Operator News
France – La Française des Jeux sees revenues up 5.3 per cent in first quarter of the year
By Phil - 20 April 2023
La Française des Jeux (FDJ), France’s leading gaming operator, has reported a ‘good’ start to 2023 with revenue up 5.3 per cent to €662m although this increase did include the revenues from the recent acquisitions of Aleda and L’Addition.
Stéphane Pallez, Chairwoman and CEO of the FDJ Group, said: “The first quarter of 2023 was marked by the continued good financial and extra-financial performance of the FDJ Group. Our revenue is up more than 5%, driven by both our network of 30,000 points of sale and a good dynamic in our digital business. We are also very proud to have maintained an excellent sustainability rating by Moody’s ESG Solutions, which places us, for the fifth year in a row, as number one in our industry. Finally, the decision of the French Council of State validates the privatisation procedure and strengthens FDJ’s monopoly, in compliance with European law.”
The business was described as ‘well oriented’ across the entire offering and all distribution channels. Point-of-sale stakes increased by 6.9 per cent to €4.797m, reflecting good traffic level and the attractiveness of FDJ’s offering.
Online stakes continued their good momentum, driven by both lottery and sports betting. They were up 21.3 per cent to nearly €700m, a performance mainly attributable to the increase in the number of players. Online stakes account for nearly 13 per cent of total stakes.
Lottery revenue totalled €497m, a 6.4 per cent increase due to growth in draw games and instant games stakes. The performance of Loto and Euromillions was mainly attributable to the increase in stakes related to high jackpots. The increase in instant games revenues reflects the success of the launch of the Carré Or one-off game in January, despite a high comparison base that benefited from the relaunch of the bestseller Cash in February 2022.
Sports betting continued its good momentum since the summer of 2022, amplified by the football World Cup, with strong growth in stakes. However, the high level of player winnings in Q1 2023 led to stability of revenue from sports betting and online gaming open to competition, at €129m.
Based on this good start to the year, FDJ Group reaffirms its 2023 targets in terms of both business growth and margin with predicted revenue growth of between four and five per cent based on a 2022 pro forma basis that integrates the acquisitions of Aleda and L’Addition over the full financial year, representing €2,514m. It is predicting growth of approximately 20 per cent in online stakes.
