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La Française des Jeux : Revenue up 4% in Nine Months: Acquisition of ZEturf Completed at the End of September Acquisition of PLI to Be Completed in Early November

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La Française des Jeux (FDJ), France’s leading gaming operator, announces its revenue for the nine months to end September 2023.

Stéphane Pallez, Chairwoman and CEO of FDJ Group, said: “Our growth remains solid, with strong players’ demand, even though it has been affected by the low number of Euromillions high jackpot draws. At the same time, the completion of the acquisition of ZEturf at the end of September and the forthcoming closing of Premier Lotteries Ireland acquisition in November illustrate our strategy of internationalisation and diversification. We are delighted that the teams of these two operators are joining FDJ and that these operations will contribute to the Group’s sustainable and profitable growth.”

  • Revenue to end September of €1,875 million, up 3.9% and 1.3% on a like-for-like basis

At the end of September, gross gaming revenue (GGR) stood at €4,808 million, stable compared with 2022. After €3,044 million in public levies, net gaming revenue (NGR)3 totalled €1,771 million, up 0.8% based on a 2.0% increase in stakes.

Including income from other activities of €103 million, up more than 10% on a like-for-like basis, Group revenue to end September 2023 came to €1,875 million, up 3.9%.

On a like-for-like basis, sales rose by 1.3%. It rose 4.6%, in line with the first half, excluding Euromillions, which was particularly affected by the low number of high jackpot draws, especially in the 3rd quarter, and excluding Amigo, which was relaunched at the beginning of June with a revised formula in accordance with the regulator’s decision.

In the 3rd quarter, revenue totalled €586 million, down 1% and 3% on a like-for-like basis.

  • By distribution channel and activity
    • By distribution channel

Stakes in points of sale increased 0.8% to €13,278 million, supported by sports betting and instant games, and despite Amigo and Euromillions impact.

Digital stakes are continuing to grow, driven by all businesses. They were up 10.6% to €2,011 million, a performance attributable in large part to the increase in the number of players. Excluding Euromillions, online lottery stakes rose by more than 12%. Online stakes account for more than 13% of total stakes.

  • Lottery

Lottery revenue totalled €1,407 million down 1.2%, based on a slight increase in stakes, but up 3% excluding Amigo and Euromillions.

Driven in particular by the success of launches and relaunches, such as Carré Or in January and Numéro Fétiche in May, instant games stakes rose by more than 4%.

The almost 6% drop in the stakes for draw games is attributable to the lower number of high jackpot Euromillions draws (19 at 2023 September-end compared to 32 at 2022 September-end), particularly noticeable in the third quarter, and the full impact of the new Amigo draw launched at the beginning of June and in line with the decision of the French National Gaming Authority.

Excluding Euromillions and Amigo, draw stakes are up 1% and lottery stakes more than 3% compared with 2022, an “exceptional” year for draw games, especially Euromillions with stakes up by almost +20% to the end of September 2022. Overall, the appeal of this game remains strong, with stakes up by almost +10% compared with 2019, following its relaunch in the first quarter of 2020.

The discrepancy between growth in stakes and growth in revenue is mainly due to Euromillions, which has a high rate of conversion of stakes into revenue.

  • Sports betting and online gaming open to competition

Revenue of sports betting and online gaming open to competition totalled €360 million, an increase of 9.3% in line with growth in stakes. The player payout ratio in the third quarter is very close to that at the end of June and that recorded at the end of September 2022.

Business growth, strong both at the point of sale and online, benefited from the continuing momentum of the FIFA World Cup at the end of 2022, despite a slightly less favourable football calendar in the 3rd quarter of 2023.

The acquisitions of ZEturf and Premier Lotteries Ireland (PLI) strengthen FDJ’s model

  • ZEturf completes FDJ’s online gaming offering, making it the 4th largest operator in the French sports betting and online gaming open to competition, with a market share of over 10%

ZEturf is the 2nd largest online horse betting operator in France, with a market share of around 20%. This acquisition enables the FDJ Group to become the 4th largest competitive online gaming operator in France (sports betting, horse betting and poker), with a market share of over 10%. Finalised at the end of September, this acquisition has been consolidated in FDJ’s accounts since 1 October.

In order to benefit fully from the potential of the merger with ZEturf and the synergies within its online business open to competition, and in accordance with the commitments made to the French Competition Authority, FDJ will adopt a new organisation for this business.

With 2022 revenue exceeding €50 million, ZEturf:

– Doubles the revenue of FDJ’s online gaming business open to competition;

– And will have an accretive effect on the sports betting and online gaming open to competition BU’s contribution margin from 2025.

