LBG Media CEO Solly Solomou. Picture: LBG Media
Ladbible owner LBG Media is investing in direct advertising ad sales in the UK and US in 2026 as it relies less on revenue share from tech platforms.
LBG, which also publishes brands including Sportbible, Unilad, Gaming Bible, Tyla and Betches which expanded from the US to the UK last year , reported adjusted group revenue of £92m in the year to 30 September 2025, growth of 10% year on year.
The total is adjusted to remove the impact of foreign exchange movements and direct revenue from Australia and New Zealand following a third-party partner taking over commercial operations in the region. On a statutory basis, total group revenue was up 7% to £92.2m.
Profit before tax was down 3% to £14m although adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation) was up 3% to £25.2m. The business noted that higher national insurance for UK employees had added additional cost in 2025.
Direct revenue, meaning there is a direct relationship with the advertiser to make content for brands to reach young people on social media and LBG websites, now makes up 54% of the revenue total at LBG, up from 43% in 2023.
LBG said it expects this share could reach as high as 70%, although it did not project a timetable for this. It said it has a “healthy pipeline” of global blue-chip brands.
Ladbible owner direct revenue up 13% in 2025
Direct revenue in the US was up 29% year on year to £18.6m while the UK was up 11% to £30m. LBG said it was against a “tough” comparator year in the UK as the men’s Euros generated £3.5m in 2024. Overall direct revenue was up 13%.
In 2025 LBG had three clients bringing in more than $1m in annual revenue in the US, up from one a year earlier. High-profile brands include Netflix, Dunkin’ Donuts, PepsiCo and NYX Cosmetics.
In the UK, 11 clients deliver more than $1m in annual revenue and 82% of direct revenue is on a repeat basis (up from 78% in 2024).
LBG chair Dave Wilson said the business plans to “capitalise on the immediate opportunity in our US and UK direct markets” by putting investment into senior leadership capability and sales teams.
It has already made a series of high-profile hires for Betches in the US including Bill Mulvihill (formerly Conde Nast head of industry, entertainment) as executive vice president for revenue partnerships, Paul Josephsen (formerly chief operating officer at audio tech company Consumable) as COO, Maggie Milnamow (ex-Business Insider chief revenue officer) as chief commercial officer, and Lauren Gibbons as senior vice president of partnerships.
Indirect revenue, programmatic advertising revenue share from social media platforms and form ads served on LBG’s own websites, was up 1% to £41.5m.
Growth on social media offset lower website revenue due to falling traffic and a tough comparison with 2024.
LBG said “management actions – including strengthening the team and structure – are expected to support a recovery in the web business and bring extensive sector expertise and proven delivery”.
These include the hiring of former US Sun editor Natalie Evans as managing director for web and Betches UK in November 2025, Jo-Anne Rowley as director of editorial, and former Planet Sport head of publishing Mark Holmes as head of sport and gaming last month.
CEO Solly Solomou said the emphasis on direct revenue is expected to “make us a more predictable business, with greater visibility of revenues and earnings”.
But he added indirect revenue will “remain central to our business model and a critical component of why advertisers, major brands and celebrities partner with us – to tap into our scale, brand recognition and content relevance”.
LBG’s total audience was 509 million in 2025, up 1% from 2024. Of this, 143 million people were in the US (up from 141 million a year earlier).
Email [email protected] to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our “Letters Page” blog