Evoke interim results 2026: duty hit cuts EBITDA as Intralot deal advances

Evoke's first-half results reveal a business making genuine operational progress while carrying a difficult combination of higher gaming duties, substantial debt and acquisition uncertainty.

Revenue for the six months ended 30 June 2026 was broadly unchanged at £887.5 million. On a like-for-like basis, excluding the effect of operating around 270 fewer betting shops, revenue increased by 2%.

However, a £46 million year-on-year increase in gaming duties pushed adjusted EBITDA down 9.5% to £150.2 million. Adjusted EBITDA means earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, excluding selected exceptional and other adjusting items.

Management says commercial and cost-saving measures offset more than half of that additional duty burden. That is encouraging, but leverage still increased from 5.2 times at the end of 2025 to 5.6 times.

The other major issue for Evoke PLC shareholders is the recommended acquisition by Bally's Intralot. The transaction is progressing as planned, with shareholder meetings scheduled for 17 August 2026.

Evoke's key H1 2026 figures

Metric	H1 2026	H1 2025	Change
Revenue	£887.5 million	£887.8 million	Flat
Adjusted EBITDA	£150.2 million	£165.9 million	-9.5%
Reported EBITDA	£124.8 million	£141.3 million	-11.7%
Adjusted EBITDA margin	16.9%	18.7%	-1.8 percentage points
Reported loss after tax	£70.2 million	£70.1 million	Broadly flat
Adjusted profit after tax	£1.9 million	Nil	Improved
Net debt	£1,899.4 million	£1,862.7 million at FY 2025	Increased
Net leverage	5.6x	5.2x at FY 2025	Increased

The statutory result remains heavily affected by finance costs, amortisation and exceptional spending. Evoke reported a £70.2 million loss after tax, while net finance expenses were £91.7 million.

Exceptional operating items increased to £36.6 million from £12.7 million. These included £15.2 million of retail rationalisation costs, £7.3 million relating to AI and technology improvements, and £7.3 million associated with the strategic review.

Online strength helped absorb the duty increase

UK and Ireland online was the strongest-performing division.

Revenue increased by 3.5% to £348.1 million, supported by 6.7% gaming growth and double-digit growth at William Hill. Adjusted EBITDA rose by 28.3% to £77.0 million, despite the higher UK duty rates taking effect from 1 April 2026.

This is the clearest evidence that Evoke's mitigation programme is working. The company reduced marketing expenditure by 18.5% to £115.8 million while maintaining customer engagement and focusing spending on higher-return activity.

Marketing costs represented 13.0% of revenue, down from 16.0% a year earlier. More effective bonuses, promotional efficiency and cost reductions all helped profitability.

The trade-off is that revenue from the 888 brand declined as management prioritised profitability and customer economics over lower-return volume. Investors will need to judge whether this represents healthy discipline or a potential loss of competitive position.

A smaller retail estate is producing more profit

Retail revenue fell 2.6% to £245.6 million on a reported basis because Evoke operated fewer shops. The estate stood at 1,024 shops at the end of June, down 21.4% from 1,302 a year earlier.

On a like-for-like basis, however, retail revenue increased by 4%. Adjusted EBITDA rose 5.4% to £31.2 million following the closure of loss-making locations and restructuring of the operating model.

The company closed around 200 shops in May 2026. Investment has been concentrated on the remaining estate, including the deployment of 2,000 new self-service betting terminal cabinets and improvements to gaming machines.

Closing shops reduces Evoke's revenue base, but the improvement in divisional EBITDA suggests the remaining portfolio is more productive.

International performance was mixed

International revenue declined 1.9% to £293.8 million, while adjusted EBITDA fell 20.9% to £67.6 million.

Italy delivered revenue growth of 21% and Denmark grew by 13%. Those gains were offset by weaker trading in Spain, Romania and other international markets.

Higher gaming duties in Romania and Italy weighed on margins. The geographical sales mix also shifted towards more regulated markets with higher duty rates.

Spain remains highly competitive, with Evoke acknowledging that its product and marketing capabilities require further improvement. Romania has also been affected by higher duties and a recession, prompting the company to reduce marketing and promotional activity to protect profitability.

Debt remains the central financial concern

Evoke generated £85 million of underlying free cash flow during the half, but total cash still fell by £29.7 million after capital expenditure, financing and other outflows.

Unrestricted cash was £105.6 million at 30 June, with approximately £150 million of total liquidity when including £43 million of undrawn revolving credit facility capacity.

Net debt increased by £36.7 million to £1,899.4 million, while leverage rose to 5.6 times last-12-month adjusted EBITDA. The company paid £88.9 million of net interest during the period.

There is no interim dividend. Payments remain suspended until leverage is at or below three times.

The accounts also identify two material uncertainties relating to going concern. If the Intralot transaction does not complete, Evoke must improve profitability and cash generation sufficiently to refinance debt maturing in July 2028 ahead of the revolving credit facility's January 2028 maturity. If the transaction does complete, the current directors say they lack visibility over Intralot's future operation of the group.

Management nevertheless expects Evoke to have adequate resources through its going-concern assessment period to 30 September 2027.

What happens with the Bally's Intralot acquisition?

Evoke agreed the terms of a recommended acquisition by Bally's Intralot on 5 June 2026, following the strategic review discussed alongside its FY25 results and the impact of the UK duty increase.

The board concluded that the proposal was the most attractive and deliverable option available to shareholders and could provide the business with a stronger long-term capital structure.

The deal still requires shareholder, regulatory and other approvals. Evoke shareholders are due to vote at the court meeting and general meeting on 17 August 2026. Completion remains expected in the fourth quarter of 2026 or the first quarter of 2027.

Because of the pending transaction, the board has not provided forward-looking financial guidance. Trading since the end of June has remained in line with management expectations, supported by engagement around the FIFA World Cup.

The full figures and statutory disclosures are available in the original company announcement.

Operational progress meets balance-sheet pressure

There are clear positives in these results. UK and Ireland online EBITDA grew strongly, the smaller retail estate became more profitable, and management offset over half of the £46 million increase in gaming duties.

But the financial pressure has not disappeared. Adjusted EBITDA and margins declined, international profitability weakened, net debt increased and leverage moved further above the level required before dividends can resume.

For shareholders, the immediate focus is therefore likely to remain on the Intralot approval process rather than Evoke's standalone outlook. Until that transaction completes, operational resilience must be weighed against a highly leveraged balance sheet and the continuing impact of increased gaming taxation.