  • PLI: First step in the international B2C lottery with strong prospects

The acquisition of Premier Lotteries Ireland, the Irish national lottery operator, is a major step in the deployment of the FDJ Group’s international strategy. On 3 October, the Irish lottery regulator gave the go-ahead for the deal, which is due to be finalised in early November, when PLI will be consolidated by FDJ.

In 2022, Premier Lotteries Ireland recorded gross gaming revenue (GGR) of €399 million and revenue of €140 million, with an EBITDA margin comparable to that of FDJ.

The strategic plan currently being drawn up jointly aims to accelerate PLI’s growth and increase its profitability, based on sharing best practice between the two operators in order to:

– Capitalise on FDJ’s experience to drive PLI’s instant games portfolio;

– Boost the player base for draw games;

– And continue to improve the digital experience for Irish players.

2023 Outlook

In Q4, the Group expects:

– In sports betting and online gaming open to competition, sales virtually unchanged, reflecting the continued momentum since the start of the year, with a high basis for comparison due to the FIFA World Cup at the end of 2022;

– And for the lottery, sales growth driven by non-Amigo draw games, with several events including the launch of the EuroDreams draw game, and by instant games.

For 2023 as a whole, FDJ is targeting revenue growth of around 5%, i.e. between 1.5% and 2% on a like-for-like basis, with a current EBITDA margin rate maintained at around 24% thanks to tight control of costs.

– At the end of July, the Group had announced 2023 revenue growth targets of over 5%, and over 3% on a like-for-like basis, with a current EBITDA margin maintained at around 24%.

The Group will also benefit from a high level of financial income, expected to almost double the figure recorded at the end of June, and reiterates its commitment to distribute between 80% and 90% of its consolidated net income.

The Group’s next financial communication

The Group will report its 2023 results on Thursday, 15 February 2024, before market opening.

Appendix

In millions of euros

Q3 2023

Q3 2022

Var.

Stakes

4,802

4,945

-2,9%

o/w online stakes

679

643

+5,6%

Revenue

586

592

-1,1%*

o/w lottery

449

478

-6,0%

o/w sports betting and online gaming open to competition

103

97

+6,4%

*-3.4% vs. Q3 2022 pro forma, including the acquisitions of Aleda and L’Addtion

casino operations

Ignition Casino: One-night Las Vegas Strip spend hits $668, up 109% since 2014

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Resort fees are up 194% and Nevada’s live poker table count is down 38% since 2011, based on UNLV and Gaming Commission data cited in the report.

The cost of a one-night visit to the Las Vegas Strip has more than doubled since 2014, according to a new “Las Vegas Inflation Index” published by Ignition Casino. The report estimates a typical one-night “basket” of expenses at $667.85 in 2026 versus $319.09 in 2014, a 109.3% increase.

Ignition Casino’s basket includes the Strip average for a blackjack minimum bet, weekend one-night hotel stay, resort fee, domestic beer, bottle of water, dinner (entrée and drink), a show ticket and valet parking. In the company’s breakdown, resort fees show the steepest jump, rising from $19.43 to $48.49 (+194.5%). Other increases cited include blackjack minimum bets from $50.00 to $112.17 (+124.3%), show tickets from $82.86 to $175.91 (+112.3%), water from $3.00 to $7.00 (+133.3%), and valet parking moving from free to $40.

For poker, the report argues higher trip costs are landing alongside a smaller live product. Citing UNLV’s Center for Gaming Research and Nevada Gaming Commission Quarterly Reports, it says Nevada’s live poker table count fell from 957 in 2011 to 595 by end-2025, a 38% decline. On the Strip, the report puts active poker rooms at eight today—Aria, Bellagio, Caesars Palace, Horseshoe, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand, The Venetian and Wynn—down from approximately 17 in the late 2000s.

The company also points to higher rake caps compared with 2014. It states Aria’s rake is “10% of the pot up to a maximum cap of $7 per hand,” Bellagio’s cap is $6, and the remaining Strip rooms are at $5, versus a 2014 Strip average cap of $4. Using an assumed 30 raked hands per hour, the report estimates that a $2 higher cap at cap-reaching tables equates to “an extra $60 per hour” going to the house, or $300 over a five-hour session.

At blackjack, Ignition Casino ties higher table minimums to shorter expected playtime for fixed budgets. It estimates a $500 bankroll would last about 2 hours and 22 minutes at the 2014 average minimum bet, versus about 28 minutes at the 2026 average minimum, using an approach it attributes to “casino risk analysts and quantitative mathematicians” and assuming 70 hands per hour and a blackjack standard deviation of 1.15.

