French gaming giant La Française des Jeux (FDJ) has reported a year-on-year rise in revenue and stakes during its first quarter, despite continuing restrictions on retail activity related to the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

Total revenue for the three months to March 31 amounted €537.6m, up 5.2% from €511.2m in the same period last year. Gross gaming revenue was up by 5.1% year-on-year to €525.9m, while revenue from other activities jumped 10.7% from €10.6m to €11.8m.

FDJ said the rise in revenue was driven by an increase in stakes, with players spending a total of €4.6bn, up 11.8% from €4.11bn in Q1 of last year, despite the operator facing longer restrictions related to the pandemic than the same period in 2020.

However, despite the limitations, player spending was up across all areas of the group, most notably in sports betting, where stakes hiked 46.1% to €1.1bn, helped by the return of the traditional sports calendar after disruption in the latter part of Q1 2020.

Lottery remained FDJ’s main source of income with stakes here rising 3.8% to €3.46bn, or 10.0% when excluding the Amigo game, which is offered in bars. FDJ said the closure of bars and other Covid-19 measures had a significant impact on Amigo, with stakes down 50%.

Draw-based game stakes were up 2.6% year-on-year to €1.3bn, while instant games stakes also increase 4.6% to €2.1bn

In terms of where customers were gambling, land-based operations remained the most popular source, with stakes here rising 5.7% to €4.0bn, despite the restrictions. Digital stakes jumped 64.7% to €1.4bn as more players turned to online during the quarter.

Players won a total of €3.20bn gambling with FDJ during the quarter, up 13.7% from €2.81bn in the same period last year. This left €1.40bn in gross gaming revenue and after paying €915.7m in public levies, revenue stood at €537.6m.

“Despite the enduring impact of the health situation on the environment, the first quarter confirmed the good trends in our business, with stakes exceeding the levels recorded before the crisis,” FDJ chairwoman and chief executive Stéphane Pallez said.

“After reaching almost 10% of our global stakes in 2020, digital stakes continue to grow at a strong rate whereas our network activity is maintained. The events program for lottery and a busy sporting calendar, including Euro 2021 in football, should allow this momentum to continue in the months to come.”

Entain, the leading global sports betting and gaming entertainment group, has launched a share ownership plan for over 22,500 employees. The group-wide plan will allow employees in the UK and abroad to profit from the growth of Entain’s global business.

Around 22,500 employees at all levels of the business can now apply to join Entain’s ShareSave plan. In the UK, where Entain has 2885 Ladbrokes and Coral shops, almost 14,000 retail workers can apply for the plan. By starting monthly contributions at just £5 or more, Entain hopes to put share ownership within reach of everyone, including people across its international operations.

Entain said ShareSave will initially be offered to colleagues working in countries representing around 99% of its workforce, also including the Philippines, India and Bulgaria. The company said it had initially placed a £100 monthly cap on contributions to reflect the truly global nature of its business and currency differences across the workforce, with the aim of maximising the appeal to all colleagues.

“Entain has been one of the highest performing companies in the FTSE-100 over the past year, which is the result of hard work and efforts from teams across our international business. Building a strong customer-centric culture where everyone contributes and shares in our continuing success is really important, so this plan is designed to be attractive and accessible to all,” Jette Nygaard-Andersen, Chief Executive of Entain, said.

Under the terms of the ShareSave plan, colleagues can choose to save a monthly sum from £5 to £100 over three years. At the end of this period, they will have the opportunity to buy shares in Entain for 20% less than their market value at the start of the invitation period, which they can sell for a potential profit. Alternatively, they can retain the stock as shareholders in the company, or simply take their savings back.

Polish Volleyball Federation (PVF) has announced that STATSCORE will remain the Official Data Provider of the Federation for another two seasons.

Based on the renewed agreement, STATSCORE data and widgets will be widely presented on the official website of the federation (pzps.pl) to provide engaging content to the fans.

“We’re pleased that under the new agreement our collaboration has been extended, and that STATSCORE will continue to deliver match data for PVF’s website and social media as our Official Sports Data Provider. We realize that, in addition to the basic information about the scores, volleyball fans are increasingly often looking for extensive and attractively presented match statistics, related both to teams’ and players’ performances. Thanks to the cooperation with STATSCORE, we are able to provide our fans with this kind of content quickly and professionally,” Justyna Tkaczyńska, Head of Marketing Department at PVF, said.

STATSCORE will provide the full coverage for all the national teams’ games through a dedicated LeagueCenter. Besides the international games, fans will also have access to all the domestic competitions for men and women covered with top quality stats. Every single game of the top tier leagues is available with 2D animations and live trackers.

“We are happy to renew our tie with the Polish Volleyball Federation, which is one of the most important partners for STATSCORE within the professional sports industry. When you think about global volleyball there is not more prominent federation to work with than Polish, which represents the world champions men team! It was not only a matter of business relation but mainly a matter of our ambition to be on the side of the people who know how to play volleyball better than anyone else in the world!” Jakub Myszkorowski, Chief Commercial Officer at STATSCORE, said.