FDJ United has reported a decline in both revenue and gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the first half of 2026, attributing the downturn to tax hikes and poor performance from its lottery segment.
In its latest financial results, released on Wednesday, FDJ revealed that revenue fell 4.5% to €1.78 billion, while GGR experienced a drop of 1.3% to €4.31 billion.
Stéphane Pallez, the CEO and chairwoman of FDJ, noted that tax increases in key markets including France, Romania, the UK, and the Netherlands significantly impacted revenue, estimating a negative effect of around €52 million due to gaming tax rises.
The lottery division underperformed, resulting in a 2.1% decrease in GGR to €2.98 billion, alongside a 4% revenue drop to €1.02 billion. Pallez explained that the lottery’s underperformance was linked to fewer and smaller Euromillions jackpots compared to earlier years, and also attributed a drop in customer traffic at retail locations to extreme heatwaves in the second quarter.
Additionally, retail sports betting saw a decrease during the first half of 2026, with GGR falling 1.1% to €450 million and revenue declining by 2.9% to €218 million.
Despite these setbacks, Pallez expressed optimism about the company’s future, emphasizing a commitment to innovation and enhancing the appeal of its product offerings. She stated, "Backed by solid fundamentals and a robust financial structure, FDJ United continues to invest in innovation, the attractiveness of its product portfolio and the acceleration of its transformation in order to return to a path of sustainable, profitable and value-creating growth."
On a brighter note, FDJ reported that its online betting and gaming operations performed as expected, with H1 GGR remaining stable at €702 million. However, revenue for this unit decreased by 7.4% to €431 million. France and Scandinavia were noted as leading markets for this segment.
Excluding the UK and Netherlands, the online unit experienced a GGR increase of 6.6%, with revenue gaining 0.6%. In the Netherlands, FDJ indicated progress in its online business; the Unibet brand saw a 4.1% decline in GGR for the second quarter, which marked an improvement from the sharper 15% decline in the first quarter.
In contrast, the situation in the UK remains challenging. After the release of its Q1 results in April, FDJ’s gaming and betting chief Pascal Chaffard reaffirmed the company’s commitment to remain in the UK market, stating, "For me, there is absolutely no question of getting out of the UK. The top priority is to fix this problem…it’s more a question of some quarters…than years to get there, frankly."
Plans have been initiated to form targeted task forces aimed at improving collaboration and performance in both the UK and Netherlands markets.
In light of its H1 performance, FDJ has made adjustments to its full-year guidance. The company anticipates a slight increase in GGR and a modest decline in revenue for FY2026, despite forecasting annual growth in revenue from its French lottery and retail sports betting units.
FDJ also expects improvements in its online betting and gaming performance, projecting a return to GGR growth in the second half of the year. However, it now predicts stable GGR for both its lottery and retail sports betting units for the full year, as well as its online betting and gaming segment. The revenue decline is expected to remain in the low single-digits.
For the first half of the year, FDJ reported an adjusted net profit of €180 million, with plans to optimize its resource distribution going forward.
