Catena’s revenue struggles continue as profitability improves

The total revenue earned by the affiliate in this period totalled €9.6 million (£8.3 million/$11.3 million), down 25% from 2024’s €19.4 million. Yet, the company’s profitability increased in the period, with adjusted EBITDA up 104% year-on-year to €1.4 million.

One of the reasons listed for the increase in profitability includes a reduction in headcount by 25% of over 50 roles that helped reduce expenses. While CEO Manuel Stan recognised that Catena’s work continued in Q2 to optimise its operational structure in cutting costs.

“Measures taken included unifying our tech stack into a more scalable platform and simplifying operations across teams,” said Stan. “These changes will reduce annual costs by €5.3-5.8 million and further embed our leaner, more agile organisation.”

Catena also sold its esports-related assets esports.net and esportsbet.com, during Q2 to an undisclosed buyer for €1.4 million. While the affiliate also improved its profitability by also having continued to diversify its revenue mix, including non-SEO channels in paid media, subaffiliation and customer relationship management.

Hurt by a weaker dollar

Revenue in North America decreased for Catena by 23% year-on-year, down to €8.7 million, which equated to 90% of the group’s revenue in the quarter. This marked a 1% drop from its Q125 revenue in the region. Yet, the company noted that when adjusted for currency translation effects from a weaker US dollar, this drop was actually a 7% revenue increase.

Casino-related activity revenue dropped by 21% in North America from 2024’s €10 million to €7.8 million. It also meant a 3% increase from the affiliate’s Q1 performance, but again, Catena noted that if adjusted for the weaker US dollar would have meant a 12% increase.

Sports-related revenue fell by 32% year-on-year to €1.4 million from 2024’s €2.1 million. However, Catena believed the decline here was due to continued operational challenges and Google algorithm changes that impacted the performance of several media partnerships in 2024.

NDC drop-off

Catena’s total NDCs for the quarter totalled 20,229, which marked a 36% decrease from Q224. While NDCs for sports dropped by 43% to 5,108 and casino by 33% to 12,121.

In North America, Catena saw a 34% drop year-on-year in NDCs to 19,739, with the rest of the world down by 70% to 490. 

Future planning

“As we move into the second half of the year, we will build on the progress made this quarter to improve profitability and build long-term resilience as we diversify the offering, optimise operations, further consolidate our tech stack and grow in areas where we know we can win,” said Stan on the rest of 2025.

The affiliate also announced that it plans to continue to adapt its content and technology for generative AI search and build CRM and loyalty capabilities to strengthen customer engagement.