Sun International Targets 9% Online Market Share as South Africa Digital GGR Forecasts Hit R100 Billion

Sun International aims to double its South African online market share to 9% following record Sunbet growth and a R100 billion industry forecast.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 17, 2026, 11:59 AM EDT

Source: The information in this article was sourced from iGB

Aggressive Digital Expansion Targets Future Market Dominance

The South African gaming landscape is bracing for a significant shift as Sun International formalizes its intent to double its current online market presence to 9 percent. During a Capital Markets Day presentation, Group CEO Ulrik Bengtsson outlined a roadmap to challenge the country’s leading digital operators by transitioning the company into a tech-centric, omnichannel entity. This strategic pivot comes as the national online gross gaming revenue is projected to reach R100 billion by 2030, representing a massive scale-up from current valuations. According to Bengtsson, the firm intends to be more aggressive in its pursuit of this growth, specifically by refining product delivery and expanding its internal development capabilities.

Revenue Resilience Amidst Major Portfolio Transitions

Financial results for the 2025 fiscal year demonstrate a robust recovery trajectory with group income rising 7.1 percent to reach R12.9 billion, a figure that excludes one-off impacts from the Table Bay Hotel lease cessation. The flagship Cape Town property underwent a significant transformation, closing in early 2025 for extensive renovations before reopening under an InterContinental management agreement with IHG late in the year. Despite the complexities of these structural changes, the group maintained an adjusted EBITDA of R3.4 billion, reflecting a underlying growth of 2.8 percent when normalized for the hotel transition. Bengtsson characterized the past year as a foundational period, establishing the digital infrastructure necessary for long-term scalability.

Sunbet Performance Surges as Digital Adoption Accelerates

The primary engine for the group's recent financial success has been its Sunbet division, which recorded a staggering 75.9 percent increase in annual income to R2.1 billion. This digital momentum was particularly visible in the second half of the fiscal year, where income soared nearly 80 percent compared to the previous period. More importantly, the online segment's adjusted EBITDA more than doubled to R744 million, signaling that the digital arm is becoming increasingly efficient as it scales. The group reported that while it currently holds a 4.5 percent total online market share, it maintains a much stronger 30 percent grip on the specific sports betting sub-sector, providing a solid plat...