Svenska Spel revenue falls 8.2% in Q3

Growth in igaming and lottery failed to offset the impact of the pandemic lockdown on land-based operations.

Sweden.- The state-controlled gaming company Svenska Spel saw revenue fall by 8.2 per cent year-on-year to SEK1.85bn (€178.5m) in the third quarter due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on its retail operations.

The lottery division, Tur, continued to account for the majority of revenue, rising 5.2 per cent to SEK1.18bn, helped by high prizes for Eurojackpot. 

The sport and casino division, including online products, saw revenue increase 6.5 per cent to SEK490m.

The return of live sports helped offset a decline in online casino revenue caused by the imposition of Sweden’s new temporary SEK5,000 weekly spending cap.

The operator has also recently launched a horse betting product Trav & Galopp with France’s PMU.

However, the growth in igaming and lottery failed to offset the continued shutdown of the Casino Cosmopol chain of casinos and the reduction in the number of land-based slots running.

Slots machines that are running have been subject to temporary limits, which all together meant revenue for the Casino Cosmopol & Vegas division fell 58.7 per cent to SEK177m. 

Net revenue from gaming operations dropped 8 per cent to SEK1.30bn. Operating profit fell 16.9 per cent to SEK531m.

The operator’s chief executive, Patrik Hofbauer, said: “Our sports games are going very well and we are increasing revenues from number games and lotteries.

“The fact that the group’s total revenues are declining is due to the fact that our physical casinos have been closed throughout the quarter.

“Despite this, the group as a whole is still generating profits, which shows strength and stability.”

For the nine months to September 30, Svenska Spel’s revenue was down 9.1 per cent year-on-year at SEK5.55bn.