LiveScore Group has posted a 38% year-on-year (YoY) increase in revenue to £179m for the 52 weeks to 31 March 2024 alongside a further shrinking of losses.
According to filings made with Companies House, LiveScore Group revenue rose from £129.7m in the previous period, with online sports betting and igaming driving the increase.
LiveScore Group comprises LiveScore Bet and Virgin Bet and is live in the UK, Ireland and Nigeria. The operator shuttered its Dutch business late last year.
Revenue from gambling operations shot up from £108m to £157.9m, representing a YoY spike of 46.2%.
Revenue derived from B2B ad sales via its media and live scores platform LiveScore dipped from £21.6m to £21.1m.
The UK and Ireland remains the group’s largest segment, with revenue rising from £100.4m to £139.2m during the reporting period, while rest of Europe climbed from £14.1m to £23m.
Revenue from the Rest of the World increased from £15.2m to £16.8m.
In turn, gross profit leapt from £99.9m to £138.1m at the end of the reporting period, while cost of sales rose from £29.8m to £41m.
LiveScore Group also noted operating losses shrank 18% from £61.8m to £50.7m and EBITDA losses reduced from £50.4m to £38.8m.
The business said its operating losses included a loss on foreign exchange of £8.5m, which bosses said was predominantly down to the devaluation of the Nigerian naira.
The filing read: “This [loss] was in line with expectations and overall growth plans as the business incurred significant expansion and marketing costs.
“The reduced operating loss resulted from a gross profit increase that outpaced ongoing significant investment in marketing and the LiveScore brand.”
As of 31 March 2024, LiveScore Group had an average of 641 staff, up from 492 in the same period to the end of March 2023.
Staff costs, including director remuneration, rose from £34.7m to £38.2m. Director remuneration soared from £283,397 to £918,001 as base salaries jumped from £226,809 to £880,651.
The company also had £20.5m in cash on hand at the bank, down from £39.7m during the previous reporting period.
However, the company has since launched a streamlining process that could see more than 100 staff made redundant across its global offices.
LiveScore Group added that it remains in a “development phase” and would continue to review opportunities in new markets.
The business has applied for licences in Bulgaria and South Africa, although at the time of writing has yet to be granted approval in either country.
Reacting to the operator’s financial report, industry analysts Regulus Partners said LiveScore’s efforts had been “impressive” but long-term success remains in the balance.
The company wrote: “LiveScore has continued to grow market share in the UK with a highly successful content-led customer acquisition model as well as leveraging the Virgin brand in betting (something of an own goal for what is now Ballys to let slip back in 2019, in our view), with overall share up c. 0.6 percentage points to c. 2.2% (adjusting for advertising revenue).
“However, while this is impressive at the revenue and customer engagement level, evidence of strategic cost cutting can be seen both in terms of moving the betting product to Kambi (live post-period) and the subsequent Netherlands exit. The extent to which strategic differentiation can be turned into operational success is still therefore being tested.”
The post LiveScore Group revenue up 38% on UK gains as losses shrink further first appeared on EGR Intel.
Privately owned bookmaker and media platform reports £179m in revenue for the 12 months to 31 March 2024 as bosses note business remains in “development” phase
The post LiveScore Group revenue up 38% on UK gains as losses shrink further first appeared on EGR Intel.