Betsson AB felt the impact of higher taxation in 2025, among other rising costs, and its full year accounts paint a picture which will become all too familiar to other gambling PLCs over the coming months.
The Stockholm-listed gaming group reported reduced operating income (EBIT) of 1% year-over-year in 2025, down from €256.7m in 2024 to €253.1m, while EBITDA also fell by 1% from €3bn 16m to €313.7m.
This was despite the company’s revenue coming in at €1.2bn, up 8% from €1.1bn the year prior. Betsson has attributed the hit to profitability on lower B2B revenues, higher gaming taxes, and increased product and technology investments.
Betsson has a broad international presence with activities across Europe, Latin America and Africa. In 2025, this did leave the company open to some hefty tax exposures, which will continue into 2026.
Examples would include France, where the company launched back in 2023 and where taxes went up considerably last year – going up from 54.9% to 59.3% of gross gaming revenue for sports betting and at 10% of GGR for online poker. In Latin America, Peru’s 1% tax on wagers has caused a headache for many.
“We continued to invest in the product and technology organisation to strengthen the customer experience and our long-term competitiveness, which meant higher personnel costs,” said Pontus Lindwall, Betsson AB CEO.
Lindwall added that Betsson’s expansion into locally regulated markets has led to the company paying higher taxes. The firm now generates 68% of its revenue from locally regulated markets, up from 60% in 2024.
“Higher gaming taxes and increased personnel costs had a negative impact on profitability and operating income during the quarter,” the CEO said. |Despite the lower profitability, Betsson stands strong operationally with a competitive product offering, increasing brand awareness and technology at the forefront.”
Q4 dampens Betsson’s otherwise big year
The publication of some more somber financials for Betsson at the close of 2025 comes after a bumper series of results of the company, with Q1, Q2 and Q3 results showing a company on the up.
Betsson declared H1 2025 revenue of €597m, a 15% rise on the previous year, while operating income also rose to €133m. In Q3, revenue was up 6% to €295.8m and net income was up to €50.1m from €43.4m.
The downturn in profits at the end of the year shows, as company leadership has noted, the creeping impact of taxation, coupled with the demands of investment – although regarding revenue there were some consistent trends.
Betsson’s performance in the Nordics has seen consistent decline over successive quarters, something acknowledged by leadership. However, with its profile now extending across some very lucrative Western European and Latin American markets, the company is probably not too fazed about Nordics downturns.
Overall, Q4 2025 trading saw group revenue fall 1% from €306.8m to €303.9m, with sports betting revenue decreasing 9% and casino revenue rising by 3%. The impact of profit was much clearer – EBITDA down 20% from €86.4m to €69.3m and operating income down 24% from €70.2m to €53.2m.
“Regionally, we saw continued good growth in Western Europe and Latin America, but a slowdown in the Nordic region and CEECA,” Lindwall remarked.
“B2C revenue continued to increase, thanks to successful product and marketing investments, while B2B revenue was lower than the comparison period last year.
“The decline was mainly due to one of Betsson’s B2B customers having lower revenue than in the corresponding period in the previous year.”
Despite challenges, leadership highlighted improved KPIs as Betsson brands achieved peak player activity of 1.4m customers during Q4.
The company is also not shying away from new investment opportunities – according to recent reports, it is eyeing up a purchase of Sportsbet.io and BitCasino from Yolo Group.
Leadership is also confident that the upcoming FIFA World Cup will provide a solid boost to sportsbook revenues, a hope shared by many other gambling firms.
“Our strong financial position provides us with good conditions to invest in long-term, profitable growth and to deliver returns for our shareholders,” continued Lindwall.
“Looking ahead, we are entering 2026 with a number of activities that provide good conditions for growth.
“We are also looking forward with great anticipation to the FIFA World Cup, where a record number of matches and participating nations will create exciting opportunities for betting and for attracting new customers.
“The investments made in recent years as well as our pipeline of projects for 2026 support our ambition to continue to generate long-term shareholder value,” he concluded.
Betsson AB felt the impact of higher taxation in 2025, among other rising costs, and its full year accounts paint a picture which will become all too familiar to other gambling PLCs over the coming months. The Stockholm-listed gaming group reported reduced operating income (EBIT) of 1% year-over-year in 2025, down from €256.7m in 2024