World Cup delivers $776m sales bump for Supreme Ventures

Supreme Ventures Ltd made the bulk of its rise in revenue from sports betting tied to the football World Cup.

Executive Chairman Gary Peart had predicted as much in April, telling investors the gaming group would earn from the biggest event on the sports betting calendar.

“Total gaming income increased by $1.23 billion, driven primarily by a World Cup-fuelled $775.6-million increase in Sports Betting gross ticket sales,” Supreme Ventures said in its financials. On the company’s own framing, the tournament accounts for the greater part of that increase.

Overall, Supreme Ventures generated $43 billion in total gaming income over the nine months, from $41.8 billion a year earlier. Sports betting revenues rose 6.01 per cent, PIN code revenues 5.23 per cent, and lottery revenue grew marginally.

The tournament ran from June 11 to July 19, straddling the second and third quarters, and used an expanded 104-match format as against 64 previously – a longer betting window that Peart flagged in April as the reason the windfall would carry across two reporting periods.

PROFIT UP ONE-THIRD

The company reported net profit after tax of $714.3 million for the third quarter ended September, up 31.38 per cent on the corresponding 2025 quarter. Over the nine months the group earned $2.19 billion, an increase of $356.90 million, or 19.44 per cent, year- on-year.

“Higher prize payouts enhanced the customer value proposition, resulting in relatively stable total gaming income and gross profit quarter-over-quarter,” the directors said in the report to stockholders.

RACING DRAGS, BALANCE SHEET IMPROVES

Horseracing subsidiary Supreme Ventures Racing and Entertainment Limited recorded a decline in revenues and a loss after tax for the quarter. The group said it remains committed to its proposed acquisition of the racetrack and thanked regulators for facilitating the return of the Diamond Mile in August.

Finance costs rose 27.9 per cent over the nine months, which the company attributed to refinancing undertaken in the fourth quarter of 2025. It has since cut borrowings. Total debt fell by more than $600 million year to date, and the debt-to-equity ratio narrowed to 1.85 times from 2.11 times. Supreme Ventures raised $2 billion in capital in July while settling about $2.6 billion in debt obligations, and closed the sale of its loan portfolio to Dolla Financial Services on July 7.

The group generated $2.7 billion in operating cash flow and held cash and equivalents of $1.3 billion at September 30. It paid out $1.38 billion in dividends over the nine months and contributed more than $2.16 billion to government revenues through taxes, good causes and other fees during the quarter.

Hurricane Melissa continues to weigh on the retail network. The company said revenue growth in unaffected parishes offset declines in hurricane-hit areas.

Supreme Ventures also began an internal pilot of EvoCash, a digital wallet and prepaid Mastercard, enrolling its 700 employees ahead of a possible public launch.

business@gleanerjm.com