EGR Power 50 2017
The online gambling industry’s most powerful and influential operators revealed
Welcome to the 14th annual EGR Power 50 rankings of the online gambling industry’s biggest and most influential operators.
The following list aims to provide our readers with a comprehensive overview of today’s burgeoning egaming sector and to reveal the leaders of what is an ever-expanding pack.
Please click on the links below for additional information on each company.
The Power 50 is sponsored by SBTech
01: Bet365 (01)
Financials: A big rise in full-year revenues was a remarkable feat for a business with such scale already, while profits also increased substantially in 2016-17
Strategy & impact: Company still benefits from its proprietary sportsbook platform and leads the way in in-play sports betting
Geographic reach: Firm has a leading position in a host of markets including Italy and Spain, as well as top-tier positions in nearly every market it operates in
Influence & leadership: Bet365’s revenue and profit growth over the last 12 months now puts the operator in a league of its own
02: Paddy Power Betfair (02)
Financials: H1 online revenues dipped slightly to £439m, with lower sportsbook margins and gaming declines contributing to the downturn
Strategy & impact: PPB is currently focused on the development of a group platform, resulting in a slowdown on new product development. Firmly committed to long-term planning
Geographic reach: Company is the largest operator in the UK, with a market-leading presence in Australia, and a growing foothold in the US and Italy
Influence & leadership: Few true rivals for the Betfair Exchange or for Paddy Power’s brand recognition. Influence was demonstrated by Breon Corcoran’s controversial letter asking for a £10 limit on FOBT stakes
03: GVC Holdings (03)
Financials: NGR for H1 rose 12% cc to €486.2m making it the most significant period of growth since the firm’s acquisition of bwin.party
Strategy & impact: Brands such as partypoker continue to benefit from management improvements but the company has not tried to hide its appetite for inorganic growth
Geographic reach: Spread far and wide, although some analysts raise concerns about the level of revenues coming from markets with uncertain futures
Influence & leadership: CEO Kenny Alexander is widely respected for his ability to integrate and turn around struggling businesses. Likely to be a key player in industry M&A
04. The Stars Group (04)
Financials: H1 revenues climbed 8.4% to $622.6m, with soaring casino revenues overcoming a significant decline in poker
Strategy & impact: Firm has been gradually reducing its reliance on poker, with casino making up the shortfall, but is still trying to turn around the struggling vertical with a new loyalty programme and different variants
Geographic reach: Firm takes pride in its uniquely large collection of regulated gaming licences and ability to enter new markets
Influence & leadership: New CEO Rafi Ashkenazi is well-respected and is building a formidable management team. Expected to be a big player in the next round of industry consolidation
05. Ladbrokes Coral (08)
Financials: H1 digital revenues climbed 14% to £374.5m, with digital EBITDA up 39% to £73.7m
Strategy & impact: Multi-channel strategy is vital to performance, with 53% of Coral.co.uk net revenue and 36% of Ladbrokes.com net revenue coming from multi-channel customers. Firm also enjoying the trading and promotional benefits of a multi-brand strategy
Geographic reach: UK by far its biggest market but firm also claims to be taking market share in Italy and Australia
Influence & leadership: Jim Mullen vocal on FOBT issue and the industry’s relationship with horseracing, but is rumoured to leave the firm should it be taken over by GVC after the triennial review
06. Kindred Group (joint 05)
Financials: Operator continues to deliver consistent double-digit year-on-year growth every quarter. Most recently, H1 2017 revenues increased to £319.8m
Strategy & impact: Strategy of acquiring small- to medium-sized operators to boost presence in regulated markets has served it well so far
Geographic reach: International reach is currently evenly split between the Nordics and Western Europe, but the acquisition of 32Red gives it a slightly bigger share of the UK market
Influence & leadership: Remains one of the fastest growing operators in the industry, a market-leader in certain countries and committed to innovation and responsible gambling
07. Sky Betting & Gaming (07)
Financials: SB&G has outperformed the UK sports betting market for each of the last few years and enjoys double-digit revenue growth from both its betting and gaming businesses
Strategy & impact: Operator’s emphasis on technology and mobile-first products has enabled it to become one of the most innovative firms in the industry. An IPO is still in the pipeline
Geographic reach: Finally made its international debut in Italy last year, although major growth has proven elusive so far. A Germany launch is also imminent
Influence & leadership: The fact most rival operators feel compelled to replicate many SB&G innovations speaks volumes for the company
08. William Hill (joint 05)
Financials: The UK bookmaking heavyweight has returned to growth, reporting a modest 5% rise in online revenues to £290m in H1 2017
Strategy & impact: The word ‘focus’ has been at the heart of its digital plan over the past year with in-house tech and mobile UX at the heart of its strategy
Geographic reach: Claims to be back to market or above levels of growth in its core UK market. Performance in Italy and Spain stuttered, while longevity of Australia business still poses difficult questions
Influence & leadership: Remains one of the UK’s biggest online and retail operators and likely to be at the epicentre of any M&A activity, although thought to be a target rather than a buyer
09. Betsson Group (10)
Financials: H1 revenues up 18% to SEK2.3bn driven by strong casino growth and market share gains in the Nordics and Western Europe
Strategy & impact: Firm is characterised by its multi-brand approach which appears to have set a template for some other major operators to follow
Geographic reach: Regulated revenues make up around a quarter of the total. Firm is investing heavily in the UK and other Western European countries but Nordics remains its core market
Influence & leadership: Leads on in-house technology and is spearheading the fight for regulation in Holland. Lindwall heads the firm while Bengtsson’s replacement is found
10. 888 Holdings (09)
Financials: Revenues in H1 2017 were broadly in line with the wider market following a 9% YoY rise. Adjusted EBITDA up 22% to $53.8m in the same period
Strategy & impact: Well-respected for its in-house tech platform, market-leading CRM and marketing capabilities
Geographic reach: UK revenue mix fell 7ppts to 39% due to sterling weakness and poor trading, suggesting a material loss of market share. Growth in the rest of Europe was more promising
Influence & leadership: Took a negative hit from a penalty for failings in handling of vulnerable customers. Thought to be more of a takeover target with the Shaked family selling off its ownership stake
13. Hong Kong Jockey Club (12)
EGR Power 50: 21 – 30
21. Fortuna (21)
22. Stride Gaming (15)
23. 12BET (17)
24. Lottomatica (18)
25. Tombola (26)
26. SKS365 Group (N/A)
27. Betclic Everest Group (23)
28. Dafabet (Asian BGE) (24)
29. Mr Green (36)
30. Casumo (34)
EGR Power 50: 31 – 40
31. Gamesys (29)
32. Tabcorp (32)
33. Intouch Games (30)
34. ZEAL Network (37)
35. Paf (33)
36. Gaming Innovation Group (38)
37. Danske Spil (45)
38. 188BET (35)
39. Sisal (25)
40. Intellectual Property & Software (N/A)
EGR Power 50: 41 – 50
41. Svenska Spel (40)
42. Panserve (Marathonbet) (39)
43. Snaitech (44)
44. Gaming Realms (41)
45. Betfred (46)
46. Interwetten (N/A)
47. BGO Entertainment (47)
48. Smarkets (N/A)
49. The Sun (42)
50. Matchbook (N/A)
A huge thanks to our partner BDO for their hard work in helping us compile the 2017 Power 50. BDO is the world’s fifth largest accountancy and business advisory firm and one of the leading service providers to the egaming sector.