Evolution, Betsson results; Market make up: Club World Cup final
Evolution, Betsson Q2s, Market make up: CWC final, Italy, UKGC penalty reform, Netherlands ad ban
Hello, on Gaming&Co today:
Results : Evolution still not satisfied, Betsson cruises on
Market make up: few changes for French bookmakers during the Club World Cup
Italy licenses: just can’t get enough?
UK Gambling Commission restructures fines, Ad ban in the Netherlands
News shorts : Betclic, Flutter, EGBA
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Evolution can’t get no satisfaction
Live dealer market leader still feeling the effects of regulatory challenges
Work to do: Evolution’s CEO admitted the company was “not satisfied” by its growth in Q2 after it announced a 8.4% YoY rise in revenue to €524.3m and a 7.7% drop in net income to €248.3m. Martin Carlesund said the performance was “in line with expectations” but added: “To be clear though, we are not satisfied with this quarter’s growth, and we are working hard to increase the pace.”
Asia delivered the strongest regional performance, with revenue climbing 4.2% YoY to €209m. Carlesund said the region is now showing “positive effects” after previously being hit by cyberattacks, and praised Evolution’s ability to operate “at the absolute cutting edge in terms of what is possible” to mitigate the issue.
In Europe, revenue dropped 5.8% YoY to €180m, as the company continued to feel the effects of the European geo-fencing blocks put in place following its licence review by the UK Gambling Commission.
Carlesund said that while Europe's performance remained stable, these "ring-fencing measures may have had a larger financial impact than anticipated outside of the UK”. He did stress that regulation is “positive over time” and that the group supported it, as long as it is balanced.
Regulus Partners estimates that the ring-fencing measures have cost Evolution around 14% of its revenue, which would imply the European black market is “at least” 20% of the regulated market, but more likely as big as 40%, it noted.
Betsson bullish as growth continues
EU and Latam operator’s regulated mix increases, but CEO warns of tax burden
Mix tape: Betsson CEO Pontus Lindwall was bullish on the company’s analysts call this morning and said he was “cautious but optimistic” about the future as he pointed to South America as the key growth region that helped the group grow YoY revenues by 12% to nearly €304m in Q2.
With its share of revenues from regulated markets increasing 33% to €199.6m, corresponding to 65.7% (vs. 55.4% in 2024) of total group revenue, Lindwall said the group “hoped to be stronger in regulated markets”, but that the “tax burden will increase” in those jurisdictions.
The group was “cautious but optimistic about the situation”, he added, “it’s our responsibility to make sure we can continue investing” in future regulated projects.
Latin America was up 35% at €84.7m and the group pointed to Peru, Argentina as its key markets in the region. The company also launched in Lithuania and Georgia during the quarter.
Western Europe, up 35% at €59.3m, and Central and Eastern European countries, up 3.5% at €118m, made up the bulk of the rest of the group’s B2C revenues at €177.3m. B2B revenues were up 7% to €75.6m, helped by the acquisition of Sporting Solutions from FDJ United at the end of 2024.
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Market make up: PSG-Chelsea Club World Cup final
CWC final boosted operators’ volumes and with European champions PSG in action, Matt Howard ran the rule over French bookmakers’ offers
World first: The much-derided (at first anyway) maiden edition of the Club World Cup saw Chelsea beat reigning European Champions Paris Saint-Germain convincingly in last Sunday’s final. With all the noise and US-style hype the event has created, Gaming&Co asked Matt Howard, CEO of OrbitalBet, to analyse French bookmakers’ pre-match, in-play and bet builder markets.
The timing of this Market Make up was also interesting in that July was the month in which France’s new tax regime came in and we wanted to see if it had already had an impact on French bookmakers’ odds.
The short answer was no, but, as Matt Howard commented, “the Cub World Cup is a one-off and not well established, therefore there were no major changes from the last France analysis we carried out in March. It will be interesting however to monitor how their odds evolve once Ligue 1 restarts.”
Overall, the two market leaders Betclic and Winamax once again were the most aggressive on main markets, with total goals and both teams to score at 107-108% and double chance at ~215%, as they continue competing on margin.
Pre-match takeaways
As expected, French operators were all fairly aggressive on match result markets, with leaders Betclic, Unibet and Winamax, posting overrounds of under 104%.
Unibet’s FDJ United stablemate Parions Sport was just over 104% and we are likely to see increasing alignment between the brands as FDJ migrates to the Kindred Sportsbook Platform over the next couple of years.
Once again bwin had the biggest match result overround at around 106%, which might be explained by the fact that for some time it has not been competing for market share in France.
Meanwhile, Betsson, Netbet and VBet were all mid-bunch in terms of their match result prices.
In-play takeaways
In stark contrast to its pre-match odds, bwin stood out as being very aggressive with its in-play markets.
Betclic, Parions Sport, Unibet and Winamax all had overrounds of around 110% on match results, although Betclic, as in the last Market Make up on France, was slightly more aggressive at 108% on total goals and both teams to score, which are popular with live bettors.
Netbet stood out as the least aggressive operator on total goals and both teams to score markets, while VBet was the most unaggressive across the board.
Bet Builder takeaways
As we wrote in March when Matt covered French bookmakers’ Champions League betbuilders, their bet builder offerings vary significantly. For example, bwin and VBet again did not offer the product during last Sunday’s match, despite offering it in other jurisdictions.
