Sweden's leading betting operator, ATG, has revealed a sharp decline in profitability for the first half of 2025, with the company directly blaming a tougher
Sweden’s leading betting operator, ATG, has revealed a sharp decline in profitability for the first half of 2025, with the company directly blaming a tougher domestic tax regime and weaker consumer spending.
For the six months ending 30 June, the company’s net profit plummeted by 22% to 650 million SEK (approx. €57m). Net gaming revenue also decreased by 5% to 2.57 billion SEK (approx. €226m). ATG explained that the government’s decision to raise the gambling tax rate from 18% to 22% in July 2024 has had a material impact, adding 105 million SEK to its costs in the first half of this year alone. The company also noted that the “recession and high household costs… negatively affect the leisure wallet which in turn affects spending on gambling.”
A breakdown of the results shows a mixed performance across ATG’s main product verticals. The company’s core horse betting segment, its traditional area of strength, saw revenues fall by 5% to 1.87 billion SEK. The casino vertical experienced an even sharper decline, with revenues dropping by 13% to 304 million SEK, a result the company partly attributed to several large jackpot payouts at the start of the year.
The one area of growth was sports betting, where revenues increased by a modest 3% to 393 million SEK. Despite the challenging period, ATG stated that it remains the largest single gambling company in the Swedish licensed market for sports betting.
In response to the declining profitability, ATG’s leadership has committed to a renewed focus on efficiency. “ATG has had an extra strong cost focus since autumn 2022 when it became clear that tougher times for household wallets were expected,” said CEO Hasse Lord Skarplöth.
He confirmed that this focus will now intensify. “Since growth has been absent during the first half of 2025, ATG will further review costs to ensure good profitability going forward,” he warned.
The difficult financial results come during a period of profound structural change for the former state monopoly. In a historic move, the Swedish state announced in April that it would give up its majority on the company’s board for the first time since ATG’s formation in 1974. A new, independent-led board was elected in May.
While navigating the tough domestic market, the company is also looking for growth abroad, having launched a new joint venture in Finland in June ahead of that country’s expected market deregulation. However, the first half was also marked by a 20 million SEK cost from losing a trademark dispute in court. The new board will now be tasked with steering the company through this challenging period of high taxes and economic uncertainty.
