Allwyn reports strong momentum across all aspects of the buisness, including digital performance, major product innovations, inorganic growth and the continued deployment of the global brand strategy, alongside the completion of the landmark combination of Allwyn International AG and OPAP S.A.  

First quarter net revenue was €1,204 million, +21% YoY, strong underlying growth of 5% YoY, adjusted EBITDA of €443 million, +24% YoY with a margin of 37% (% of Net Revenue, +1p.p. YoY.

Robert Chvatal, Allwyn CEO, commented:“I’m immensely proud of this transformative quarter, during which we have brought together two fantastic businesses to create a scaled global leader in gaming entertainment – with an enhanced ability to shape the industry, a wider range of growth opportunities and a highly differentiated platform to support long-term value creation and shareholder returns.

Meanwhile, we have remained firmly focused on execution. The progress of our enlarged group this quarter demonstrates the breadth and strength of the Allwyn platform, with strong momentum in profitability and growth in Continental Europe, the addition of PrizePicks in North America, the completion of the UK technology transformation, a strong contribution from Betano, and continued development of our digital and content capabilities.  

Net Revenue of the combined group increased 21% year-on-year in the first quarter. Growth was driven by the digital channel, supported by our focus on innovation and enhancements to our proposition and player experience, as well as the acquisition of PrizePicks. Excluding PrizePicks, we delivered good growth in Net Revenue, which increased 3.5% year-on-year, despite a 1.7p.p. headwind from higher gaming taxes in Austria and the comparative period benefiting from record jackpots in EuroMillions (Austria, UK) and Tzoker (Greece).

Adjusted EBITDA increased significantly by 24% year-on-year, driven by strong organic growth and the acquisition of PrizePicks. Excluding the PrizePicks acquisition, higher gaming taxes in Austria and start-up losses in Slovakia, Adjusted EBITDA increased by 11% year-on-year.

We pursued accretive investments during the quarter through both CAPEX and M&A. In the United Kingdom, we completed our significant investment in the technology transformation of The National Lottery, modernising infrastructure that had long constrained product development and innovation. We are delighted to have since unveiled an innovative update to the Lotto game and the planned UK launch of Powerball – the world’s largest jackpot game, which is one of the most exciting developments in lottery globally for many years.

In January, we completed the acquisition of a majority stake in PrizePicks, the leading daily fantasy sports operator in the United States. This marks our entry into the fast-growing U.S. online sports entertainment market. PrizePicks’ strong profitability, cash generation, differentiated technology, highly engaged customer base and focus on the customer proposition provide a compelling platform for long-term growth.

Allwyn’s platform comprises leading lottery-led businesses across Continental Europe, North America and the United Kingdom, together with market-leading growth assets, combining the resilience and cash generation of lottery-led operations with growth from digital channels, proprietary content, technology, online sports betting, iGaming and North American entertainment. We remain focused on leveraging this platform to deliver compounding growth, cash generation and long-term shareholder value, while maintaining disciplined capital allocation, responsible gaming standards and strong partnerships with regulators, governments and communities.

We are immensely proud of what we have achieved since the creation of Allwyn – creating a global leader in gaming entertainment with almost €2bn of Adjusted EBITDA¹ in only 14 years – and are delighted to have achieved several key milestones in the first quarter. Looking forward, we are as excited as we have ever been about the next chapters in our growth story and confident in our ability to capture the many opportunities ahead.

We have high conviction in our future growth, cash generation and shareholder value creation, and have today launched a €150m share buyback programme, underscoring our commitment to shareholder returns as a key element of our capital allocation framework.”