Sun International shooting for the stars with H1 performance
Sun International’s Chief Executive Officer, Ulrik Bengtsson, expressed his confidence in the company’s strategy as the company continues to increase its presence in the iGaming sector. Despite the setbacks encountered in the traditional land-based markets, the giant in both the world of gaming and hospitality was able to increase its revenue during the first half of the year 2025, largely due to the exponential increase in the company’s online operations.
The group revealed that its revenue in the six months ended on 30 June was ZAR6.19 billion ($353 million). The result outperformed the prior-year corresponding period’s reported figure of ZAR6 billion ($342.7 million) by just 3%, thus proving resilience and flexibility in the face of changes in the market. Ulrik Bengtsson emphasised that the online constituent, Sunbet, was the main driver of this expansion, with the revenue growing by a whopping 70% year-on-year.
Sun International’s online success
Emphasising the importance of the online component, Bengtsson added, “Sunbet continues to perform strongly, being one of the prominent players in a rapidly growing market.” He also indicated that the strategy of the company is the development of Sunbet as the top online gambling operator in South Africa, something that may include strategic acquisitions and mergers as part of expanding at the fastest possible rate and expanding geography.
Building on the success of Sunbet, the company is eager to leverage its resources to enhance its offerings further. “Our key differentiator is our ability to enhance our offerings through the resources of the group. Our goal remains to establish Sunbet as the leading and most trusted online gaming operator in southern Africa.
“We remain open to selective acquisitions in online gaming to enhance scale, geographic diversification, and access to technology,” Bengtsson explained. The company remains open to selective acquisitions in the field of online gaming, with the aim of growing in scale, diversifying geographically, and acquiring new technology.
A detailed examination of online market growth
The online slot market experienced a significant revenue increase of 70%, reaching ZAR871 million ($49.8 million) compared to the prior-year figure of ZAR512 million ($685,454). Such expansion didn’t only apply to slots, as all product areas indicated rises compared with the prior year. Total iGaming deposits saw an increase of 105%, and new first-depositors grew by 44%. Additionally, the number of new unique active players who engaged with Sunbet in the period from the beginning of the year saw an increase of 71%, indicating improved user engagement.
“Investment is being directed toward casino floor optimisation, service enhancements and product innovation as well as improved marketing to better convert footfall,” Sun International specified. The group is seriously rethinking how it handles the land-based portfolio, with the goal of building long-term stability in the face of pressures facing physical casinos.
Ground level challenges and strategic adjustments
Although the Internet segment continued to thrive, the urban casino segment experienced a modest decline in revenue, falling 1% to ZAR 3.24 billion ($185 million). The decline reflects the intensifying pressures within the land-based business, and Sun International is reviewing its strategy consequently. The company is steering investments toward refining casino floors, improving services, launching new products, and enhancing marketing efforts to acquire and retain customers.
“This, in combination with a sharpened focus on customer acquisition and retention strategies, is expected to support income in the medium term,” the company added. These efforts aim to increase revenue stability, stimulate medium-term growth, and offset the decline in core gaming with the new online market.
Growth in resorts, hotels, and gaming machines
In addition to its primary gaming operations, Sun International’s resorts and hotels segment recorded a modest increase, with revenue rising by 4% to ZAR1.32 billion ($75 million). The Sun Slots division, responsible for the management of physical slot machine operations, experienced a slight growth of 2%, culminating in revenue of ZAR701 million ($40 million). Activities in Chile, various regions of Africa excluding South Africa, and the ongoing renovations at the Table Bay Hotel generated ZAR60 million in revenue.
Profitability and financial position
Notwithstanding the revenue growth, the escalation of operational costs—especially in relation to staffing, levies, and VAT—led to a 6% decrease in operating profit, which amounted to ZAR1.12 billion ($64 million). Nevertheless, the company’s financial resilience was manifest, as pre-tax profit experienced a 26% increase to ZAR1.06 billion ($61 million), culminating in a total of ZAR804 million ($46 million) after tax from continuing operations, which represented a rise of 37%.
Discontinued operations, on the other hand, portrayed the opposite. In the year 2024, the operations delivered ZAR343 million ($20 million) in profit, but in H1 2025, they brought just ZAR8 million ($456,970). Including fair value changes in listed shares, tax, and foreign currency translation effects, the period’s net profit came in at ZAR748 million, being 15% below the prior-year same period.
Sun International’s growth and controlled expansion
Ulrik Bengtsson is optimistic about Sun International’s prospects, emphasising its diversified portfolio and the upcoming opportunities. “Sun is a business with a diversified portfolio that has clear and distinct opportunities to drive growth,” he added. The company is committed to sustainable growth through the ongoing optimisation of urban casinos, capitalising on the solid momentum generated by the digital conversion via Sunbet, and selective expansion in Sun Slots and other strategic areas.
The company will keep investing in upgrading its infrastructure and casino offering, as well as investigating opportunities in regulated African countries for Sunbet. Through disciplined application of capital allocation, Sun International seeks to reconcile returns to local investors with investing in opportunities that create long-term value.
“We remain focused on driving growth in free cash flow while maintaining a disciplined approach to capital allocation. This approach is central to maximising value and aims to achieve the correct balance between returns to shareholders, investment in the business, and value accretive M&A,” Bengtsson concluded. Since Sun International is aiming high for grand achievements, its strategic priorities in enhancing its online presence and its land-based operations are destined to catapult the company into an even more promising future in the maturing gambling industry.