The post Ignition Casino: One-night Las Vegas Strip spend hits $668, up 109% since 2014 appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

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G2 partners with PUBG MOBILE Esports to scale Western Europe competition

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Deal starts with the 2026 PMCO Western Europe Wildcard and adds a JanickaGaming ambassador program.

G2 and PUBG MOBILE Esports have announced a partnership aimed at growing the PUBG MOBILE esports ecosystem in Western Europe, the companies said on June 15, 2026 in Berlin.

The partnership begins with the 2026 PUBG MOBILE Club Open (PMCO) Western Europe Wildcard, with registration open now. G2’s in-house media and production unit, 62, will support tournament operations and community activations, spanning creator campaigns, media buying, and event management.

The first major activation under the agreement will be the 2026 PUBG MOBILE Global Open (PMGO) Western Europe Finals, scheduled for 11–13 September, with registration opening today, according to the announcement.

The companies are also launching an ambassador program for the region, naming German PUBG MOBILE content creator JanickaGaming as the Western Europe ambassador. PUBG MOBILE said she will stream PUBG MOBILE weekly and cover esports topics and tournaments alongside her existing social content.

“PUBG MOBILE has built something really special over the years. It’s one of the biggest games in the world and one of the most impressive esports ecosystems,” said Alban Dechelotte, CEO of G2.

Shaowei Chen, Head of Western Europe Publishing at PUBG MOBILE, added: “Western Europe represents one of the most promising growth frontiers for PUBG MOBILE esports, and G2 stands as a great strategic partner to drive this expansion.”

The post G2 partners with PUBG MOBILE Esports to scale Western Europe competition appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

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Gambling in the USA

Las Vegas Inflation Index: Cost of visiting Sin City for one night has more than doubled in the last 12 years

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    • An average spend for one night on the Las Vegas Strip now reaches nearly $670, compared to $319 in 2014.
    • Resort fees have seen a 194% rise in that period – the steepest increase of all.
    • Nevada’s live poker table count has fallen by 38% since 2011 – from 957 tables to 595 – while the number of active Strip poker rooms has halved.
    • Strip poker rooms are taking an average of $300 more per five-hour session compared to 2014.
    • With a $500 blackjack budget, you will bust nearly two hours quicker on average in 2026 compared to 2014.

    The average cost for a one-night stay in Las Vegas has risen by almost 109% in the last 12 years, as revealed by research from Ignition Casino.

    Based on the average cost of a basket of a typical visitor’s stay – hotel, food, drinks, entertainment and parking – guests are spending nearly $350 more per night in 2026 than they were in 2014.

    That basket includes the average minimum blackjack bet, a one-night hotel stay, resort fee, a domestic beer, bottle of water, dinner (entrée and drink), a show ticket and valet parking. All recorded prices are Strip averages in 2014 and 2026.

    The steepest single increase is resort fees: the add-ons charged on top of base room rates averaged $19.43 on the Strip in 2014 and have risen to $48.49 today – a 194.5% jump. Almost every other line item has at least doubled, with blackjack minimum bets up 124%, water up 133%, show tickets up 112% and valet parking going from free to $40.

     

    Feature (On Strip)

    2014

    2026

    % Increase

    Blackjack minimum bet

    $50.00

    $112.17

    +124.3%

    Average resort fee/night

    $19.43

    $48.49

    +194.5%

    Weekend one-night hotel stay

    $125.80

    $207.28

    +64.8%

    Domestic beer

    $6.00

    $10.00

    +66.7%

    Bottle of water

    $3.00

    $7.00

    +133.3%

    Dinner (entrée + drink)

    $32.00

    $67.00

    +109.4%

    Show ticket

    $82.86

    $175.91

    +112.3%

    Valet parking

    $0.00

    $40.00

    N/A

    TOTAL

    $319.09

    $667.85

    +109.3%

     

    But rising prices are only half the story. For poker players specifically, the cost of a Las Vegas trip has increased at the same time as the product itself has quietly contracted – fewer rooms, fewer tables, and higher costs per hand once you sit down.

    Fewer tables, higher rake: Las Vegas poker’s shrinkflation squeeze

    Las Vegas remains the live poker capital of the world – but the infrastructure supporting that reputation has been quietly hollowed out, and the players who remain are paying significantly more for a shrinking product.

    According to data compiled by UNLV’s Center for Gaming Research from Nevada Gaming Commission Quarterly Reports, the state’s live poker table count stood at 957 tables in 2011. By end-2025, that figure had fallen to 595 – a reduction of 38% over 14 years, with no return to pre-2016 levels in sight.

