Flutter grew its revenue by 29% on a pro-forma basis in the first quarter, driven by a near doubling in its fast growing US unit and a sharp recovery in Britain and Ireland, the world's largest online betting company said.
Led by its Fanduel brand, Flutter maintained its leading 50% share of the US sports betting market after revenue jumped 92% year-on-year on a constant currency basis.
The Paddy Power, Betfair and Sky Bet owner also expanded its revenue by 17% and average monthly players by 11% in Britain and Ireland (UKI).
It said this reflected the reshaping of its second-largest division to draw more recreational gamblers.
UKI revenue had fallen sharply in the same period last year, partly due to the impact of measures to curb gambling addiction.
Chief executive Peter Jackson put about half the growth down to product improvements and said competitors belatedly adopting safer gambling measures may also have helped Flutter outperform the market, which he estimated was flat year-on-year.
"I said back in March I felt like we had our mojo back and you can see why I was talking about the (UKI) business so positively," Jackson told an analyst call.
Last week Flutter said new UK government plans to fight problem gambling would cost about £50-100m in lost revenue from 2024.
This is on top of the £150m already forgone due to existing measures.
The latest hit will come from a combination of new stake limits on online slot gaming products, a statutory levy on betting firms and the impact of increased affordability checks, depending on the final proposal details, Flutter said.
Revenue also rose 69% on a constant currency basis in its international division, where Flutter said the recently acquired Italian gaming operator Sisal performed exceptionally well. Revenue fell 4% in Australia.
Flutter said it is firmly on track this year to become the first US operator to turn a profit following the lifting in 2018 of a nationwide ban on sports betting.
The US business made an investment-driven loss of $313m last year.
The Dublin-based firm forecast in November that Fanduel's revenue would jump to around $15 billion over the long term - twice Flutter's entire revenue last year.
Last week the company received overwhelming support among its shareholders for the addition of a Flutter US listing.
"The strategic and capital markets benefits this will bring to Flutter will position the group well for its
next phase of growth," the company said today.
Flutter remains committed to being run from Ireland, its outgoing chairman told its AGM last week.
However, Gary McGann said he could not guarantee that Flutter will maintain its secondary listing on Euronext Dublin, even though it wants to.
Peter Jackson, Flutter's chief executive, said the combination of the FanDuel Advantage and the Flutter Edge drove further market share gains in the US.
"We added over 1.5 million customers in the quarter and we remain the clear market leader. Our US sports betting handle of $10.9 billion represented almost 60% of the Group's total sportsbook stakes," Mr Jackson said in today's trading update.
He said the company continued to take share across its UK & Ireland and International businesses while in Australia it did an "excellent job" defending its leadership position.
"We remain delighted with the progress of Sisal since the acquisition in August 2022," he added.
Mr Jackson said the publication of the White Paper in the UK on gambling has vindicated the proactive actions the compant has taken to further embed safer gambling across the organisation through its Play Well strategy.
"The changes will bring consistency to safer gambling protections for customers and make responsible play a priority across all operators, which we strongly support," he said.
Shares in the company were lower in Dublin trade today. The company's shares are up 37% this year.
