By Leah Montebello
Allwyn, the winner of the fourth National Lottery licence, posted strong quarterly results this morning despite weak consumer confidence and an ongoing tussle with Camelot for the lucrative contract.
The gambling company said gross gaming revenue hit €902m for the second quarter, up 23 per cent year on year, and reflected the “continued organic growth and a more normalised operational environment in certain geographies”.
The Czech firm, previously known as Sazka, said that despite the testing macroeconomic backdrop, where inflationary pressure is cutting into consumer spend, “the impact on demand for our products has been limited”.
Europe’s largest lottery operator added that this resilience was due to the “low price point and low average spend per customer,” as well as a large number of regular players for Allwyn.
The results notably sit in contrast to Camelot’s recent update, where the company saw sales drop £283.2m, or three per cent, to £8.1bn in the year to the end of March.
Camelot warned in June that the cost of living crunch had “slowed down retail recovery as consumers tighten their belts”.
Allwyn also took the opportunity in its results to express confidence in its upcoming legal battle with Camelot over the National Lottery licence, which was awarded by the Gambling Commission back in March.
Camelot, which is owned by Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, has run the lottery since its inception in 1994, and has questioned the process behind the competition, as well as Allwyn’s ambitious plans for the lottery moving forward.
Allwyn has said it will slash ticket prices from £2 to £1 and vowed to hike the amount of money going towards good causes and UK sporting activities.
Allwyn chief executive Robert Chvatal said on the upcoming battle: “We look forward to the Court of Appeal hearing in September of the current operator’s appeal of the High Court’s decision to allow the license award to proceed and the formal transition period to begin.”
The handover of the licence is due to take place in February 2024.
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