UK-based sports betting and gambling company Ladbrokes Coral released its financial results for H1 of 2017 and reported it is on course to achieve its target for the year. The positive results were released just days after the company announced Kristof Fahy has decided to step down from his position as Chief Customer Officer.
The results the company posted indicate that Ladbrokes Coral Group was 1% ahead in net revenue for the period between January 1 and June 30, 2017. The Group has determined that its operating profits should range between £153.3 million and £158.3 million which corresponds to a 4% to 7% increase from last year’s results for the same period.
During the opening six months of the year, the Group’s digital net revenue increased by 17% across the company’s multi-channel platform. The sports betting sector accounted for a 25% growth, with a 23% increase in sports stakes. Ladbrokes Coral saw an increase of 11% in its net gaming revenue for the first six months of the year. The Group attributed its strong performance during H1 of 2017 to the successful integration of its digital brands in the UK to a unified platform as well as to the consolidation of its head office team.
Despite the satisfactory performance across its digital brands, Ladbrokes Coral reported a slump in retail revenue for H1 of 2017. For the first six months of the year, the Group’s retail net revenue in the United Kingdom plummeted down with 6%, with a 7% drop in stakes.
The Group attributed this decrease in retail net revenue to a succession of predictable results of important Premier League matches. The reduction in the revenue from Ladbrokes Coral’s high-street outlets can also be attributed to the stiff competition the company faces from online sportsbooks.
The strong digital performance during the opening six months of the year resulted in Ladbrokes Coral boosting its synergy guidance from £100 million to £150 million. According to the Group’s governance, this increase in synergy guidance can be attributed to cost reductions through procurement as well as to the synchronisation of the horse racing gross win margins in Ladbrokes Coral’s retail brands across the UK.
This week was certainly not lacking in important events for Ladbrokes Coral as the company also announced its Chief Customer Officer Kristof Fahy was to depart from his position. Fahy has been working with the Group since 2015 but assumed the role of Chief Customer Officer nine months ago.
According to a statement Ladbrokes Coral released earlier this week, Fahy opted to part ways with the Group because of his intention to seek new business opportunities. Representatives of the Ladbrokes Coral governance also confirmed that their Chief Customer Officer is to officially step down from his position in September. At the present moment, the company has no intentions of looking for a replacement.
Fahy was assigned to this position in November 2016 when the Group was going through a turbulent period and needed to revamp its digital products to stay in competition with rival gaming operators. He was also tasked with overseeing the restructuring of the Group’s assets and marketing divisions following the merger of Ladbrokes with rival betting operator Coral.
Fahy is somewhat of a veteran in the marketing industry as he had previously occupied the position of Chief Marketing Officer at the Telegraph Media Group and William Hill. This week also saw another experienced and loyal employee parting ways with Ladbrokes Coral. The Group announced that Roger Tull, who leads the Ladbrokes sports department, is to retire from his position after 46 years of service.
- Author
Daniel Williams
