Betsson warns on profit as B2B revenue collapses in Q1
- Betsson AB has issued a Q1 2026 profit warning, projecting revenue of €285m, down 3% year-on-year.
- EBIT is forecast to fall 47% to €34m as B2B licence revenue drops 43% to €51m, driven by a single unnamed customer.
- Shares fell nearly 20% on 9 April; early Q2 daily revenue is tracking 9% ahead of the same period in 2025.
Betsson AB has issued a preliminary profit warning for Q1 2026, with operating income forecast to fall nearly half as its B2B licensing segment suffers a second consecutive quarter of heavy losses linked to a single unnamed customer.
Revenue for the quarter is expected to reach €285m, down from €294m in Q1 2025. EBIT is projected at €34m, against €64m a year earlier, a 47% decline. The announcement sent shares down more than 20% intraday on the Nasdaq Stockholm exchange, with the stock closing at SEK90.10, a fall of 14.4%.
B2B customer causes revenue plunge
The most significant drag on the quarter was a 43% collapse in B2B licence revenue, which fell to €51m from €90m. The B2B segment’s share of group revenue dropped from 31% to 18% in a single quarter. Betsson attributed the decline to lower revenue at one B2B customer, which it did not name.
Industry analysts have previously linked the underperforming partner to Realm Entertainment, which operates in Turkey’s unregulated gambling market under brands including Bets10 and Casino Metropol.
Turkey’s crackdown on illegal gambling has weighed on Betsson’s results across consecutive quarters, with B2B revenue already down 13% in Q4 2025 before accelerating to the current 43% decline. Betsson has not confirmed this attribution.
The Q1 warning follows a near-identical episode in January, when preliminary Q4 2025 results triggered a 21% single-day share price drop.
Pontus Lindwall, President and CEO of Betsson AB, commented on the performance of the company’s B2C vertical:
“Our B2C business continues to perform well overall with good growth and significant contribution to operating income.
“Nevertheless, we are investing in several B2C markets that are not yet profitable, negatively affecting total EBIT by approximately 10–15 million euro on a quarterly basis. We still believe that these markets have potential to become profitable but continuously monitor and evaluate their performance and prospects.”
On the B2B side, Lindwall noted:
“Our B2B business, on the other hand, continues to be weighed down by lower revenue at one of our customers.
“However, since the start of December, this B2B customer has seen a stabilisation in average activity levels. In the slightly longer term, I am excited about growing our B2B revenue with existing and new partners, as we continue to follow our strategy to generate shareholder value over time.”
Record regulation, record cost
The share of revenue generated from locally regulated markets reached 73%, the highest ever recorded by Betsson in a single quarter. Gaming taxes rose to €53m from €45m, and the gross margin fell to 57.6% from 64.0%.
The regional breakdown was mixed. CEECA (Central & Eastern Europe & Central Asia), Betsson’s largest region and the area most exposed to B2B revenue, declined to €96m from €122m. The Nordics fell to €31m from €38m. Western Europe grew to €61m from €56m.
Latin America was the clear outperformer. Revenue in the region rose to €93m from €75m, reflecting continued B2C expansion.
Betsson extended its regional footprint in March with the acquisition of Rhino Entertainment’s Canadian business for €64.5m.
Sportsbook revenue held flat at €80m on an improved margin of 8.4%, up from 8.0% in Q1 2025. Casino revenue dipped to €204m from €212m.
Early Q2 recovery
Average daily revenue through to 8 April was 9% higher than the full Q2 2025 average. The sportsbook margin during the same period has exceeded the rolling average of the past eight quarters.
Betsson will publish its full Q1 2026 interim report on 24 April.
With two consecutive quarters of B2B-driven earnings shocks, investors will be watching the April report closely for any indication that Betsson is reducing its dependence on a single licensing partner.
The pace of recovery in CEECA, the sustainability of Latin America’s growth trajectory and any movement on new B2B signings will be central to restoring confidence in the group’s margin outlook for the rest of 2026.
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