Sportingbet buoyed by European arm
Online gaming group Sportingbet offset the loss of its US-facing business today by revealing strong growth at its European sports betting arm.
The Unlawful Gambling Enforcement Act caused the group, which owns brands including Paradise Poker and Sportingodds.com, to sell its US-facing sports betting and casino business for a single US dollar in October.
The one-off impact on its books resulted in pre-tax losses of €446.1m for the year to July 31 from a profit of €101.9m a year earlier, as turnover dived 35% to €1.89bn.
However, it said profit from continuing operations rose 76% to €10.6m, helped by a 48% improvement in the gross win – the amount left behind by punters - at the company’s European sports betting operation.
