Catena Media plc Year-End Report January – December 2025
October - December 2025
January - December 2025
Significant events during Q4 2025
Significant events after the period
CEO Manuel Stan comments
Q4 marked our best operating performance since the organisational reset that we initiated in mid-2024. Revenue and adjusted EBITDA increased sharply year on year and quarter on quarter. These results flowed from disciplined execution across the business and positive impacts from the structural changes implemented during the first half of 2025. While it is still early, and further work remains, the figures offer encouragement that the business is moving in the right direction.
Adjusted EBITDA reached its highest level since Q1 2023. Driving this improvement was a significant increase from all revenue sources and tight cost control, which together lifted the margin to 30 percent. The revenue component underlines the importance of scaling the business in order to enhance profitability.
Casino leads the way
Casino was the primary growth engine. Over the past 18 months, we have concentrated resources on areas where we see clear competitive strength and long-term potential. Simultaneously, we have remained disciplined and have pragmatically terminated unsuccessful initiatives. This approach has allowed us to expand what works and to exit what does not. The result is more effective execution and improved returns on invested capital across our products.
Both regulated casino and social sweepstakes casino showed robust growth, supported by improved product performance and higher organic search visibility that fed into higher engagement and monetisation. Our casino products also benefited from major search algorithm updates during the quarter that enhanced keyword rankings.
We remain mindful of the regulatory uncertainty surrounding social sweepstakes casino, including the ban in California that took effect on 1 January. That being said, we are seeing healthy interest in other states. More broadly, social sweepstakes casino positions us strategically for future online state casino launches by allowing us to build brands, databases and operational capability ahead of potential market regulation.
Headwinds continue in sports
Conditions remained challenging in the Sports segment, which saw a slight revenue decline from Q3. The launch of online sports betting in Missouri in December had little effect on overall results, as expected for a relatively small market bordered by six already-regulated states. We are investing to improve our core sports products but do not expect to see a material upturn in this segment in the short term.
Diversification drives growth
In Q4 we continued our drive to diversify revenue streams. Subaffiliation continued to scale during the quarter as our MRKTPLAYS proprietary platform again contributed significantly. Building on this momentum, we launched an expanded version of the programme early in January 2026. MRKTPLAYS+ creates scope for deeper commercial partnerships by giving partners access to our expertise and marketing support as well as creating potential investment capital opportunities. Early market feedback has been encouraging, and we expect subaffiliation to remain an important growth driver.
Our customer relationship management (CRM) vertical also evolved significantly during the quarter, more than doubling in size from Q3. CRM increases player engagement with our products, which supports longer-term user relationships and strengthens monetisation opportunities.
In mid-January we launched our first loyalty programme, PlayPerks, on PlayUSA.com. The objective is to build engaging products which lead to returning, loyal users. We see high potential in this space and intend to expand the concept to other brands in the coming quarters. Our ongoing work to consolidate technology platforms will play a key role in enabling us to scale loyalty systems across our top-tier products.
Other high-potential verticals including prediction markets are also emerging and we are investing actively in this space.
Cost discipline and team buy-in
Cost discipline remained a central focus during the quarter. Our improved profitability in Q4 reflected not only a normalised cost base, but also clearer priorities and stronger alignment across teams. The introduction of objectives and key results during the second half of 2025 helped target our efforts at the highest-value areas in Q3 and Q4.
I would like to thank our teams for their outstanding contributions. They responded positively after the difficult but necessary step to rightsize the organisation earlier in the year. After adapting fast to the flatter structure, they delivered with intent. I am pleased we can reward their efforts and dedication with a company-wide bonus – the first such award for several years. This was reflected in the uptick in personnel costs compared to Q3.
I also wish to thank the board for its continued support and strategic input. Our Q4 performance marks an important step forward. In 2026, we intend to build on this foundation by executing with discipline, allocating capital selectively and further strengthening the business.
Presentation of Catena Media’s results
CEO Manuel Stan and CFO Michael Gerrow will present the report in a combined webcast and teleconference on 10 February 2026 at 18:00 CET.
Webcast
Via the webcast you are able to ask written questions. If you wish to participate via webcast, please use the following link:
https://catena-media.events.inderes.com/q4-report-2025
Teleconference
Via teleconference you are able to ask questions verbally. If you wish to participate in the call, please register on the link below. After registration you will be provided phone numbers and a conference ID to access the conference:
https://conference.inderes.com/teleconference/?id=5008575
The presentation will be available on the website:
https://www.catenamedia.com/investors/financial-reports-and-presentations