Evoke Q2 2025 earnings up 5% despite UK betting slowdown
Evoke, the parent company behind major betting brands like William Hill, 888, and Mr Green, has reported a strong uptick in profitability for the first half of 2025, despite facing headwinds in its UK and Ireland online sports betting operations, partly due to tightening regulatory controls.
The London-listed company published its H1 2025 post-close trading update on Tuesday, revealing a 5% year-over-year rise in Group revenue for Q2, with Adjusted EBITDA for the half-year projected between £163m and £167m, a 43% increase at the mid-point compared to last year.
“Q2 2025 marked our second strongest quarterly revenue performance since the beginning of 2023,” said Per Widerström, CEO of Evoke (pictured above). “A particularly encouraging result given the tough comparator from lapping the Euros.”
However, the overall growth masks divergent trends within the business, as online sports betting in the UK and Ireland came under pressure. Stricter gambling regulations, including more intensive identity verification and mandatory vulnerability checks for high-spending users, have begun to weigh on revenue.
Retail rebounds while online sports hit turbulence
Evoke attributed its Q2 revenue growth to strong performance in its international online markets and a rebound in retail, helped by the successful rollout of 5,000 new gaming machines across its venues, completed in March 2025.
“Retail is returning to growth in Q2,” the company noted, alongside “continued strength in International Core Markets.”
Gaming revenue saw double-digit growth across both Q2 and H1, offsetting declines in sports betting, which faced a “tougher prior year comparative with the Euros taking place last year, as well as stronger prior year win margin.”
Online revenue rose approximately 6%, and overall H1 revenue growth stood at 3%. The company said this was achieved while maintaining “robust cost control – underpinned by an increasingly efficient operating model – and improved marketing returns.”
“Importantly, this growth was also delivered profitably, in line with our focus on sustainable profitable growth,” Widerström emphasised.
Strategy delivers results despite regulatory clouds
Evoke’s leadership remains confident in its strategy for full-year 2025. The board reaffirmed its guidance of 5–9% revenue growth and an Adjusted EBITDA margin of at least 20%.
“Alongside the improved Q2 performance, we continue to transform the Group’s capabilities for the mid- and long-term,” Widerström said. “We are strengthening our competitive advantages and better aligning our leading brands and products to a clearer customer value proposition.”
He added that Evoke’s “disciplined strategy with clear focus on our Core Markets and driving operational excellence is delivering improved profitability and enabling further deleveraging.”
Indeed, the company said last twelve months’ Adjusted EBITDA now exceeds £360 million, marking “significant year-over-year growth” and contributing to “another period of strong deleveraging.”
Yet the regulatory climate in key markets, particularly the UK, could continue to impact the sports betting segment.
“The anticipated growth in the second half is supported by product delivery, improved marketing returns, and further cost savings,” the company noted.
