Genius Sports has reported a 30.5% year-on-year (YoY) jump in Q1 revenue to $188m (£138m), as the firm said its $1.2bn acquisition of media business Legend should “drive meaningful margin expansion and cash flow over time”.
Adjusted EBITDA rose 21.3% YoY from $19.8m to $24m, with adjusted EBITDA margin contracting 90 basis points to 12.8%.
Net losses widened significantly from $8.2m to $55.5m, predominantly due to costs associated with the Legend deal, FX movements and stock compensations.
Genius Sports agreed to acquire Legend earlier this year for an initial $900m, with a further $300m in earnouts.
Full-year 2026 revenue is now forecast to land between $990m and $1.01bn, with adjusted EBITDA between $270m and $280m.
Full-year 2025 revenue came to $669.5m and adjusted EBITDA was $136.2m.
The Legend deal closed officially on 1 May and will contribute to Q2 2026 earnings.
Q2 revenue is expected to hit $185m alongside adjusted EBITDA of $45m.
Returning to Q1 performance, betting technology revenue rose 33.3% YoY to $146.2m, driven by new business and prices increases on renewals, while media tech revenue increased 21.7% to $41.7m.
Genius Sports’ stock has been hit in 2026, falling almost 57% since the start of the year. The market reacted negatively to the Legend deal, sending the share price down almost 30% in the days following the announcement.
Mark Locke, Genius Sports CEO, took the unusual step of writing a letter to shareholders, insisting Legend – which owns and operates brand such as Casino.org and Covers.com – was not “a simple affiliate business”.
“Some people think we bought a simple affiliate business,” he wrote. “Our view is different. We bought a participation layer built on two decades of technological investment that sits between official data infrastructure and the moment of transaction.”
Commenting on the Q1 results, Locke said: “Our first quarter results underscore the durability and visibility of our business model, with strong revenue growth across both betting and media driven by long-term contracts, expanding customer relationships and delivery of new products across the global sports and betting ecosystem.
“With the acquisition of Legend now complete, we are expanding our platform deeper into fan engagement and participation, creating new opportunities across sports, media and igaming.
“The combination strengthens our long-term growth profile, enhances monetisation across our ecosystem and is expected to drive meaningful margin expansion and cash flow over time.”
The post Genius Sports targeting $1bn in 2026 revenue as Legend deal closes first appeared on EGR Intel.
New York-listed firm reports Q1 earnings, with 30.5% jump in revenue, and points to expected performance thanks to major $1.2bn acquisition of Covers.com parent
The post Genius Sports targeting $1bn in 2026 revenue as Legend deal closes first appeared on EGR Intel.