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Entain PLC on Thursday said it has started the new financial year in a strong position as it posted a narrowing of its loss in 2024. The Isle of Man-based owner of bookmakers Ladbrokes and Coral narrowed its pretax loss to £357.4 million last year from £842.6 million in 2023. Entain said the improved result was primarily thanks to reduced one-off costs included in its separately disclosed items, which fell to £875.8 million from £1.29 billion. This includes a stark reduction in legal settlement costs to £3.9 million for 2024, compared with £585.0 million in 2023, tied to the firm’s DPA liability. DPA refers to the deferred prosecution agreement reached between Entain and the Crown Prosecution Service in the UK in relation to the activities of its legacy Turkish business, which it had sold off in 2017. Entain was hit with a £585 million penalty in relation to bribery offences at the former Turkish subsidiary, leading to the departure its then-chief executive. On an underlying basis, Entain posted profit before tax and separately disclosed items of £518.4 million, up 17% from £444.9 million the prior year. Entain reported an 6.7% increase in revenue to £5.09 billion from £4.77 billion, noting a positive performance in several of its key markets as well as ‘a return to growth in the UK’. BetMGM net revenue grew 7% to $2.1 billion, with the US joint venture boosted by sports product investment and greater iGaming marketing investment, ‘driving acceleration in growth and player engagement metrics through the year’. BetMGM is a sports betting and iGaming operator across North America, jointly owned by Entain and MGM Resorts International. Administrative costs were reduced by 7.3% to £3.25 billion from £3.51 billion over the period, further supporting Entain’s bottom line. Entain proposed a total dividend for 2024 of 18.6 pence per share, up 4.5% from 17.8p for 2023. Looking ahead, Entain said it remains ‘comfortable with market expectations for 2025’ of earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of £1.11 billion. This compares with its 2024 Ebitda of £985.3 million. It still expects BetMGM to deliver revenue in the range of $2.4 billion and $2.5 billion for 2025. Entain said it has ‘started the year strongly’, with momentum continuing into 2025. Entain shares were up 1.8% at 755.20p on Thursday afternoon in London. Interim Chief Executive Stella David commented: ‘2024 has been a year of transformation for Entain. I am delighted to see that our strategic and operational improvements are translating into strong performance; clear evidence that our strategy is delivering. ‘Our return to organic growth is the beginning of our rebuild journey; our momentum continues, and we have started the year strongly.’ David became interim CEO after Gavin Isaacs departed last month after only five months in the hot seat. David previously was interim CEO from December 2023 until September 2024. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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