Entertainment <\/p>\n
Flutter Entertainment has warned it is likely to fall approximately $370 million (\u00a3297 million\/\u20ac359 million) short of US revenue expectations for FanDuel following a period of \u201cvery unfavourable\u201d sports results in the country during November and December.<\/strong><\/p>\n In a trading update<\/a> published today (8 January), Flutter said strong player-friendly results have offset US player momentum. The group published Q3 results in mid-November<\/a>, with these showing \u201cexcellent\u201d growth across all regions.<\/p>\n However since the results announcement on 12 November, running into December, FanDuel has endured \u201cunfavourable US sports results\u201d primarily affecting NFL parlay and same-game parlay outcomes.<\/p>\n The operator went as far as calling the 2024-25 NFL season \u201cthe most customer friendly since the launch of online sports betting with the highest rate of favourites winning in nearly 20 years\u201d.<\/p>\n These results, Flutter said, generated an estimated adverse gross gaming revenue of $438 million. <\/p>\n Revenue took a $390 million hit and adjusted EBITDA $260 million. This covers the period between 12 November \u2013 when the Q3 results were published \u2013 and 31 December.<\/p>\n As such, FanDuel revenue for FY24 is now likely to be $370 million less than the previous guidance midpoint at $2.78 billion the operator said. Flutter initially said revenue would be between $6.05 billion and $6.25 billion in the US.<\/p>\n US adjusted EBITDA will be $205 million lower than the initial midpoint of $505 million. Flutter previously forecasted adjusted EBITDA to range between $670 million and $750 million. This comes before any mitigating steps, such as reducing sales and marketing costs, the operator noted. <\/p>\n It means FanDuel revenue for Q4 is now expected to reach $1.59 billion, with adjusted EBITDA coming to $161 million. This factors in a $643 million GGR hit from the adverse sports results in the quarter, which in turn reduced revenue by $550 million and slashed adjusted EBITDA by $360 million.<\/p>\n However, Flutter added it remains confident in the growth drivers and long-term growth trajectory as outlined at its investor day in September<\/a>. <\/p>\n While the NFL results have hindered FanDuel, the operator stressed that operations in other markets remained strong. The UK and Ireland in particular performed well thanks to favourable results in the English Premier League. As a result its revenue midpoint for the 2024 financial year is likely to be 1% higher than the previous year, with adjusted EBITDA 2% higher.<\/p>\nFlutter takes $438m GGR hit from customer-friendly results<\/h2>\n
UKIE performance will offset US struggles<\/h2>\n
Black swans \u201cnot as rare as people think\u201d<\/h2>\n