In 2023, Allwyn’s total revenue grew 97.5% (PS6.75bn/$8.53bn), boosted by the acquisition of Camelot’s US and UK business and its preparations for taking over the UK National Lottery.
Allwyn, formerly Sazka, was awarded the 4th National Lottery license in September 2022. This followed a bidding competition that also included The New Lottery Company (TNL), Sisal, and Camelot. The UK National Lottery was launched last month by Allwyn and it will be operated for another ten years.
Camelot (Camelot) and International Game Technology(IGT) were furious when Allwyn’s name was announced as the license applicant. Camelot and IGT both launched High Court appeals over the decision. Ultimately, Camelot dropped its case while IGT was dismissed.
Allwyn announced that they would be acquiring Camelot Lottery Solutions, the US arm of Camelot, in just three days after January 20, 2023. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The deal was closed in March.
Camelot LS later became Allwyn North America. Allwyn had agreed to buy Camelot UK by November 2022.
The gross gaming revenues also grew in FY
Robert Chvatal said that 2023 was the year to deliver on Allwyn’s inorganic-growth strategy.
Chvatal said, “I’m pleased to announce that 2023 has been another year with strong financial performance and operations and progress in strategic areas.” We continued to implement our growth strategies while keeping our focus on safety and being accountable to our stakeholders.
He continued, “2023 marked another year in which we delivered on our strategy with acquisitions such as Camelot UK, Allwyn LS Group and a new increase of our stake in OPAP for our Greece and Cyprus Segment.” Through our inorganic strategy of growth, we are continuing to increase our capabilities and footprint.
The gross gaming revenue (GGR), which accounted for EUR7.54bn in 2023 of the total revenue, was up 98.0% on an annual basis.
Allwyn provided figures excluding the Camelot purchases that occurred in 2022 or 2023. If these acquisitions were excluded, 2023 revenue would have reached EUR4.24bn, a 6.4% increase from FY22. GGR totaled EUR4.07bn (up 6.8%).
In 2023, growth will be seen across the board.
Allwyn had the best performance in the UK, where revenues reached EUR3.92bn in 2023. This was a 3.9% annual decline. This was due in part to the limited growth opportunities available for its product lines and channels towards the expiration of their previous license. Greece and Cyprus revenues reached EUR2,18bn (up 7.0%), boosted by positive igaming operations.
The revenue in Italy increased by 2.3%, to EUR2.29bn. Austrian revenues totalled EUR1.53bn. Allwyn said that revenue in the Czech Republic increased 10.2%, to EUR519.3m. This was due to strong performance in Numerical Lotteries Instant Lotteries and Igaming. Total net revenues for all these markets reached EUR3.58bn (an increase of 41.7%).
Operating EBITDA grew 17.8%, to EUR1.33bn. The adjusted EBITDA reached EUR1.48bn after EUR150.4m of EBITDA adjustments. This represents a growth rate of 27.1%. Allwyn’s adjusted free cash flow was EUR1.38bn at the end of last year.
If we look at the performance of Allwyn in 2023 without considering Camelot, it is estimated that net revenue will be EUR2.70bn. This represents a 7.0% year-on-year increase. Operating EBITDA was EUR1.15bn and total adjusted EBITDA EUR1.31bn.
The fourth quarter is the final, successful quarter of the year
Allwyn achieved a Q4 revenue of EUR2,17bn, an increase of 96.5%. It also represented 27.6% the total revenue for the entire year. GGR reached EUR2,07bn (a 96.7% increase) and accounted for 95.4% revenue.
The quarter saw a 29.5% increase in net revenue to EUR987.8m. Operating EBITDA was EUR336.8m, and adjusted EBITDA is EUR388.5m.
In Q4 of Allwyn’s geographic segments, the total revenue in Austria fell 1.4% from EUR397.1m to EUR397.1m. Allwyn attributes this decline to lower results from its Numerical lottery. Net revenue increased by 1.1%, to EUR215.2m.
The marketing costs were “significantly” lower, which helped to boost the Czech Republic’s revenue by EUR144.6m. In Greece and Cyprus the 6.9% increase was due to improvements in Allwyn’s offering to customers. The United Kingdom’s Q4 revenue fell by 1.9%, to EUR975.3m. This was all GGR.
