Gambling stocks weekly (7–11 September): European market analysis & trends

Lottomatica recovered everything it lost on the CIRSA deal, Rank Group fell 15% without an announcement of its own, and Playtech’s record first half moved the shares barely at all.

European gambling stocks split sharply in the week to 11 September 2026, with five of the nine stocks European Gaming tracks rising and four falling, while the FTSE 100 had its worst week since late July. Lottomatica was the strongest performer, up 12.61% to €27.33 after publishing fresh details on the online earnings it expects from CIRSA. Rank Group was the weakest by a distance, down 15.11% to 87.1p over four consecutive falling sessions, in a week when UK consumer names were sold hard. Entain fell 4.85% to 502.2p and finished the week less than 2p above its 52-week low.

This weekly market analysis does not constitute financial advice. Always do your own research.

The week at a glance: European gaming stocks, 7–11 September

Top movers last week

Lottomatica (BIT: LTMC), +12.61% to €27.33, recovered everything it lost when the CIRSA merger was announced, and more. The shares jumped about 9% on Monday, 7 September, after the company published an investor presentation ahead of a roadshow, saying it expects €200 million to €300 million of incremental online EBITDA on a run-rate basis by the third year after closing. That figure sits outside the synergies announced with the deal on 2 September, which is the point investors appear to have missed the first time round. 

Lottomatica also restated its case unchanged: roughly 10% adjusted EBITDA growth a year to 2029 and about €12 per share of capital returns over three years, both calculated on cost synergies alone. The stock now trades 10.3% above the €24.77 close of 1 September, the day before the all-share merger was signed.

Evolution(STO: EVO), +3.45% to SEK 875.20, hit a 52-week high on 7 September and kept going, ending the week about 26% above Candle Lake’s SEK 695 mandatory offer, up from roughly 22% a week earlier. 

On 7 September, the company disclosed that it had bought back 842,025 shares between 31 August and 4 September, taking treasury holdings to about 7.2% of the 199,226,613 shares in issue. The board has recommended shareholders reject the offer, which closes on 15 September.

Playtech (LON: PTEC), -1.75% to 404p, published the strongest set of numbers in the group and the shares did almost nothing. Adjusted EBITDA for the six months to 30 June rose 77% to €162.5 million, revenue rose 10% to €425.1 million, and free cash flow reached €101 million against €6.6 million a year earlier. Revenue from the US and Canada more than doubled, up over 160%, and the adjusted EBITDA margin from operations climbed to 30% from 19%. 

Full-year guidance of at least €270 million was left unchanged, which is the reason the shares stayed put: the July trading update had already told the market the number, and management repeated that second-half EBITDA will be lower than the first as the Hard Rock Digital contribution normalises.

Entain (LON: ENT), -4.85% to 502.2p, lost 2.99% on Monday alone as UK consumer and leisure shares were marked down, and never recovered. The FTSE UK Index Series changes that remove Entain from the FTSE 100 are implemented at the close on 18 September and take effect on 21 September. The shares closed the week 1.8p above the 500.40p 52-week low.

The Rank Group (LON: RNK), -15.11% to 87.1p, was the weakest of the nine. The shares fell on four consecutive sessions, from 102.6p to 86p by Thursday, before recovering 1.28% on Friday. Volume topped a million shares on three of the five days, against 487,293 on 4 September. 

Rank published its 2026 annual report on 8 September, disclosing closure consultations at three Grosvenor venues with decisions due this autumn, and repeating the warning on Machine Games Duty first made with the August results. 

Flutter Entertainment (NYSE: FLUT), +0.45% to $100.56, absorbed a credit downgrade without moving much. Fitch revised the outlook on Flutter’s BBB- rating to negative from stable on 8 September, expecting leverage to breach its negative sensitivity in 2026 and possibly 2027. 

Fitch pointed to spending on prediction markets and online sports betting, which Flutter has said will cut adjusted EBITDA by an amount at the upper end of a $200 million to $300 million range this year, and to higher UK taxation in 2026 and 2027.

Sportradar (NASDAQ: SRAD), +0.08% to $12.91, Betsson (STO: BETS-B), +0.53% to SEK 94.55, and FDJ United (EPA: FDJU), -0.31% to €22.22, all moved without company announcements.

What drove the moves: News and regulation

The week belonged to oil and interest rates rather than to gambling regulation. Brent climbed through the week as attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure and around the Strait of Hormuz raised supply fears, touching a four-month high just under $110 on Friday and gaining roughly 13% over the five days. 