Winamax’s bet builders are still only available after login, thus removing the possibility for new or unregistered customers to ‘test’ them. Both Betclic and Winamax offer pre-match and in-play bet builders, but technical issues prevented Matt from accessing Betclic’s live offering.
Betsson and Unibet offered a good number of pre-match bet builders, while Parions Sport had a good number of both pre-match and in-play markets.
Overall, the French market is in a strange position with bet builders, where choice and availability are not as broad as in other countries, but some operators active in France will have much more diverse bet builder products in other markets where they are active.
As with other mature markets, major operators with their own tech platforms and broad control across technology, product and operations are likely to continue to dominate.
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Mixed reaction to new licensing wave in Italy
Regulator hands out 46 licences - too many or too few?
A new chapter: Italy’s customs and monopolies agency (ADM) has approved 46 new applications for online gambling licences, with operators including Betfair, Bet365, Snaitech, Sisal, William Hill, LeoVegas, 888 Italia, Admiral Sport and Betsson among those accepted.
Under the revamped framework, licences, valid for nine years, will cost €7m per brand per vertical, a substantial increase from the previous €200,000 fee.
Approved operators must now complete fee payments and pass further checks, with formal awards expected by September and platforms set to launch within six months. Existing licensees can continue operating until March 2026, after which only those with new licences will remain active
Industry observers wrote on LinkedIn that 46 licences in a market worth an estimated €5bn in annual GGR “feels like a LOT”. “I don't know where the line is but 20 operators feels OK”.
Others described the drop from more than 400 gambling websites to 46 as “brutal” and suggested the black market would benefit. “The market that once bragged about the highest channelisation rate in Europe, amazing work of Italy, but it is about to get gutted”.
Meanwhile, Italy’s Minister for sports Andrea Abodi has presented the new Sports Decree. SBC News reports that a key element of the new decree will be a potential repeal of the blanket ban on gambling advertising and sports sponsorships that was included in 2018’s Dignity Decree. Such a move could unlock €130–€150m in annual revenue for Italian sports, according to clubs and stakeholders.
UK outlines new principles on financial penalties
Gambling Commission aims to simplify system for financial penalties
Principles and penalties: The UK Gambling Commission published its response last week to a consultation on revising the Statement of Principles for Determining Financial Penalties, which aim to enhance clarity and transparency in calculating enforcement penalties. The revised principles take effect on 10 October 2025 and may impact ongoing enforcement cases, the law firm Wiggin commented.
A key change is the introduction of a seven-step framework that includes a Disgorgement Element and a Penal Element. The Penal Element considers the seriousness of breaches, mapped to escalating percentages of Gross Gambling Yield (GGY), with additional adjustments for aggravating or mitigating factors, deterrence, early resolution discounts, affordability and proportionality.
However, concerns remain about vague definitions, overlapping criteria, and a lack of practical guidance, especially in determining seriousness levels. As a result, there have been calls for more transparency, consistency and examples from past cases as part of the consultation process.
Dutch sponsorship and ad ban rolled out…
… but clubs in neighbouring Belgium already finding workarounds seen in Italy and Spain
All out ban: The Dutch sports sponsorship ban has come into effect, with the country’s regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) reporting no major issues with its enforcement despite repeated complaints from both clubs and gambling executives. The ban, which also forbids gambling advertising in public spaces and athletes taking on roles as gambling brand ambassadors, means Dutch sports clubs have had to find new front-of-shirt sponsors.
Neighbouring Belgium has also imposed a similar ban, but only on companies that directly offer gambling are banned. As SBC News reported, this led to one club that had a deal with Entain transition to a new partnership with Entain Foundation, which is the operator’s philanthropic entity that acts as a charity.
This mirrors moves in Italy and, before that, Spain, where players’ shirts would feature betting brands’ news or information websites as a way to get around not displaying gambling brands.
Further reading: No slowdown for gambling sponsorships in football
Propping up the market
On the rise: crypto sports sponsorships and gambling
News shorts
Betclic will be the official betting partner of the Arkema Première Ligue, France’s top women’s football league, until 2030, and has agreed partnerships with France’s Volleyball and Handball Federations until 2028. The French OSB leader has been an official partner of the country’s Top 14 rugby championship and has extended that until 2027. The group is also a partner of the French Football Federation and sponsors France’s Betclic Elite Basketball League.
Flutter Entertainment has integrated its online bingo brand Tombola with its Italian betting and gaming brand Sisal as part of its partnership to harness Flutter Edge, its project to leverage “competitive advantages across product, technology, expertise and scale”. The group said the integration will allow customers to enjoy “a much deeper liquidity pool, giving them opportunities to play for larger prizes and bigger guaranteed jackpots”.
Banking solutions provider Yaspa has joined the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) as an associate member. EGBA said the partnership will reinforce their commitment to promoting secure and innovative payment solutions. Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of EGBA, said: “By expanding our membership to include innovative fintech companies like Yaspa, we aim to better unite the broader industry’s voice and encourage technological solutions across all aspects of the sector.”
Calendar
Results: 23 July: Kambi, 29 July: BetMGM, Caesars Entertainment, 30 July: MGM Resorts
Contact
Get in touch with Jake Pollard to find out more about Gaming&Co: jake@gamingandco.info