The gambling company evoke Plc has seen its strongest quarter of the year, with revenue reaching £464 million ($635 million) but the CEO highlights disappointment in the UK Budget which he says dealt a ‘significant blow to both evoke and the wider regulated industry.’
It was in November when the UK government announced several changes to gambling taxes, including an increase in remote gaming duty which is to rise from 21 to 40 percent, beginning in April 2026.
A creation of a new 25% general betting duty for online gambling has been created too, but this won’t come to fruition until April 2027. When this was announced, several gambling companies made their feelings known, including Flutter which acknowledged the “very significant impact on the overall market.”
Evoke (#EVOK) with a surprisingly positive update for their fourth quarter. Revenues of £464m up 7 QoQ, driven performance in Italy and Denmark.
For the full year 2025, revenue is expected to be around £1,786 million, a 2% increase year-over-year.
Adjusted EBITDA projected… pic.twitter.com/NboZvy9lvH
— Jordan (@jzrdan) January 27, 2026
Speaking on the latest quarter, Per Widerström, CEO of evoke, commented: “During Q4 we made good progress against our strategic plans, delivering our best quarter of the year and demonstrating the underlying momentum in the business.
“Our focus on core markets continued to drive our profitable growth, with Italy and Denmark both delivering record quarterly revenues in Q4. This positive momentum has continued into 2026 with a strong start to the year with good growth across all divisions.”
Evoke Q4 analysisEven with some encouraging figures, the business still ended up 3 percent lower than last year. Full-year revenue landed at £1.78 billion, which missed analysts’ expectations of £1.84 billion. The company also nudged down its adjusted pre-tax profit forecast to £355 million–£360 million, below its earlier guidance of £362 million, a sign it didn’t quite hit its own targets. Unsurprisingly, the market wasn’t impressed. When the update dropped, the shares fell by as much as 10%, showing clear investor disappointment.
Evoke sees revenue in Q4 reaching £464M
The company’s revenue in Q4 was up 7% quarter-over-quarter, but down 3% year-over-year which is said to be the result of the strong comparative period with operator friendly sporting results in the prior year.
The CEO continued to explain about the Budget: “While the strong strategic and financial progress we made throughout 2025 was encouraging, we were very disappointed with the outcome of the UK Budget in November that dealt a significant blow to both evoke and the wider regulated industry.
“We continue to believe these tax increases will negatively impact the industry’s economic contribution, customer protection, and will ultimately serve to support further growth in the illegal black market. As a result of these significant UK tax increases, the Board is assessing its strategic options, with a resolute focus on maximising shareholder value.”
The company is said to have moved quickly and decisively to execute on mitigation plans including the closure of retails stores that are no longer sustainable, as well as broader cost savings.
Featured Image: Via evoke Plc news page
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