DUBLIN (Reuters) -Online betting giant Flutter expects its core profit to jump by around 30% this year thanks to a four-fold increase at its fast-growing and market leading U.S. brand Fanduel, the world’s largest online betting company said on Tuesday.
Flutter expects U.S. core profit of $635 million to $785 million versus last year’s $167 million, which represented its first full year of profitability in the United States where a ban on sports betting was lifted in 2018.
It expects core profit of $1.63 billion to $1.83 billion in its others markets, which include the Paddy Power, Betfair and Sportsbet brands in the UK and Australia. That compares to $1.71 billion in 2023, which Flutter said was in line with its guidance.
Flutter, which gave a fourth quarter revenue breakdown in January, said revenue grew by 23% in the first 11 weeks of 2024, driven by a 56% increase in the U.S. through record Superbowl engagement in February.
Fanduel has a 43% share of the U.S. online sports betting market, compared to second place Drafking’s 36%, with BetMGM, the joint venture between MGM Resorts and Entain, a distant third place.
Flutter increased its share of the online U.S. gaming market to 26% at the end of last year and said on Tuesday that it became the market leader in that segment too in January.
Year-to-date revenue was up 3% in its international division and 17% in the UK and Ireland, where its market share rose to 30% last year. Revenue fell 8.8% in Australia, where Flutter expects further reduced profitability in 2024 thanks to trading and regulatory headwinds.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; editing by Jason Neely, Kirsten Donovan)