France online poker revenues down 13% in Q1
Poker continues to perform badly, but revenues up19% for sport and 5% for horserace betting
The French online poker market saw a 13% year-on-year decrease in gross gaming revenues during the first quarter of 2013, according to results released by regulatory body Autorité de regulation des jeux en ligne (ARJEL).
Operators recorded 72m in revenues during the quarter, down from 83m in Q1 2012. The amount staked in cash games dropped to 1.47bn, a 13% decrease from the 1.70bn recorded in the corresponding period last year.
However, sport betting fared considerably better, with licensees recording a 19% year-on-year increase in revenues for the quarter.
Operators took in 44m in Q1 2013, in comparison with 37m in Q1 2012, while the total amount staked on sport rose by 17%, with 240m wagered in Q1 2013, compared to 175m in the corresponding period last year. Amounts staked on football matches was up 15% year-on-year, which the regulator suggests is attributable in part to the success of the Paris Saint-Germain football club, which reached the UEFA Champions League quarter final.
The growth was achieved in spite of a series of restrictions imposed by ARJEL on matches eligible for betting markets, for handball and volleyball as well as football and basketball.
Meanwhile gross gaming revenue from horserace betting increased 5%, from 69m in the first quarter last year to 72m in Q1 2013.
The continued slump in poker’s performance correlates with figures published by ARJEL last month showing Italy’s egaming market generating 7% more revenue than that of France and outperforming the latter particularly in cash and tournament poker games.
In January, ARJEL president Jean-François Vilotte described the disappointing demand for online poker in France as “a matter of concern” and confirmed ARJEL is open to the possibility of pooling liquidity with other jurisdictions.
Nine poker licensees handed back their licences over the course of 2012, including 888 and TitanPoker, with the latter also surrendering its sports betting licence in the jurisdiction.