    The decline is structural and predates COVID. From 957 tables in 2011, Nevada’s count fell steadily to 587 by 2018 as casinos converted poker floor space to higher-margin baccarat. The pandemic accelerated the attrition – tables collapsed to just 413 in 2020 – and the recovery has been incomplete. Today’s total of 595 remains roughly 38% below its 2011 level.

    On the Strip specifically, the picture is even starker. From approximately 17 active poker rooms in the late 2000s, just eight remain today: Aria, Bellagio, Caesars Palace, Horseshoe, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand, The Venetian and Wynn. For Texas Hold’em and Omaha players, this consolidation means less table availability and less competition between rooms – and with fewer operators competing for players, there has been little pressure to keep rake in check.

    Metric

    2011

    2025/26

    Change

    Nevada poker tables (statewide)

    957

    595

    –38%

    Active Strip poker rooms

    ~17

    8

    –53%

    Average rake cap per hand

    $4

    $5–$7

    ↑ significantly

     

    Are Las Vegas poker rooms still good value amid rising costs?

    The rake compounds the shrinkflation picture. Of the eight active Strip rooms, Aria charges a rake of 10% of the pot up to a maximum cap of $7 per hand, Bellagio’s cap is $6, and the remaining rooms sit at $5. In 2014, the Strip average was 10% up to a $4 cap.

    Considering a fast dealer pushes out 30 raked hands per hour, an extra $2 in rake per hand – at rooms where the cap is reached – means an extra $60 per hour going to the house. Over a five-hour session, that is $300 less in players’ stacks compared to 2014.

    Factor in the broader 109.3% price hike across the average Las Vegas stay and there is a serious debate to be had over value for money. Players are paying more to stay, more to eat, more to park – and then paying more rake across fewer available tables once they sit down.

    The same squeeze is visible at the blackjack tables, where minimum bet increases have made a given budget go significantly less far than it did 12 years ago – offering a precise illustration of what the broader cost increases mean in practice.

    You will bust two hours earlier in Las Vegas today compared to 2014 with a $500 blackjack budget

    The blackjack minimum bet increase tells a sharp story about what rising costs mean in practice. Based on the average Strip minimum in 2014, a $500 budget would last approximately two hours and 22 minutes before a player would be expected to bust against the house. Taking into account the 124% increase in average minimum bet since then, that same $500 would now be expected to last just 28 minutes.

    This is calculated using a methodology applied by casino risk analysts and quantitative mathematicians, factoring in betting units, the standard deviation of blackjack (1.15, accounting for doubling down, splitting and natural blackjack payouts), and an average table speed of 70 hands per hour. Full methodology is set out in the appendix below.

    Las Vegas blackjack average time to bust (hr:min)

    Budget

    2014 (hr:min)

    2026 (hr:min)

    $100

    0:06

    N/A

    $200

    0:23

    0:04

    $300

    0:51

    0:10

    $500

    2:22

    0:28

    $1,000

    9:29

    1:53

     

    Shrinkflation is usually associated with a chocolate bar that got smaller without the price changing. In Las Vegas, the same principle has played out across an entire recreational economy — only here, the price went up too. Fewer poker rooms, higher rake, steeper minimum bets and a resort bill that has more than doubled: the product has contracted while the cost of accessing it has soared.

    Appendix: Blackjack time-to-bust methodology

    The following explains how estimated survival times for a given blackjack budget are calculated, using the $500 at a $50 table example (median survival: 2 hours 22 minutes in 2014).

    Step 1: Normalisation. Currency is standardised into Betting Units. $500 / $50 minimum bet = 10 units.

    Step 2: Volatility Index. Standard deviation is defined. A simple coin-flip game has a standard deviation of 1.0; blackjack, with doubling down, splitting and 3:2 naturals, carries an accepted standard deviation of 1.15.

    Step 3: Absorbing Barrier Formula. Median hands to bust is calculated as: n ≈ 1.66 × (betting units)².

    Step 4: Executing the calculation. For 10 units: 10² = 100 × 1.66 = 166 hands to bust.

    Step 5: Translating to casino time. 166 hands / 70 hands per hour = 2.37 hours = 2 hours and 22 minutes. The same formula applied to a $112.17 minimum bet ($500 / $112.17 = ~4.46 units; 4.46² × 1.66 = ~33 hands; 33 / 70 = 0.47 hours = approximately 28 minutes.

The post Las Vegas Inflation Index: Cost of visiting Sin City for one night has more than doubled in the last 12 years appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

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