Svenska Spel details ‘challenging’ Q1 due to pandemic issues

Svenska Spel has noted a ‘more challenging’ start to the year compared to expectations due to issues caused by the pandemic and more stringent responsibility measures
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Svenska Spel has noted a ‘more challenging’ start to the year compared to expectations due to issues caused by the pandemic and more stringent responsibility measures. 

Publishing its interim report for the first quarter of 2022, the operator of the Swedish National Lottery reported net gaming revenue of SEK 1.94bn (approx. £158m), a decrease of 3%. It detailed that two out of three business divisions experienced negative growth because of restrictions and new deposit limits imposed by Spelinkpektionen. 

The Tur lottery division saw net gaming revenues decrease by 6% compared with the same quarter last year, compounded by the fact that Easter, typically a busy business period, is not until Q2 of this year. 

However, the casino business division saw revenues increase by 77% due to the fact that casino halls were closed in Q1 of 2021. Despite this, casinos still had closures until February 9 which impacted its business operations. 

In total, Svenska Spel’s Operating profit of SEK 595m (approx. £48m), displayed a decrease of 0.4% year-on-year. Its operating margin stood at 31% but was compounded by the voluntary repayment of government support for short-term staff last year. 

“Our revenues and our results are affected by both the pandemic and our strengthened gaming responsibility measures,” commented Patrik Hofbauer, President and CEO of Svenska Spel.

“Despite challenges during the first quarter, I look forward with confidence to the rest of 2022. We continue to provide our customers with entertaining gaming experiences in a responsible way, as we want gaming to be a joy for everyone.” 

During Q1, the lottery distributed 62 million winnings in number games and lotteries to a total value of more than SEK 204m (approx. £16m). Additionally, the number of draws of the EuroJackpot was raised to two per week, with the jackpot rising from SEK900m to SEK 1.2bn (£97.5m) by the end of March.