CIRSA to expand international horizons as home units return to growth

Grupo CIRSA has confirmed this week that it will revise its international growth strategy as a result of Spanish home units outperforming their pre-pandemic results.

Strong Q3 trading saw the Blackstone-owned Spanish gambling group achieve corporate revenues of €466m (+40%) as period trading benefited from strong activity registered by its casinos and ‘back-to-business’ recovery of its UNIDESA B2B unit, which distributes slots for Spanish hospitality venues.

Improved home market results yielded a period operating income of €148m (+46%) as the group declared a full unit recovery, outperforming pre-pandemic 2019 results by +24%.

Year-to-date, the group’s operating income stands at €1.24bn, as CIRSA declared a YTD EBITDA of €379m.

Strong Q3 trading has prompted the firm to deliver an ‘upward guidance’ on its full-year operating income by approximately €12m.

“This improvement responds to the good implementation of the operating plans by the different business units in an environment of macroeconomic and geopolitical adversity,” the trading statement read.

Moving forward, CIRSA underlined strong prospects for its Casino unit to expand internationally, in which the company will soon launch its third Moroccan facility in Tangiers.

CIRSA provided a strengthened year-end outlook, in which it anticipates the full recovery of its Italian VLT and Bingo business.

Further International developments saw CIRSA’s flagship Sportium sportsbook brand enter the Italian online gambling market by acquiring a 66% stake in E-Play24.

Q4 trading, meanwhile, saw CIRSA announce that it had completed a fixed senior notes offering to raise funds of €425m.