Allwyn International and its subsidiaries, joint ventures, and associated companies announce the preliminary unaudited financial results for the three months ending June 30, 2024, and provide the latest information on recent developments and current transactions.
Total revenue for the second quarter of 2024 was 2.1467 billion euros, a 5% increase year-over-year, with strong organic growth in most regions.
Adjusted EBITDA was 340 million euros, an 11% decrease year-over-year; excluding the UK division and Allwyn LS Group, there was a 4% increase year-over-year.
The total amount of syndicated loan Class B term loans was 450 million US dollars, used for refinancing existing debt, further diversifying funding sources, optimizing capital costs, and extending maturities. As of June 30, 2024, the net debt/adjusted EBITDA ratio was 2.1 times.
In the first quarter of 2023, we completed the acquisition of the UK National Lottery operator Camelot UK, effective until January 31, 2024, and the acquisition of Allwyn LS Group (formerly known as Camelot LS Group), which operates the Illinois lottery under a private management agreement (“Camelot Acquisition”).
Subsequently, Allwyn UK began operating the UK National Lottery under a new license on February 1, 2024. This acquisition had a significant impact on the group's consolidated metrics and comparability with previous periods. Differences between the business models of the acquired entities and existing operations, as well as differences between the previous and current UK National Lottery licenses, also led to profit margins that are not directly comparable across periods.
Allwyn CEO Robert Chvatal stated: “I am pleased to report that we have made progress for another quarter, with robust financial performance reflecting our ongoing execution of growth strategies.
We have seen good revenue growth momentum and solid profit growth in most regions, and our overall financial performance reflects the new incentives and profit mechanisms under the new UK license.
Total revenue grew by 5% year-over-year, with strong organic growth in Austria, the Czech Republic, Greece, and Cyprus.
The expansion of digital channels was again a key driver of good performance in these regions, while our team continued to focus on product development and innovation, launching new games and content this quarter. This quarter also included the start of the 2024 European Championship and Copa America tournaments, supporting strong performance in sports betting.
We achieved robust profit growth outside the UK and again benefited from the strong performance of equity-accounted investees. Excluding the UK and the Allwyn LS Group acquired in the first half of 2023, adjusted EBITDA grew by 4% year-over-year.
As for our inorganic growth strategy, this was a relatively quiet quarter, with a slight increase in our stake in the Greek and Cypriot divisions of OPAP due to its ongoing repurchase program.
In June, we obtained a 15-year exclusive license to continue operating lotteries and certain other games in Cyprus. OPAP has been operating in Cyprus for many years, and we are excited about the prospects for the new license period. After the end of this quarter, we were very pleased to complete the planned investment in a 70% stake in Instant Win Gaming, a leading online instant-win game provider, which expanded our business scope and capabilities.
We had another successful quarter in financing, with our first issuance of 450 million US dollars in Class B term loans in May, which again reflected our strong financial performance and credit strength, and further achieved diversification of funding sources, extended debt maturities, and optimized financing costs.
Overall, I am satisfied with the progress we continue to make and believe we are well-prepared for the remainder of 2024 and the next chapter of our growth story.”
