2017 a good year for Italian sports betting operators

Figures from the Italian news agency Agimeg this week show that 2017 was another bumper year for Italian gambling, with sports betting operators enjoying buoyant business conditions that saw sports betting wagers alone rise to Euro 9.9 billion vs. Euro 7.5 billion in 2016, delivering FY revenue of Euro 1.34 billion – a 44.5 percent year-on-year increase.

In turnover terms, online services delivered around 56 percent of total Italian handle.

December was a particularly good month as stakes rose 287 percent thanks mainly to football and a lower rate of pay-outs for punters. FY online betting revenue was up 59.4 percent to Euro 555.6 million, with Euro 82 million December’s contribution.

Bet365 again dominated sports betting overall with a market share of 31.6 percent, chased by SKS365 and online sister Planetwin365 combined commanding 19.5 percent  and Snaitech ranked third with 6.9 percent of turnover.

Online casino vertical revenues in December soared over 25 percent y-o-y to Euro 56.4 million, boosting FY revenues 29.2 percent to Euro 567 million, with  Lottomatica leading the market on 9.7 percent, pursued by Sisal (8.5 percent) and PokerStars Casino (8.3 percent).

Online poker presented a gloomier picture in December, with tournament and cash game numbers faltering; tournament revenue fell 0.7 percent to Euro 8.1 million while cash games declined 7.4 percent to Euro 6 million.

That brought FY tournament revenue up 20 percent year-on-year to Euro 83.1 million, but cash games dipped 2 percent to Euro 69.7 million on a FY basis.

PokerStars dominated both cash games and tournament sectors with 44.8 percent and 68.6 percent of the market respectively, with Lottomatica the runner up on tournament (5.3 percent) and cash games (7.3 percent).

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