Flutter reported a loss after tax of £305m, following a £608m charge for amortisation of acquired intangibles, while adjusted basic earnings per share reduced from 252.7p to 189.0p, driven by higher interest and tax costs.
Net debt at the end of the period was £4.6bn, following the Sisal and tombola acquisitions and the Adjarabet buyout.
The group highlighted its US operations in particular, with 50% fourth quarter market share and Maryland and Ohio representing its most successful launches to date. There was also positive EBITDA in Q2 and in Q4, excluding Maryland/Ohio investment. Moreover, an improved iGaming proposition drove market share gains to 21% in Q4.
In the UK and Ireland, product improvements and the 2022 World Cup drove strong second half average monthly players (AMPs), while in Australia there was continued strong AMP growth, which led to a resilient performance against tough H2 Covid comparatives and a highly competitive environment.
“Flutter delivered a strong performance in 2022, continuing to execute on the strategic priorities we outlined last March,” said Flutter Entertainment Chief Executive Peter Jackson. “Growth in our recreational customer base delivered 2022 revenue growth of 27% and we ended the year with a record 12.1m average monthly players in Q4.
“We have an unparalleled number one position in the US where we continue to go from strength to strength. The combined power of the ‘FanDuel Advantage’ and the ‘Flutter Edge’ delivered our most successful launches to date in Maryland and Ohio. Leveraging our number one FanDuel brand we had a record Super Bowl and have acquired over 1.2m customers in 2023 so far.
“Outside of the US we have been pleased with the performance of the business as we faced regulatory changes and challenging comparatives. We are well placed to build on gold medal positions in our mature markets while we are delivering very strong growth in a range of attractive high growth markets.”