The FTSE 100 fell in each of the first five sessions, hit a seven-week low of 10,608.92 on Thursday, then recovered 0.34% on Friday to 10,650.44 as oil retreated and UK growth data came in ahead of expectations. Over the week, the index lost 1.67%, or 180.65 points, its steepest weekly fall since late July. 

The European leg came on Thursday, when the ECB raised its three key rates by 25 basis points, taking the deposit rate to 2.50% from 16 September. It was the second increase of 2026, and the bank revised its inflation projections up for 2027 and 2028, blaming the energy shock. 

None of this is gambling-specific, but it explains why the domestically exposed, thinly traded names fell hardest. Rank and Entain are the two stocks in this group most dependent on UK consumer spending, and both were sold with the wider consumer complex rather than on anything either company said. 

The one sector story of substance ran between two of the nine. On 9 September, Playtech said the Spectrum Gaming Group report, commissioned by Evolution to answer the Black Cube investigation Playtech paid for in 2021, corroborates fundamental aspects of that investigation, including the availability of Evolution games in prohibited markets. Spectrum rejected other allegations, including that Evolution took cash payments. Neither share price moved much, but Jefferies cited the dispute as a reason for its rating on Playtech the following day. 

Earnings and corporate calendar

• The acceptance period on Candle Lake’s SEK 695 offer for Evolution closes on 15 September, with settlement expected to begin around 23 September.
• Rank Group goes ex-dividend on 17 September on its 2.5p final dividend.
• FTSE UK Index Series changes are implemented at the close on 18 September and take effect on 21 September.
• Evolution holds an extraordinary general meeting on 22 September to vote on cancelling its treasury shares.
• Betsson enters its silent period on 22 September.
• Entain pays its 10.3p interim dividend on 28 September.
• Peter Jackson steps down as Flutter chief executive on 30 September, with Dan Taylor taking over on 1 October.
• Rank Group holds its annual general meeting on 8 October.
• Entain publishes third-quarter revenue in mid-October.
• FDJ United publishes nine-month revenue on 21 October, after market close.
• Evolution and Betsson both report third-quarter results on 22 October.
• The UK Autumn Budget lands on 28 October.

Analyst sentiment: Ratings and price targets

Broker activity was thin. On Playtech, results day brought no upgrade: Jefferies kept its hold rating and 405p target, said the numbers were in line with the July update, and told clients it does not expect a material change to the €273 million EBITDA consensus for 2026. The same note put Jefferies’ sum-of-the-parts value at 850p a share.

On Flutter, Macquarie cut its target to $150 from $160 while keeping an outperform rating, leaving it level with the $150 Wolfe Research set when it initiated coverage on 2 September. The spread between spot and consensus remains the widest in the group: Flutter closed Thursday at $98.83 against an average target near $139, roughly 40% above. There were no rating or target changes on the other seven stocks.

What to watch this week

• Whether Candle Lake improves its terms for Evolution or lets the offer lapse when acceptances close on 15 September, with the shares 26% above the bid and the board recommending rejection.
• Whether index funds selling into the 18 September rebalance push Entain through its 500.40p 52-week low.
• Whether Rank steadies without a statement, or whether the 15% fall prompts the company to say something before its 8 October annual general meeting.
• Whether Lottomatica holds the gain now that the roadshow has run, and how the sell side treats pro forma leverage of 2.7 times at H1 2027.
• Whether oil stays near $100 and how much further UK consumer names de-rate ahead of 28 October.

FAQs

Which European gambling stocks moved the most in the week to 11 September 2026?

Lottomatica rose the most, up 12.61% to €27.33 after publishing new details on the online earnings it expects from CIRSA, followed by Evolution at +3.45%. Rank Group was the weakest, down 15.11% to 87.1p, ahead of Entain at -4.85% and Playtech at -1.75%.

Why did Rank Group shares fall 15% in the week to 11 September?

Rank fell on four consecutive sessions, from 102.6p to 86p by Thursday, before a small recovery on Friday. The company published its 2026 annual report on 7 September. The fall came in a week when UK consumer and leisure stocks were sold as oil approached $110 a barrel, 30-year gilt yields hit their highest since 1998, and the FTSE 100 lost 1.67%.

Where can I follow gambling stocks week by week?

European Gaming publishes this analysis every Monday, tracking nine European-listed gambling and gaming stocks with the news, results and regulatory developments behind each move. Last week’s gambling stocks recap covered the Lottomatica–CIRSA announcement and Entain’s FTSE 100 demotion.

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