Flutter doubles US market expectations for 2021, sees revenue grow 81% last year

Flutter Entertainment CEO said that the group that owns global gambling brands such as Sky Bet, Paddy Power and Betfair could be worth billions more if it was listed in the US.   

Flutter said it acquired more US customers in the week before the Super Bowl in February this year than during the whole of 2019. The liberalisation of betting on sports in America is set to create the world’s biggest regulated market with Flutter emerging as an early victor. 

CEO Peter Jackson said: “We are the number one player there … our revenues in 2020 were greater than the number two and number three players combined," as reported by The Telegraph. The bookmaker operates under the FanDuel and FOX Bet brands in the US. On Tuesday it doubled last year’s expectations on market share, which it now expects to hit $20 billion (£14 billion) by 2025. Positive contributions from the US states it was operating in before 2020 helped it maintain a 40% share of the US sports betting market. 

Revenue at its US division jumped by 81% to £695 million reflecting the diversified product portfolio offered in the US, as well as additional state openings. During the year it launched the FanDuel online sportsbook in four more states - Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, and Tennessee - and online gaming in Pennsylvania in January. FOX Bet also added Colorado. 

Sports revenue increased by 42% reflecting sportsbook growth of 101% and combined daily fantasy sports and racing growth of 15%.

Full-year earnings at Flutter rose by 23%. The world's largest online betting group reported full-year 2020 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of £1.4 billion, which was ahead of the £1.275-1.350 billion range it had forecast in November. The company reported a 106% increase in revenues for 2020.

Annual revenue across the wider group doubled to £4.4 billion following the merger between what was Paddy Power Betfair with Stars Group, the Canadian bookmaker behind Sky Bet. Pre-tax profit collapsed by £136 million to just £1 million after taking a slew of costs relating to the Stars Group merger. 

"Nowhere has our growth been more evident than in the US, with customer economics that continue to exceed our expectations," Jackson said in Tuesday's results statement. 

Annual revenue grew by 59% in Australia, the least affected market, compared with the previous year, and by 8% in the mainly Britain and Ireland-based Paddy Power and Betfair online division. Revenue declined 28% in its UK estate, with shops closed 36% of the year, while revenue in Ireland declined 46%, with shops closed 40% of the time. 

Group revenue was up 36% year-on-year in the first seven weeks of 2021, Flutter said, citing favourable sports results and further growth in player volumes.