For all the Naysayers: ENTAINS NGR up 18% in NZ.

[Chief Stipe]

Australia drags on Entain’s international growth, New Zealand surges onhttps://bitofayarn.com

 

As Entain’s online net gaming revenue grew 18 per cent in New Zealand over the past 12 months, it also fell 7 per cent in Australia. Managing those contrasting situations presents an interesting challenge for interim Entain Australia and New Zealand chief executive Andrew Vouris, writes Bren O'Brien.

At the peak of the pandemic-driven wagering boom five years ago, Entain confirmed that net gaming revenue (NGR) from its Australian business had grown 43 per cent year-over-year across the first six months of 2020.

Retail closures had created a once-in-a-generation opportunity for market growth and the continuation of horse racing despite lockdowns had Ladbrokes and Neds front and centre of that growth. Entain felt it was well positioned to capitalise on that sudden surge of customer engagement.

In mid-2022, Entain, then embarking on a bold expansion of its business in the United States and other international markets, confirmed in its six-monthly update that 14 per cent of its online net gaming revenue was being sourced out of Australia.

Since then, as the Australian wagering bubble burst, the Australian share of overall net gaming revenue has been on the decline. By mid-2023, it was 11 per cent, then 10 per cent in mid-2024. In the mid-2025 report published this week, Australia’s NGR share across Entain’s online business had dropped to 8 per cent of its global business.

 

Entain did not give that a precise Australian NGR number – the Australian business warranted only a couple of mentions in an hour-long investor update call on Tuesday.

The overall global online NGR was posted at £1.9 billion ($A3.93 billion).

Revenue by destination reported showed that for the six months up until June 30, revenue across Australia and New Zealand had fallen to £257.1 million ($A530 million), down £24.1 million ($A50 million) compared to the same period last year.

The other detail to come out of the half-yearly report was that Australian NGR had fallen 7 per cent year-on-year, while New Zealand’s has increased 12 per cent.

The Australian market was described by chief financial officer Rob Wood as continuing to be soft and “impacted by less favourable horse racing results”. https://bitofayarn.com

That’s a familiar line, with the profitability of racing punters becoming more and more marginal for the major bookmakers. It should be a concern for any Australian racing administrator, especially given how much Ladbrokes and Neds have invested in racing through sponsorship and other initiatives over the past five years.  

The sentiment around New Zealand was understandably more positive. Online NGR grew by 18 per cent, while retail sales have shrunk by 8 per cent. That change in market dynamics is a measure of a maturing New Zealand wagering landscape, one which Entain now has a virtual monopoly on through its TAB and Betcha brands.  

New Zealand now represents 3 per cent of Entain’s global online NGR, just under 40 per cent of what a much more mature Australian business contributed.

“Whilst the legislative net arrived later than expected, it is now effective and should therefore catalyse even greater growth in H2,” Wood said.

There is the one-off impact of a $NZ100 million payment as part of the agreement to provide the legislative net, but that is seen as a short-term pain for significant long-term gain in a contract set to run until 2048.

The other significant aspect from an Australian point of view in the half-year result was the provision of £50 million, over $A100 million, in the accounts, for the potential fine from AUSTRAC over its enforcement action.

Entain chief executive Stella David was at pains to stress this was only an accounting measure and not a guide as to what a potential penalty may be.

Pierre Bouchut appointed chair as Entain reports growth

“That provision is purely accounting-driven, and there is no certainty that the quantum reflects what might be a potential penalty.  We are currently in early-stage mediation, and there is no further update until those discussions have concluded,” she said.

Given speculation that the AUSTRAC fine could be three or four times that provision, a $100 million fine would be seen as a reasonable result for Entain, which reported a global EBITDA figure of £583 million ($A1.2 billion) across the first half of 2025 and a market cap of close to £6 billion ($12.4 billion).  

It has been clear from the recent appointment of Andrew Vouris as Entain Australia and New Zealand chief executive, replacing Dean Sahnnon, that there is a change of mentality in the Australasian business. To quote the new boss himself.

“I want us to win, yes, but not at all costs,” Vouris said.

An outcome of the AUSTRAC process is expected in the next six months, and there is no doubt that will be seen as a crucial inflection point for the future of Entain’s Australian ambitions.

Australia is one of only three countries where Entain didn’t grow online NGR  in the first half of 2025, along with two other highly regulated jurisdictions, the Netherlands and Belgium.

Broader wagering trends have played a part in that, but so too have challenges faced by the Ladbrokes and Neds Australian businesses.

If Entain can put the AUSTRAC action behind it, then Vouris’ challenge in 2026 will be to return Australia to growth and continue New Zealand's upward trajectory.

[curious]

Header should read 12% I think?

The other detail to come out of the half-yearly report was that Australian NGR had fallen 7 per cent year-on-year, while New Zealand’s has increased 12 per cent.

Edited 3 hours ago by curious

[Chief Stipe]

36 minutes ago, curious said:

Header should read 12% I think?

The other detail to come out of the half-yearly report was that Australian NGR had fallen 7 per cent year-on-year, while New Zealand’s has increased 12 per cent.

Online 18%.  Retail dragged it down to 12.

[curious]

4 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

Online 18%.  Retail dragged it down to 12.

Long way to go. Have to see what the online monopoly does I guess?

[Chief Stipe]

45 minutes ago, curious said:

Long way to go. Have to see what the online monopoly does I guess?

At least it is up not down.

[curious]

3 minutes ago, Chief Stipe said:

At least it is up not down.

👍