Entain ‘delighted’ with NZ online casino rights as it flags new growth market

Entain management has identified New Zealand’s licensed online casino market as a key growth driver for 2027 after Entain-linked entities secured three of the 15 rights to apply for licences in the country’s inaugural auction.

The company’s Q3 trading call last week was the first opportunity for global management to comment since the Department of Internal Affairs announced the auction outcome two days earlier. Asked about the result and the notable absence of some of Entain’s major rivals, chief financial officer Michael Snape was upbeat.

“We were delighted to get everything that we wanted in New Zealand and we feel incredibly confident about the opportunity there,” he said.

“It was surprising to us, the mix that came through on the licences, but I can’t say that we’re disappointed that that’s the competitor set that we now have. We’re really excited about that market.”

Entain-owned Playvia Gaming (NZ) Limited secured two rights, while TAB New Zealand secured one. The auction attracted 32 bidders and closed after 10 rounds at NZ$15 million per licence, with 11 entities successful. No entity can be granted more than three licences through the process, and each licence covers a single brand.

“We have a very strong relationship in New Zealand already because obviously we are the sole provider of sports betting through TAB New Zealand,” chief executive Stella David said. “So we feel very confident about the opportunity there and excited about the fact that we have three labels.”

David later cited “the opportunity of an entire new market with New Zealand”, alongside Spain, Canada and the UK, as reasons for confidence in online growth in 2027, despite it being a non-World Cup year. Snape said New Zealand, where Entain operates the TAB and Betcha brands, again delivered double-digit growth in Q3 despite sports results favouring customers.

In March, David estimated the New Zealand market at about £600 million. She said Entain’s business there could grow from less than £200 million to around £300 million over several years if it secured gaming licences.

The auction results secure only the right to apply. Full applications open this month and applicants must demonstrate they are suitable to hold a licence.

Asked whether the AUSTRAC civil proceedings in Australia could affect the New Zealand licensing process, David said only that the matter was “an ongoing process” with “no new news”. The case is scheduled for a Federal Court hearing from November 30, and Entain disputes significant allegations in the regulator’s claim. David says there was no update on those proceedings.

Entain’s 25-year partnership with TAB NZ began in 2023. Including the profit share, it guarantees more than NZ$1 billion to TAB NZ over the first five years.

On the one per cent quarterly revenue growth in Australia, Snape said that while it wasn’t as strong as earlier in the year, the result was nontheless pleasing.

“On Australia we’re still very happy with the performance in Australia I think we spoke to the fact that you’d see some slowdowns we were comping last year,” he said.

“We do believe that we’re gaining market share we think the team are executing really strongly on the ground and we expect to continue to gain market share in that market.”