Sports betting operator SKS365 Group surged to second place in Italy’s regulated online sports betting market in April.
Figures compiled by Italian gaming news agency Agimeg.it showed overall land-based and online sports betting handle in Italy’s regulated market topping the €1b mark in April, of which nearly €542m was wagered online.
April’s overall handle was nearly 63% higher than the same month last year. Italian-licensed sports betting operators reported revenue of €149.5m, more than twice the sum generated in April 2016. Online betting revenue was up over 93% to €56.6m.
As ever, Bet365‘s Italian site dominated the online sports betting chart with a 29.4% share, but it was April’s runner-up that made the biggest impression. The local operations of Austria’s SKS365 Group leaped into second place with an 11% share, dethroning perpetual number two Eurobet, part of the Ladbrokes Coral family, which sank to third with an 8.9% share.
SKS also scored a respectable third place in the land-based betting category with a 13.4% share, behind chart-topper SNAI (16.8%) and Eurobet (14.1%). SKS’ combined sports betting handle of €121.2m ranked it second only to Bet365’s €159.5m on the overall betting chart, eclipsing Eurobet (€113m), SNAI (€111.4m) and Sisal (€85.6m).
The online casino vertical reported revenue of €45.2m in April, up nearly one-third year-on-year. Lottomatica earned top marks with a nearly 10% share, relegating Sisal (8.54%) to second, with Amaya Gaming’s PokerStars brand (7.3%) holding on to third place. In case you were wondering, SKS365 ranked ninth with 3.18%.
Online poker cash games continued their protracted decline in April, with revenue falling nearly 10% year-on-year to €5.6m, of which 45.5% was spent on PokerStars.it, while Lottomatica was a distant runner-up with a 7% share.
On a more positive front, April’s online poker tournament fees continued to improve, rising 11% to €6.6m, over two-thirds of which took place on PokerStars.
