William Hill Records Positive Online Gambling Figures

Reputable UK bookmaker William Hill has made tremenodus results in 2019 retail operations. According to the figures unveiled this past Wednesday, the provider generated £1.58b in 2019, a 2% drop from 2018’s result, while making a net loss of £37.6m compared to a £722m loss in 2018. The local authorities have introduced a £2 maximum stake on fixed-odds betting terminalswhich was followed by a writedown of bookmaker’s retail ops.

The reduction in the stake was followed by the closure of 713 betting shops in the third quarter of 2019. It led to the overall decrease in retail revenue of 20% to £717m. At the same time, sports betting revenue stayed on the same level while gaming income dropped by 1/3 to £317m. It is also worth mentioning that retail operating profit slipped 45% to £83.2m.

William Hill has recently sold 35 betting shops in Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man to competitor BoyleSports. It will lead to a continuous decrease in the operator's retail shares. Only during 2018, the provider held 2300 shops and now the number stands at 1533.

If we take a look at online betting operations, we can see that Hill made 47% of total gaming revenue in 2019, which is eight points more than in 2018. Online revenue increased by 16% to £738.3m, with gaming climbing 36% to £430.7m. Sports betting figures dropped 3% to £307.6m because of reduced interest in race betting.

One of the reasons for Hill's online growth in 2019 was acquisition of the MRG Mr. Green brand. Thanks to this step, the provider boosted international revenues by 71% to £257.3m. However, some issues can soon emerge for the bookmaker giving the fact that the UK government announced the prohibition of gambling via credit cards. The analysts estimate that it will result in a decrease in operating profit between £5m-£10m.

William Hill has also recorded positive results in the USA. Its sports betting revenues increased two points to 8%. Currently, Hill operates a 32% share of Nevada’s market, and its revenue increased 2% to $107m in 2019 while operating profit dropped 17% to $34.8m following the considerable upsurge in operating costs.

UK bookmaker is popular for performing operations in nine US states and holding a 24% share of the entire US betting market. The last year saw Hill improving its betting handle by 208% to $655m and revenues climbed 224% to $54.8m. 

The present year comes with additional plans from the operators. Hill will extend its operation in nine states and make more than promising results form cooperation with CBS Sports and Caesars Entertainment...

Source: Stradbrooke, Steven „William Hill’s online gambling revenue surpasses retail ops“. Calvin Ayre. February 26, 2020.