Gentoo Media views Q4 trading as a ‘turning point’ for its business, completing 2025 as a “reset year” in its transition to become a stand-alone iGaming media company following the separation from Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) in Q4 2024.
Fourth-quarter accounts delivered the strongest fiscal performance since the Stockholm-listed media group became independent. Management characterised the period as confirmation that the cost realignment and operational restructuring implemented through 2025 have structurally strengthened the business.
Group revenue for Q4 stood at €25.6m, down 16% on €30.3m reported as restated comparatives under GiG ownership. Crucially, Gentoo recorded its first quarter-on-quarter revenue growth of the year, up 13% from Q3’s €22.7m, signalling stabilisation after regulatory disruption in Brazil and softer sports margins in December.
Under a tighter cost regime, Gentoo delivered its strongest ever EBITDA before special items of €14.9m, compared to €10.1m in Q4 2024 and €9.3m in Q3 2025. Reported EBITDA reached €13.2m after €1.6m in special items.
The quarter also benefited from €2.3m in other operating income, while personnel and marketing expenses were materially lower following restructuring measures implemented during 2025 trading.
Paid media hits hurdles
Publishing, which represents Gentoo’s search-led and owned media portfolio, showed resilience in a year of changes. Revenue improved 8% quarter-on-quarter, supported by stabilising SEO visibility and a positive impact from the December Google Core Update.
Flagship assets such as AskGamblers recorded improved rankings and engagement metrics following targeted content optimisation and platform upgrades.
The firm’s publishing unit generated €78.8m in revenue compared to €89.7m in 2024, delivering EBITDA before special items of €40.9m at a margin of 52%, underlining the robustness of the recurring revenue-share model that accounts for roughly 60% of group income.
Paid media recorded “stronger sequential income momentum” as Q4 revenues increased 36% on a quarter-on-quarter basis, driven by expansion in the US market and combined with unit cost efficiencies.
However, FY2025 paid media revenue declined to €19.9m from €28.4m in 2024, primarily due to compliance adjustments in Brazil as of January 2025. Cost pressures saw management reduce paid media activity to help transition to a new operating model prioritizing margin controls.
The reset saw paid media contributed just €500,000 in EBITDA before special items for FY2025 accounts reflected a “stabilisation phase after restructuring”, a condition which Gentoo vows to improve in 2026 and beyond.
Return to profits
EBITDA before special items totalled €41.4m against €52.1m in the prior year, while reported EBITDA came in at €35.9m.
Closing year accounts as a stand-alone business Gentoo posted profit of €1.7m from continuing operations, reversing the loss of €59m reported on the 2024 restated accounts which factored impairments from GiG’s split.
Operating cash flow remained resilient at €33.0m, broadly in line with 2024, demonstrating the business’s ability to convert earnings into cash despite revenue pressure.
Jonas Warrer, Gentoo’s Chief Executive Officer, described Q4 as evidence that Gentoo can deliver “solid earnings and cash flow even during periods of sports-related volatility,” adding that the company exits 2025 “leaner, more focused and more resilient.”
He acknowledged that following years of record growth under GiG ownership, the business entered 2025 with a cost base built for higher expansion, requiring decisive right-sizing to protect margins and long-term competitiveness.
Updating investors, Gentoo issued preliminary 2026 guidance of revenue between €105m and €115m, EBITDA before special items of €49m to €54m, and operating cash flow of €37m to €41m.
Management expects the year to benefit from a materially leaner cost base, sharply reduced non-recurring restructuring expenses, with media units to benefit from a more favourable sporting calendar, including the FIFA World Cup in the summer.
In January 2026, Gentoo initiated a refinancing process involving a contemplated three-year senior secured floating-rate bond of approximately €120m. Leadership views that refinancing will simplify the capital structure of Gentoo as a media business whilst providing an enhanced credit availability for emerging opportunities in the iGaming space.
Concluding, Warrer stated: “We enter 2026 as a materially stronger and more disciplined organisation. The actions taken during 2025 have created a leaner cost base, improved cash conversion and strengthened the quality of our revenue.
“With stabilising visibility across our core assets and a more favourable sporting calendar ahead, we are confident in our ability to deliver sustainable growth while further enhancing cash generation for shareholders.”