Revenues up 9% at Paddy Power Betfair with strong online performance

by Luke Andrews, 6 March 2019

Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) has announced a 9% rise in revenues in constant currency for the full-year of 2018, with combined revenues reaching almost £1.9bn.

Combined revenues grew 9% at Paddy Power Betfair in 2019. © Pexels.

Reporting its trading update for the full-year of 2018, PPB saw gaming revenue grow by 13% to £273m. Sports revenue grew by 2% to £678m, while the sportsbook grew by 6%.

Online continued to perform strongly, with 5% growth on the year. The Australian arm also saw growth of 6%, but it was in the US where growth was unsurprisingly the largest, with 18% growth compared to 2017.

That investment in new markets is paying off for the group, who are taking an organic and M&A approach. The acquisition of FanDuel is the greatest example of the latter, and has put the group as one of the leaders in the US market. Revenues in the US were £234m.

Speaking about the performance in the US, chief executive, Peter Jackson, said:

The opening of the US online sports betting market has the potential to be the most significant development to occur within the sector since the advent of online betting. We are confident that FanDuel’s nationally recognised sports brand, 8 million customers, our Group betting expertise, and our market access partnerships position us very well. Our success to date supports this view, with FanDuel achieving a 35% online market share in New Jersey in its first 5 months of operation, and Meadowlands becoming a marquee venue for sports betting.– Peter Jackson, Paddy Power Betfair chief executive

PPB also acquired a controlling stake in the largest Georgian operator, Adjarabet, in February. PPB expects to acquire the remaining 49% in three years time.

But the group are also improving in the UK. Paddy Power’s market share has grown, while the group reported that sportsbet is driving greater customer engagement.

Peter Jackson hailed the results as strong despite a “challenging year for the sector with regulatory and tax changes”. Towards 2019, Jackson announced that the group plan to rename to Flutter Entertainment plc, saying:

The new financial year has started in line with our expectations. The acquisition of Adjarabet is further evidence that we are delivering against our strategy, and whilst there will inevitably be further regulatory challenges, we are excited about the growth opportunities ahead of us. With a growing portfolio of brands, we plan to rename the Group as Flutter Entertainment plc. There are no plans to use this historical name for consumers, and we will seek shareholders permission for the change at our forthcoming AGM.– Peter Jackson, Paddy Power Betfair chief executive

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