Cirsa’s executive chairman said the company is ready to pursue “another sizeable M&A” to support further expansion after the Spanish-headquartered company posted year-on-year growth across revenue, earnings and net profit in Q1.
During the three months through to 31 March, Cirsa reported a 7.3% increase in operating revenue to €736.9m. This was accompanied by an 8.0% rise in net revenue to €623m, the operator said.
Cirsa reported growth across both its online and retail divisions during the quarter. Online gaming and betting net revenue increased 9.4%, while retail revenue climbed 8% year-on-year.
Looking ahead, executive chairman Joachim Agut said the focus for Cirsa is not just to maintain this growth pattern but drive further expansion. Speaking on a post-Q1 earnings call, he said M&A could form part of this strategy.
“2026 is another year with a strong set of opportunities where growth will come from both organic and M&A,” he said. “We’ll continue with our bolt-on accretive acquisitions, and we are ready for another sizeable M&A. Our sound capital structure supports further M&A.”
Cirsa eyes Western Europe and Latin America M&A
CEO Antonio Hostench also said that Cirsa is exploring opportunities in Western European markets across both retail and online gaming, in addition to Latin American expansion.
“We are also open to exploring new geographies,” he said. “That could mean one or two additional markets in Latin America, but we are also looking at Western European countries where there may be opportunities in both the online and retail channels.”
Cirsa has remained active on the M&A front in recent years. In 2025, it acquired a 50% stake in the Grand Casino de La Mamounia in Marrakech, Morocco, as well as four casinos in Peru. Before that, in 2024, Cirsa acquired a controlling stake in Peruvian sportsbook and online operator Apuesta Total.
Growth across the board in Q1
Turning attention to Cirsa’s performance in Q1, the operator reported growth in each of its business units.
Land-based casinos again drew the most revenue at €258.5m, representing an 8.3% increase from Q1 2025. Cirsa said this was helped by the new casinos it added to its portfolio in the final quarter of last year.
Spanish slots revenue grew 13.1%, more than any other business unit, to €122.3m following double-digit growth in both the slot route and B2B businesses. Cirsa also reported a 2% rise in Italian slots revenue to €105.4m, despite what it described as a “stagnant” market in the country.
As for online operations, internet gaming and betting generated €143.4m in revenue, up 9.4%. Cirsa said this was helped by a 22.4% increase in turnover within the business unit during Q1.
Cirsa on track to hit full-year growth targets
In terms of profitability in Q1, Cirsa reported an increase across all operating expenses for the quarter. However, the rise in revenue offset higher spending, meaning earnings before interest and tax climbed 10.4% to €96.3m.
After financial costs, pre-tax profit topped €60.2m, some 63.6% ahead of the previous year. The company paid €15.6m in tax and discounted €10.0m in profit from minority interests. As such, bottom-line net profit attributable to Cirsa hit €34.6m, an increase of 85.0%.
In addition, the operator reported an 8.5% increase in EBITDA to €193.9m. This is in line with its full-year expectations, with EBITDA still forecast to grow by more than 8% during 2026. On top of this, Cirsa reiterated its net revenue growth guidance of 7.4%, but noted that any additional M&A activity could result in a larger increase.
“The M&A pipeline remains strong, with highly value-accretive opportunities that could accelerate investment beyond current guidance,” Cirsa said. “Such acceleration would drive revenue growth above 10%.”
