FDJ UNITED H1 2025: Kindred lifts European ambitions
FDJ UNITED, formerly known as Française des Jeux, has released its first-half 2025 results, which came in as expected, as the French gaming and lottery group continues to adapt to regulatory changes and push forward with its European expansion. With revenue reaching €1.867 billion, a 31% increase on a reported basis but down 2% when restated for scope, the company is pushing forward with its “바카라 Forward 2028” strategy, maintaining guidance for the whole year.
Chairwoman and CEO Stéphane Pallez (pictured above) commented: “2025 stands as a transition year for FDJ UNITED, with the integration of Kindred well on track. In this context, our first-half performance is in line with the expected full-year trajectory,” she said.
Domestic growth but international headwinds
FDJ UNITED’s French operations continued to deliver solid growth, with the French lottery and retail sports betting unit seeing revenues climb to €1.29 billion, up 3.6% on a comparable basis. Lottery revenue rose 5.8% to €1.065 billion, with digital sales jumping 15.8% to €160 million, supported by a strong online base of over 6 million active players.
“This performance can be attributed to the whole range of games and all distribution channels, with retail revenue up +4.1% and iLottery revenue up +15.8% to €160 million,” the company noted. Draw games were particularly successful, with 17 Euromillions draws exceeding €75 million jackpots and four above €250 million.
However, sports betting revenue at physical points of sale declined by 6.2% to €225 million, which the company attributed to “unfavourable sports results for the operator, despite a +3.6% increase in bets, boosted by an attractive football offering”.
The international outlook was less buoyant. Online betting and gaming revenue dropped by 11.5% to €466 million, hit by higher taxes and new regulatory constraints in key markets like the Netherlands and the UK. “Despite a significant increase in the number of active players, half-year revenue fell, respectively by -43.5% in the Netherlands and -24.1% in the United Kingdom,” FDJ UNITED explained. Adjusted for these markets, however, the rest of the portfolio posted a modest 4.5% increase.
Recurring EBITDA across the Group came to €441 million, down 9.5% compared to the restated 2024 figure, representing a margin of 23.6%. This would have been 24.4% excluding the €14 million cost of the newly introduced employee share ownership plan.
Regulatory and tax challenges loom
The outlook for 2025 is cautiously optimistic, even as regulatory headwinds continue to build. In France, tax rates on gaming products were raised across the board starting in July.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands has tightened its rules too, with monthly deposit limits, more frequent user warnings, and an increase in the online gaming tax to 34.2% of GGR.
These changes have weighed on profits. FDJ UNITED’s consolidated net income dropped to €136 million, down from €213 million in the first half of 2024. Adjusted net income stood at €222 million, a 5.4% decrease, reflecting acquisition financing costs and a one-off tax on large French companies.
Share ownership plan and corporate reinvention
The Group’s recently launched employee share scheme proved a highlight of the period. “Taken up by more than half of employees and largely oversubscribed,” the plan increased staff ownership to 4.6% of capital. According to Pallez, this programme was a reflection of the Group’s “long tradition of sharing FDJ UNITED’s value creation with all stakeholders”.
To formalise its transformation into a pan-European operator, FDJ officially rebranded as FDJ UNITED in March. “This is a new chapter in the history of the Group – more international and more digital,” the company said, referencing its integration of Kindred, PLI, and ZEturf in the past two years.
