Entain expects to report 7% rise in net gaming revenue for 2021
The growth was driven by Entain’s online gaming business.
UK.- While it’s yet to deliver the numbers, Entain has announced that it expects to report a 7 per cent increase year-on-year in net gaming revenue for 2021.
The UK gaming giant said in a trading update that performance had been boosted by a 12 per cent rise in online revenue, coming through growth across all of its major markets.
The company said it expects online sports betting revenue to be up by 21 per cent and online gaming revenue up by 4 per cent year-on-year. It predicts that retail revenue will have fallen by 3 per cent due to restrictions connected to the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw UK betting shops remain closed until April last year.
However, Entain said retail had driven growth in the fourth quarter, rising by 60 per cent year-on-year due to Covid-19 related closures in 2020, while online revenue fell by 4 per cent. Entain’s EBITDA for the full year is expected to come in at between £875m – £885m.
Entain said it expects its BetMGM joint venture with MGM Resorts to boost its own revenue by 14 per cent when it’s included. Earlier this week, BetMGM said it expected to report $850m (£624m) in revenue for 2021.
CFRA Research has upgraded Entain’s stock rating from ‘hold’ to ‘buy’ following the trading update.
Entain chief executive Jette Nygaard-Andersen said: “2021 has been a successful and eventful period for Entain, and our market-leading platform has driven another year of strong, sustainable and diversified growth. All of our major markets have performed well.
“BetMGM, our hugely exciting business in the US, has been a particular highlight with FY21 net gaming revenue ahead of expectations and an upgraded outlook for 2022. We have also made significant operational progress and have continued to provide our customers with even better content, experiences and excitement as the worlds of media, entertainment, technology and gaming converge.”
Entain: sustainability and growth
Nygaard-Andersen highlighted Entain’s sustainability measures and said the company expected to continue to grow.
She said: “As ever, our sustainability efforts have been at the core of everything that we do. We have continued to lead the way in the critically important area of player protection, and our technology-based Advanced Responsibility and Care programme is progressing well.”
She added: “We continue to see significant growth opportunities ahead of us, with a total addressable market of around $160bn across our new and existing markets, as well as in emerging areas of interactive entertainment. We believe these opportunities will enable us to at least treble the size of our business. As a result, we remain confident in our prospects for the year ahead and beyond.”
