Flutter’s big bet on US’ FanDuel pays off but $1bn-plus charges hit bottom line
Gambling giant Flutter saw revenue jump almost 25 per cent in the last financial year, driven predominantly by significant growth in the US, but two significant impairment charges hit the firm’s paper bottom line.
Flutter said its US business was “rapidly scaling” with revenue up more than 40 per cent year on year.
Its sports gambling operation FanDuel enjoyed another year as the country’s largest online sportsbook, with market share of more than 50 per cent in the last quarter of 2023.
FanDuel reported positive adjusted EBITDA for the first time and boss Peter Jackson said 2024 had started well, with “record engagement” in the Super Bowl in February.
Performance in the UK and Ireland – where Flutter owns Paddy Power and Sky Bet – was described as “strong” with market share increasing to 30 per cent, the firm told markets this morning.
That offset “softness” in Australia.
Across the whole business, revenue hit $11.8bn, up from $9.5bn the year before.
Overall the company’s net loss was $1.2bn, due to impairment charges including a $725m write-down of the value of PokerStars, whose predominant is now in areas described as “optimise and maintain.”
A further $791m charge came from the “amortization of acquired intangibles.”
Adjusted EBITDA across the group was $1.87bn.
Peter Jackson CEO commented: “Flutter delivered a strong 2023 performance as we continued to deliver on our strategy. This was underpinned by a localized approach to technology and product coupled with the unique scale advantages of the Flutter Edge. As anticipated, our number one position in the US has transformed the Group’s earnings profile during 2023 as FanDuel delivered a positive US full year Adjusted EBITDA for the first time.
“The year has started well with very good momentum continuing into Q1. Record Super Bowl engagement contributed to US revenue growth of 55.6% for the period from January 1, 2024 to March 17, 2024. We also launched in North Carolina where we have been really pleased with performance to date.
“Outside of the US, revenue grew 6.3% as the market driven decline in Australia was more than offset by the growth of our UKI and other International businesses. We believe that our strategy and competitive advantages position us well to continue to grow the business through both organic and inorganic opportunities,” he continued.