888 enjoy record underlying earnings in 2018 despite rough ride in Britain

Online gambling firm 888 enjoyed record underlying earnings last year despite a challenging time in its core market in Britain.

Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) increased six per cent on 2017 to £100.7 million, helped by a profitable World Cup.

The London-listed 888 recently acquired BetBright – which ceased its gambling operations – after agreeing to pay £15m to purchase assets of Dedsert Limited, Dedsert Ireland Limited and its affiliates, which together operate as BetBright.

The deal was followed by a storm of protest after ante-post bets were voided, just days before the Cheltenham Festival, but in a 'goodwill' gesture the outstanding BetBright wagers were then reinstated.

Higher taxes and stricter regulations affected 888's performance in Britain last year, revenue falling 16 per cent, the government having introduced stringent policies in cracking down on underage gambling, money laundering and the exploitation of problem gamblers.

888 said it underwent “sweeping changes” in order to meet the new regulations, while self-imposing an advertising watershed along with other bookmakers.

Betbright: taken over by 888 last week

Chief executive Itai Pazner said in a statement: “Despite headwinds in some areas of the business, the financial performance in 2018 was resilient and we achieved a record Ebitda outcome for the year.

“The group achieved continued growth across several regulated markets, primarily in continental Europe, underpinned by good momentum in casino and sport.”

Pazner continued: “The positive momentum at the end of 2018 has continued into the first quarter of 2019, with average daily revenue in 2019 to date up ten per cent compared to the fourth quarter of 2018, reflecting improvements across major KPIs.

“In the UK we are encouraged by the improving trends we began to witness in the latter stages of 2018, and the board is pleased to report that these have continued during the first quarter of the current financial year.”

Free entry to under threat French sprint

France Galop are offering owners and trainers the chance to earn free entry to two of its most important sprint races this spring, the Group 3 Prix Saint-Georges at Longchamp and the Group 2 Prix du Gros-Chene, which is run on Chantilly's Qipco Prix du Jockey Club card on June 2.

The move is part of an effort to bolster the fortunes of the Prix Cor de Chasse, which faces automatic loss of Listed status should it not attain a sufficient rating when run at Fontainebleau on March 29.

Longchamp: hosts the Prix Saint-GeorgesCredit: Edward Whitaker

The first four home need to have a mean rating of 100 to remove the danger of an automatic downgrade, and in order to encourage a high quality line-up, the winner and runner-up will have entry fees waved for the two Group races, as long as they are rated 100 or higher after the race.

The Prix Cor de Chasse is run over five and a half furlongs and is open to three-year-olds and upward, while entries close on Thursday, March 21.

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