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It’s been a rough year for ATG. The Swedish betting operator released its 2025 financial report yesterday, and frankly, the mood isn’t great. After years of dodging obstacles in a tricky market, the company finally hit a wall. It’s the classic “rock and a hard place” scenario: customers have less cash to spend because of the recession, and the government just decided to take a bigger slice of the pie.
The “Profit” Problem
Even while revenue is down around 2% to SEK 5.2 billion ($490 million), it doesn’t appear to be a disaster. Acceptable but not terrific. Further down the chart is the truly unsightly figure. Operating profit fell to SEK 1.5 billion ($141 million), a 15% decline. That’s a huge hit. It means that for every krona coming in, it is costing them a lot more to keep the lights on and the government happy. Their operating margin, which tells you how efficient a company is, slipped from 29% down to 26%.
The Taxman Came Knocking
We all anticipated this. Everyone in the gambling industry predicted that the 2024 increase in Sweden’s gambling tax from 18% to 22% would be damaging. We have the evidence now, though. On paper, that 4% increase might not seem like much, but in practice, it cost ATG $20 million, or SEK 216 million. Despite making less money from players than the previous year, the corporation nonetheless had to pay SEK 1.3 billion in taxes, a 7% increase. The formula is harsh: as revenue declines, expenses rise.
Slots are Out, Horses Stay
The report also gives us a fascinating look at how Swedes act when money gets tight. When the economy dips, people change how they gamble.
The biggest loser was the “Casino” section, which fell by 7%. That makes total sense. When you’re worried about your electric bill, sitting around playing online slots is the first luxury you cut. Sports betting also took a small hit, down 2%. But here is the interesting part: Horse Racing barely budged. It only dropped 1%. This tells us that while the casual “spin-and-win” players are fleeing, the hardcore racing fans are sticking around. ATG still has 1.4 million active customers, so the loyalty is there; they just have slightly lighter wallets right now.
Why This Matters for the Sport
This isn’t just about a corporate balance sheet. ATG is the financial lifeblood of Swedish horse racing. The two are tied at the hip. When ATG makes less profit, there is less money to go around. That means smaller payouts to the sport’s owners, less cash for maintaining tracks, and lower prize pools for races. Management was pretty blunt about this being a serious problem. If the betting side struggles, the sport itself starts to starve. Looking ahead to their next report in April, one thing is clear: the days of easy income are over. ATG is now playing defense, trying to protect its turf against a tax-hungry state and a recession that just won’t go away.
Source: ATG 2025 Financial Filing
