UK bookmakers William Hill saw their operating profit fall 10% in 2016, a 12-month span their interim CEO called “a challenging year.”

Figures released Friday show Hills’ revenue inching up 1% to £1.6b last year, while operating profit fell 10% to £261.5m. Interim CEO Philip Bowcock (pictured) said 2016 had been a tough slog but claimed to see “encouraging signs in all our divisions, in particular Online’s UK business.”

Hills’ overall online revenue was down 3% to £544.8m, representing 34% of group sales. Worse, operating costs rose 5%, pushing online operating profit down one-fifth to £100.5m.

Online sports handle rose 2% to £4.3b, but margins dipped half a point, pushing revenue down 2% to £270m. Online gaming revenue fell 4% to £274m, in part due to the UK’s new ‘time-out’/automatic self-exclusion rules.