Allwyn CEO Robert Chvátal has backed recent hire Phil Walker as the “right leader” for the company’s UK business, amid criticism from politicians over his past at William Hill.
During Allwyn’s post-Q2 earnings call on Thursday Chvátal said Walker was well placed to lead the business through its next phase, following the recently completion of its retail and digital transformation.
“We are prepared also with the new CEO, Phil Walker, who knows [the] UK market, who knows the digital landscape, who we believe is the right leader for the next phase after we successfully do both the retail and digital cutover, one of the biggest in the industry,” he said.
“That is going to be our job. It is not easy, but at the same time, we also are aware that [the] UK being part of Allwyn also brings non-financial benefits because if we crack things on such a scale in transition, there is not such experience in transition. So, it should be beneficial for Allwyn’s future lottery tenders.”
Last week, Allwyn UK announced the departure of Andria Vidler, with Walker to take her place imminently, until a permanent replacement is found.
The Guardian reported this week that MPs Dawn Butler and Sir Iain Duncan Smith wrote to the Gambling Commission, expressing concerns over the hire and questioning his appointment at Allwyn.
The letter had flagged a Gambling Commission’s sanction handed to Walker over ‘widespread and alarming’ anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing failures at William Hill in 2024.
Walker was issued with a formal warning in May that year after it was found he had failed to take all reasonable steps to ensure several William Hill businesses complied with their licence conditions.
UK net revenue expected to fall short of expectations
Allwyn reported mixed results from the UK in its Q2 update this week.
While net revenue edged up by just 2% to €236 million ($274.8 million), profitability improved thanks to the completion of the National Lottery technology transformation, with adjusted EBITDA rocketing from €6 million to €23 million.
Although Chvátal acknowledged UK revenue for Allwyn’s FY 26 is expected to fall short of initial expectations, he said the company remained confident in the market and was focused on restoring growth.
He also highlighted the growing competition from prize draws, saying: “It is worth mentioning as well that this tech transformation we believe established solid foundations and a platform for future growth. That is why we started to bring the innovation or novelisation of both the existing Lotto business and a completely new game called Powerball, as we indicated.
“We believe that one phase is done, but I think we need to double down on fighting because the UK market also did not stand still, and the UK market, as we see now, sees a range of lottery-like or prize draws-like propositions, which are definitely less regulated. This is not an excuse. It is just a statement that this is what it is.”
Betano the leader in Brazil
Allwyn holds a 36.75% stake in global betting brand Betano, which delivered revenue growth of 26% during Q2 on a constant currency basis.
Allwyn CFO Ken Morton said Betano’s strong Q2 performance reflected its leading position in Brazil, where several of its competitors have reported declines.
“As you know, Betano is the leader in Brazil, and that is a very large market,” he commented. “Betano’s positioning in that market has continued to go from strength to strength.
“Betano is a very large and internationally diversified business as well. If you look at the performance in Q2, it is a reflection of the leadership position and strong performance in Brazil as well as good performance in their other markets.”
Chvátal, meanwhile, highlighted the advantages of being an established leader in a market in terms of navigating challenging market conditions.
“You see that Betano in Brazil, it pays off to be a market leader because it’s easier to reconfirm your position,” he said. “Whatever comes, you are able to weather better the headwinds. That’s exactly what happened to Betano. It was good that they were there relatively early.”
Morton said he expects Betano to convert EBITDA into net income at a similar but slightly higher rate in the coming quarters after a softer-than-normal Q2.
