Online gambling operator The Stars Group (TSG) is learning the hard lesson that, unlike pure poker firms, sports betting operators occasionally get taken to the cleaners.

On Wednesday, the Toronto/New York-listed TSG reported overall revenue of US$580.4m in the three months ending March 31, a 47.7% rise over the same period last year. But operating income fell 46% to $61.5m and net earnings fell 62.8% to $27.6m.

TSG blamed the shortfall on a variety of factors, including unfavorable currency exchange rates, negative growth in ‘disrupted’ markets – i.e. grey/black markets that have ramped up payment-blocking measures, like Russia – and a rash of punter-friendly results, particularly at TSG’s UK-facing Sky Betting & Gaming (SBG) business.

Most UK-listed operators that endure occasional margin swings simply cite it as a factor and move on, while the TSG report/call treated the reduction as an event akin to a Deep Impact meteor strike. One almost expected the presentation to feature some Schoolhouse Rock animation in which a talking betting slip explained ‘how a wager becomes revenue’ just so no one missed the idea that luck had most definitely not been a lady to TSG in Q1.