates of
EBITDA, profit before tax, free cash flow or net debt) should be
interpreted to mean that any financial metric for the current or
future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the
historical published position of Entain and its subsidiaries.
Certain statements in this announcement may contain estimates. The
estimates set out in this announcement have been prepared based on
numerous assumptions and forecasts, some of which are outside of
Entain's influence and/or control, and is therefore inherently
uncertain and there can be no guarantee or assurance that it will
be correct. The estimates have not been audited, reviewed, verified
or subject to any procedures by Entain's auditors. Undue reliance
should not be placed on them and there can be no guarantee or
assurance that they will be correct.
This announcement is being issued by
and is the sole responsibility of Entain. No representation or
warranty, express or implied, is or will be made as to, or in
relation to, and no responsibility or liability is or will be
accepted by or on behalf of, Entain (apart from the
responsibilities or liabilities that may be imposed by the
Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended or the
regulatory regime established thereunder) or by its affiliates or
any of its Representatives as to, or in relation to, the accuracy,
adequacy, fairness or completeness of this announcement or any
other written or oral information made available to or publicly
available to any interested party or its advisers or any other
statement made or purported to be made by or on behalf of Entain or
any of its affiliates or any of its Representatives in connection
with Entain and any responsibility and liability whether arising in
tort, contract or otherwise therefore is expressly
disclaimed.
LEI: 213800GNI3K45LQR8L28