Svenska Spel reports stable second quarter despite closure of last casino
Despite the last Casino Cosmopol closing after the Riksdag’s decision on a change in the law that means that land-based casino will no longer be allowed to be offered in Sweden, Svenska Spel has reported a stable second quarter with growth for Eurojackpot and Oddset.
The challenges for the Vegas cash machines remain, which negatively affected the group’s revenues.
Anna Johnson, President and CEO of Svenska Spel, said: “We have a clear focus on the Group’s strategic goals: to have the most satisfied customers in the gaming market, to ensure that our customers play healthily with us and to drive long-term sustainable growth. Within the first two target areas, the customer satisfaction index and the share of healthy revenues are at a stable and high level. In terms of sustainable growth, net gaming revenues for both Eurojackpot and Oddset increased during the quarter.”
On April 25, Casino Cosmopol in Stockholm was closed due to the change in the law that comes into force at the turn of the year and which means that land-based casinos can no longer be offered. Svenska Spel made the decision to liquidate after receiving an amended ownership instruction, and the liquidation is now taking place in an orderly manner at the same time as the sale process of the unique property on Kungsgatan has begun. (Profit and loss items, operating margin and other key figures in the interim report refer to continuing operations and exclude the land-based casino operations that are reported as operations under discontinuation.)
The Group’s net gaming revenue for the quarter was SEK 1,839m (1,837), which is an increase of SEK 2m. The Tur business area is experiencing growth, while revenues are negatively impacted by continued challenges for cash machines and strengthened responsible gaming measures.
Net gaming revenue for the Tur business area increased by two per cent compared with the same quarter last year. Eurojackpot continues to be the growth engine of the lottery portfolio. Large jackpots and high winnings have a positive impact on sales. A clear example is that Eurojackpot broke sales records during the quarter, not long after last quarter’s big win of SEK 1.25bn. Triss also has a positive development and sales on Mother’s Day surpassed the previous year.
Net gaming revenue for the Sports & Casino business area decreased by one per cent compared with the same quarter last year. This was due to the negative impact of strong comparative figures last year when the European Football Championship contributed to higher revenues. But in the business area, sports betting continues to grow under the Oddset brand – a growth that continues this quarter as well. The positive development of sports betting has been continuous since the launch of the new sports betting platform a year ago. The change was well received by customers, which has resulted in a larger customer base, higher customer satisfaction and increasing revenue. During the quarter, major events such as the Ice Hockey World Championship and the Eurovision final also contributed to increased customer activity, especially a clear influx of new customers.
The Vegas business area’s net gaming revenue decreased by 13 per cent as a result of the continued negative impact of strengthened responsible gaming measures and the challenging economic situation for business partners.
The Group’s operating profit decreased by SEK 113m or 17 per cent to SEK 545m (658) and the operating margin amounted to 30 percent (36). This is mainly due to the fact that the gaming tax was raised on 1 July 2024 from 18 to 22 per cent, which has a negative impact on operating profit.
The Ggroup’s online business continues to increase, this quarter by five per cent compared to the same quarter last year. Online accounted for 62 per cent (60) of the Group’s revenue during the quarter.
More and more customers are discovering the lottery Lyckoplatsen that was launched in the previous quarter. When playing at Lyckoplatsen, customers can choose to contribute to a good cause by supporting a non-profit organization. Then 10 percent of the effort goes to the organization the customer chooses. Collaboration with non-profit partner organizations was expanded during the quarter, which means that customers now have more organizations to choose from.
During the quarter, Svenska Spel distributed 78m prizes on lotteries with a total value of just over SEK 178m. The highest prize was just over SEK 15m on Lotto and the second highest prize was just over SEK 12m on Eurojackpot. Sports and casino games have delivered 26m winnings during the quarter. The highest win was over SEK 11m on Stryktipset.
