FDJ United has seen year trading go down YoY, but its lottery division kept being the star of the show

French gambling giant FDJ United has seen year trading go down YoY, but its lottery division kept being the star of the show.

FY25 revenues came in at €3.68bn, which was down 3% compared to the previous year’s €3.78bn. Meanwhile, EBITDA dropped by 6% from €964m in FY24, for a total of €902m.

Declines were attributed to tax hikes across FDJ’s core markets, with tax costs going up by €50m YoY for a total corporate tax bill of €130m, all on the backdrop of €5.2bn in public levies generated from lottery contracts.

Defending the firm’s financial standings, Chairwoman and CEO Stéphane Pallez commented: “In 2025, FDJ United demonstrated the strength of its model and continued its transformation, in an environment affected by tax increases and tighter regulations on gaming.”

Compartmentalised into segments, the GGR from lottery and retail sports betting went up by 2% YoY for a total of €6.95bn (FY24: €6.76bn), while revenue climbed 1.4% to €2.54bn (FY2024: €2.50bn).

Going into lottery, draw games and instant products each contributed 3.4% growth to total lottery GGR. Online lottery remained the growth king, going up 8.1% for a total of €316m (FY24: €292m.) Digital now represents 15% of all total lottery sales, up 1% from 2024.

Meanwhile, retail sports betting was affected by negative performance, dropping 2.3% YoY to  €442m (FY24: €452m).

FDJ said that it expects revenue to go back to growth in 2026, with EBITDA reaching margins of around 24.5% – on the same level as FY25. Accounts are yet to stabilise post the Kindred acquisition in 2024.

Some upcoming headwinds have been highlighted, though, such as a minimum of €90m in additional incurred gambling taxes, with the Netherlands and France being some of the main culprits. The UK will soon join them.

Pallez concluded: “With a strengthened performance plan and a new organisation of our online betting and gaming business, the Group will continue to improve its operational efficiency to return to its profitable and sustainable growth path by 2026.”

https://lotterydaily.com/2026/02/19/retail/fdj-united-lottery/