During Entain's Q1 trading update earnings call, Rob Wood, CFO and deputy CEO, and Stella David, interim CEO praised Entain's performance in New Zealand and Brazil - but highlighted regulatory headwinds in the Netherlands.
Entain reported a 3% rise in revenue for the first quarter of the year. This was mostly attributed to a positive performance in Entain’s Central and Eastern Europe business, where revenue grew 124%. Performance in Entain’s international business also grew, rising 4%. However, reported revenue in the UK and Ireland fell 7% yearly.
On the Q1 trading update call, David and Wood paid particularly close attention to Entain’s performance across its operating markets.
Referring to Brazil and New Zealand, Wood, expects “an acceleration” in these markets. David said that Brazil “remains a highly competitive market” for Entain.
Wood added that Entain is “encouraged by progress so far as we look forward to licensing later this year” in Brazil.
On the other hand, Wood commented that Entain expects a degree of “regulatory tightening” in the Netherlands, with David voicing her agreement. “Clearly the Netherlands is a challenging market,” she said.
Opportunity abounds in Nevada
The Q&A section of the earnings call saw analysts inquire about BetMGM’s performance and its speculated Nevada launch.
“No one else is able to do what we’re going to do in Nevada,” said David. “This is a year of investment.”
She continued to point to the opportunity Nevada will offer, one that will be more accessible to Entain due to its existing relationship with MGM.
“MGM I think controls something like 50% of the Strip, they have 13m customer nights of the year in their resorts,” David explained. “The opportunity, as we get our product and app sorted, is very fundamental, that no one else can replicate.”
In terms of BetMGM’s performance, Wood noted that March had been BetMGM’s “best ever” month for iGaming.
Source: GMB / iGB
