Entain and Flutter to report financial performance amid punter-friendly results
Entain and Flutter Entertainment will both shed light on how they have fared after a string of player-friendly sports results and major events like the Super Bowl
Two of the world's largest gambling groups are poised to reveal their financial performance, following a series of punter-friendly sports outcomes and high-profile events such as the NFL Super Bowl.
Entain is set to unveil its full-year financial figures on Thursday, while Flutter Entertainment will disclose its earnings on Tuesday. London-listed Entain, the powerhouse behind Ladbrokes and Coral betting shops, is anticipated to announce underlying earnings before tax, interest, and other costs, of around £1.1bn.
This would place earnings at the upper spectrum of analyst predictions, especially after the group assured investors in January that it could weather "customer-friendly" sports results in the US. When many punters win, bookmakers like BetMGM – Entain's joint venture with MGM Resorts International – have to fork out more in winnings.
High-stakes events such as NFL matches and the Super Bowl, which Nielsen reports attracted about 128 million viewers, trigger a surge in bets on everything from the victor to intricate game details.
Meanwhile, Flutter Entertainment, owner of brands such as Paddy Power, Betfair, and FanDuel, flagged last month that this NFL season had been unusually rewarding for bettors, marking it as the most punter-favourable period in over two decades.
The Detroit Lions' victory over the San Francisco 49ers in December cost Entain a whopping £59m, causing the company to warn shareholders of lower than expected revenues and profits. In other news, Entain is on the hunt for a new CEO following Gavin Isaacs' departure after less than five months at the helm.
This comes amid a period of instability for the company, with the previous boss stepping down at the end of 2023 due to shareholder dissatisfaction. It's believed that Isaacs' exit was not performance-related but due to management culture clashes.
Interim chair Stella David is expected to provide an update on the search for a permanent chief. All this occurs as Entain works to recover from a £585m penalty agreed with HM Revenue & Customs in 2023 over alleged bribery offences in Turkey.