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CTS Eventim Reports ‘Substantial Growth’ In Q1
CTS Eventim reports a “strong start to 2023, generating substantial growth in revenue and earnings,” according to a statement sent out today, May 18.
In the first three months of 2023, consolidated revenue amounted to €366.2 million ($397.1 million), compared to €139.2 million ($150.9 million) in the first quarter of 2022 – an increase of 163%.
Compared with the consolidated group revenue in the first quarter of 2019 (the last year prior to the pandemic), when CTS Eventim turned around €282.7 million, the increase is 29.5%.
Group earnings (normalised EBITDA) amounted to €76 million ($82 million) in the first quarter of 2023, following €23.7 million ($25.7 million) in the same period of the previous year, a 220% increase, and €57.1 million ($61.9 million) in the first quarter of 2019 (plus 33%). The normalized EBITDA margin in Q1 was 21% (previous year: 17%).
Both the ticketing and the live entertainment segments contributed to CTS Eventim’s Q1/2023 growth.
69 Million Online Tickets Sold: CTS Eventim Confirms Record 2022
Ticketing generated revenues of €148.3 million ($160.8 million) in the first three months of 2023, a 93% increase compared to the previous year’s €76.5 million ($83 million), and a 42% increase compared to the first quarter of 2019, when ticketing brought in €104.5 million ($113.3 million) in revenues.
Normalized EBITDA in CTS Eventim’s ticketing business stood at €67.8 million ($73.5 million) in the first quarter of 2023, a 149% rise on the previous year’s €27.2 million ($29.5 million), and a rise of 62% on the first quarter of 2019 (€41.9 million).
According to a press release for CTS Eventim, “the core market of Germany performed well, with the Italian, Austrian, Swiss and Brazilian markets also driving growth.”
Revenues in CTS Eventim’s live entertainment segment climbed to €223.8 million ($242.7 million) in the first quarter of 2023. Compared with the €65.1 million ($70.6 million) from last year’s Q1, that’ a rise of 244%. Compared with pre-pandemic figures from four years ago (€182.2 million), the increase in live entertainment revenue is still 23%.
Normalized EBITDA for the first three months of 2023 came to €8.2 million ($8.9 million), compared to a loss of €3.5 million (-$3.8 million) in the previous year. Earnings were thus lower than in the first quarter of 2019, when they stood at 15.2 million ($16.5 million).
CTS Eventim explains this with “higher preparatory costs and implementation costs for festivals weighed heavily on normalised EBITDA in the first quarter of 2023.”
Another highlight from the live entertainment giant’s Q1/2023 earnings report: the number of tickets sold online, which, in the year to date, stands at 18 million – another “significant increase” of 58% compared with the 11 million tickets sold at this point in time in 2022.
It also highlights the joint venture with Mammoth, Inc. and AG Entertainment Touring, announced in March, which cements CTS Eventim position in the international touring market, particularly the U.S.
CTS Eventim CEO Klaus-Peter Schulenberg commented, “In the first quarter of 2023, CTS EVENTIM has maintained its successful trajectory following the record year of 2022. The results show that live entertainment remains as popular as ever. Our customers have high expectations when it comes to buying tickets – especially for tours featuring top acts – and we have comfortably met these expectations. Both in Germany and internationally, we are pursuing organic growth and anticipate that our business performance will continue on its successful course.”