Evolution has launched of a new studio in Brazil as the online casino provider looks to capitalise on the regulated market, which went live earlier this year.

The new studio was announced alongside the provider’s financial results for the second quarter, where a net revenue increase was achieved compared to the same period last year. However, profit for the period was down almost 10% year-over-year.

Brazil studio launch

Alongside a studio launch in the Philippines during the quarter, its first-ever live casino studio in Asia, operations have also been launched in Sao Paulo for the Brazilian iGaming market.

Reflecting on the two studio launches, Evolution CEO Martin Carlesund believes it will help to accelerate performance improvements in both regions moving forward.

Carlesund stated: “In June, we launched our first ever Asian studio – in the Philippines. It is a state-of-the-art studio that marks a significant milestone in Evolution’s expansion. The Philippine Online Gaming market is very exciting, and it is the first licensed iGaming jurisdiction in Asia. 

“The new Brazilian studio is also a state-of-the-art studio, a bit larger, and is aimed at serving a growing Brazilian market. It is a perfectly timed launch considering Brazil’s transition to regulation earlier this year. These two new studios symbolise our constant strive for growth, and we warmly welcome them into the Evolution studio network.”

Optimism despite slight Q2 dip

While Carlesund noted that he wasn’t satisfied with the performance of Evolution in the first half of the year, he is happy with how the company is addressing the challenges that it is currently facing.

Net revenue for Q2 rose by 3.1% YoY to €524.3m (Q2 2024: €508.4m), but EBITDA stayed relatively consistent at €345.3m (Q2 2024: €345.8m) with a margin of 65.9% (Q2 2024: 68%) and profit for the period was down 7.7% to €248.3m (Q2 2024: €269.1m). Earnings per share amounted to €1.22 (Q2 2024: €1.28).

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the quarter amounted to €505.3m (Q2 2024: €688.7m)

For the first half of 2025, net revenue increased by 3.5% YoY to €1.05bn (H1 2024: €1.01bn), EBITDA dipped slightly to €687.2m (H1 2024: €691.6m) with a margin of 65.8% (H1 2024: 68.5%) and profit for the period was €503m (H1 2024: €538.3m). Earnings per share amounted to €2.46 (H1 2024: €2.55).

In Q2, revenue per vertical, live casino revenue rose to €453.7m (Q2 2024: €438.1m) while RNG games revenue stayed relatively consistent at €70.6m (Q2 2024: €70.3m). Evolution attributed the live casino growth to “increased commission income from existing customers and, to a certain extent, from new customers”.

The provider added that demand for online casino games is growing as well as new games continue to be released, as well as variations of traditional titles.

Revenue per region for online casino, Europe was down to €180.2m (Q2 2024: €191.3m), Asia rose to €209.1m (Q2 2024: €200.7m), North America increased to €74m (Q2 2024: €60.2m), Latin America stayed consistent at €37.6m (Q2 2024: €36.6m) and other was €23.4m (Q2 2024: €19.6m). 

Net revenue from regulated markets was €231.9m (Q2 2024: €199.4m), as Carlesund noted Q2 was more in line with expectations due to cybercrime and video stream hijacking challenges in Asia and proactive measures being taken regarding ring-fencing in Europe.

The CEO stated: “To be clear though, we are not satisfied with this quarter’s growth, and we are working hard to increase the pace. However, operationally speaking we are where we set out to be at the beginning of the year.”

Outlook

Post Q2, Evolution announced that it has entered the US state of Rhode Island with its online slot titles, in addition to signing an agreement with Hasbro to be their exclusive online live casino and slot games licensing partner for iconic brands such as Monopoly, with Monopoly Live set to launch in the US.

Despite the performance in Q2, Carlesund and Evolution are optimistic that the second half of 2025 will be stronger, and as a result, the company is keeping its full-year estimate of an EBITDA margin of 66% to 68%.

“I am not satisfied with the financial development during the first half of 2025, but I am very satisfied with how we are addressing our challenges,” noted Carlesund. 

“We take action, continue to make Evolution stronger every day, continue a worldwide expansion at the same time that we systematically and methodically handle each challenge.”

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