Irish bookmakers Paddy Power has seen pre-tax profits for 2007 rise 52 percent on 2006 to 75.8 million euros. Annual revenue also increased this time by 13 percent, passing the 2 billion euro barrier.
The rise in revenue has been attributed to the company’s expanding online business and a series of favourable sporting results.
2007 saw Paddy Power launch several new products such as a website in the Spanish language, casino games and financial “spread betting” allowing online punters to gamble on stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities.
Sporting results last year also favoured Paddy Power. Silver Birch was a 33-1 outsider that won the Grand National. The Rugby World Cup also produced some surprising results. Paddy Power’s chairman Fintan Drury said, “An unprecedented set of bookmaker-friendly results in the first half of the year was followed by ‘glorious Goodwood’ a ‘lovely Listowel’ and a riotous World Cup (Ireland out in the group stages, New Zealand out in the quarter-finals and England in the final – 1,440/1 available pre-tournament… if you saw that coming you’re a genius.”
Profits were divided almost 50-50 between betting shops and the online business, with the retail business remaining in a strong position with 18 new shops added in Ireland last year.
The company has plans to expand its number of shops even further. It is to open betting shops in Manchester and Glasgow and plans to expand its number of UK shops from 58 (which are all currently in the London area) to around 120.
It wasn’t all good news for the Irish firm though. It is closing down its 3 year-old website for the German market on St Patrick’s Day - 17th March because of the new German law banning Internet gambling.
Chief executive, Patrick Kennedy commenting on Paddy Power’s novelty bets said, “My favourite novelty market of 2007 was on the next high-profile American to get arrested; Al Gore was rated a 14/1 outsider, but was backed by over 50 shrewdies. Problem was we had neglected to specify which Al Gore we had in mind, and the former US vice president’s son – Al Gore III – duly obliged, being arrested the next day on drugs charges. Needless to say, we paid out.”
Fintan Drury also said the company suffered its biggest ever payout last year when Irish golfer Padraig Harrington won the British Open Championship in July. This however, did little to dampen Paddy Power’s profits growth.
