Codere Online has posted impressive revenue growth for 2024, with net gaming revenue surging by 23% year-on-year. The company also saw an 18.1% rise in adjusted EBITDA. However, despite its success in core markets like Spain and Mexico, the online gaming operator is struggling to expand its footprint in Argentina due to licensing barriers.
Revenue Jumps, Active Players Increase
Codere Online ended 2024 with a net gaming revenue of €211.6 million ($221.4 million/£175.2 million), reflecting solid year-on-year growth. The operator also reported an adjusted EBITDA of €6.4 million, up from the previous year’s numbers.
The company’s customer base also expanded. Average monthly active players grew by 13%, reaching 144,900. This growth signals strong engagement across its platforms, particularly in key regions.
Spain, a crucial market for Codere Online, contributed €87.7 million in revenue, marking a 16% increase year-on-year. The country’s monthly active players jumped by 17% to 49,700, showing healthy user engagement.
Mexican Market Sees Growth Despite Currency Challenges
Mexico has been a major growth driver for Codere Online. The company generated €106.6 million in revenue from the country, up 30% year-on-year. However, the final quarter of 2024 presented a challenge, with revenue stagnating at €25.1 million due to the devaluation of the Mexican peso.
Without currency fluctuations, Codere Online’s Q4 growth in Mexico would have been 14%. Despite this, the company remains optimistic about its positioning in the region.
CEO Aviv Sher noted an interesting trend—competitors seemed to have pulled back their investments in the Mexican market. “I don’t know why, but I think some of the competitors have slowed down their investment a little bit in the fourth quarter, and we are enjoying it,” he told analysts during the company’s earnings call.
Sher pointed out that some European-based competitors failed to establish themselves as strongly as expected. He believes this could be due to shifting priorities toward other Latin American markets. However, he expects competition to intensify again as the 2026 FIFA World Cup approaches.
“We solved some technical problems in the way we invested our marketing money, which also helped our Mexican growth,” Sher added.
Argentina Expansion Blocked by Licensing Restrictions
While Codere Online has been making gains in Mexico and Spain, its expansion efforts in Argentina have been met with obstacles. The company currently operates in Buenos Aires but lacks the necessary licenses to expand to other provinces.
Sher admitted the company had put in significant effort but faced limitations. “We made a lot of efforts,” he said, “[but] we are not able, at the moment, to enter the province of Argentina where the majority of the money in the country is coming from.”
Unlike other markets with unified licensing systems, Argentina operates on a regional licensing basis. This means each province has its own regulatory framework, making nationwide expansion difficult.
Codere Online remains hopeful that in the coming years, local operators will be open to selling their licenses, allowing the company to expand its reach within Argentina.
No Plans for New Market Expansion—For Now
Despite its strong performance, Codere Online is holding back on aggressive expansion into new markets. Sher explained that the company’s best return on investment still comes from Mexico and Spain, making it logical to focus its resources there rather than entering untested territories like Chile or Peru.
“The problem that we are facing right now is if I want to increase my marketing spend, our next dollar, in terms of ROI, should go into Mexico and Spain. Because we know how to spend it, and we know the ROI on it,” Sher stated.
He added that the company lacks the financial bandwidth to make a significant impact in a new market at this stage. “The amount of money that, let’s say, is available for us to penetrate a new market is not enough to turn a new market into a significant market,” he said.
This cautious approach suggests Codere Online is prioritizing sustainable growth in existing strongholds rather than taking risky bets on new territories.
