Flutter Reports Impressive Revenue Growth in Q1 2021 Report
Irish-based betting conglomerate Flutter is one of the world’s biggest online gambling companies. So far this year, it seems it’s only getting bigger, with its Q1 2021 report showing a strong growth rate on revenue figures from the same time last year.
The owner of Betfair, Paddy Power, PokerStars, and more reported £1.485 billion ($2.069 billion) in revenue in Q1 2021. That’s up 32% from last year’s figure of £1.126 billion ($1.569 billion).
A lot of that growth came from online play, as many millions across the world are still under some form of social distancing and/or lockdown conditions because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Online revenues are up 42% on last year’s figure from the same period. Player numbers across all of Flutter’s brands reached 7.6 million – up 2 million on Q1 2019.
“2021 is off to a strong start for the group”.
CEO Peter Jackson
“We significantly grew our global player base which in turn drove a 42% increase in our online revenue,”
Global Markets
Mr. Jackson also seemed happy with his company’s performance across its brands. Revenues were up in all parts of the business, even the recently struggling PokerStars vertical.
“The investment we are making to enhance player generosity and reinvigorate the PokerStars brand has seen an encouraging early response from customers”
CEO Peter Jackson
Although revenues were up by 7% on last year’s figure, PokerStars still only represents 8.4% of their US revenue.
That 7% rise also masks a 9% player count drop. However, Flutter promises to improve the product and customer retention in the future.
Continuing Trends
Although Flutter’s US interests (specifically FanDuel, FoxBet, and PokerStars US) are all growing, its biggest income stream is still its domestic markets in the UK and Ireland.
That comes despite insistent rumors we reported on last week that the company is looking to sell its $200 million valued offshoot company Oddschecker.
Local UK brands Paddy Power, Betfair, and SkyBet still performed strongly in Q1, though. They pulled in £568 million ($791 million) between them over the period – which included the return of horse racing in the UK with the Cheltenham Festival.
That figure far outstrips Flutter’s US operations, which pulled in £288 million ($401 million) over the same quarter.
However, the US numbers include a ridiculous 135% increase on the same quarter last year.
While the UK division may have nearly double the revenue right now, it only grew by a modest 16%.
If that trend continues, Flutter’s US operations will soon outstrip its home base in revenue – maybe within a year or two.
Leadership Position
“In the US, we continue to lead the market with revenue of almost $400m in the quarter. We believe that the quality and breadth of our offering remains a key differentiator for FanDuel sports and the key driver of our leadership position,” said Mr. Jackson in his statement.
The Q1 period of 2021 saw Flutter launch sportsbooks and/or online casinos in Michigan and Virginia, as well as “ongoing momentum in existing state markets.”
Flutter might need some of that revenue, though, as in other news, the company is still facing a long legal battle to avoid a $1.3 billion fine incurred in Kentucky.
State legislators there deemed Flutter to be culpable for the infringements of its current subsidiary PokerStars, which illegally served Kentucky customers with online poker facilities back in the 2000s.
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