Against a backdrop of increasingly mature and competitive markets, the iliad Group maintains its growth leadership and accelerates its cash generation. During the quarter, services revenues increased by 6%, operating free cash flow rose by 9%, and equity free cash flow quadrupled to €216 million without including the proceeds from the sale of OpCore. We continued to strengthen our financial structure in Q1 2025, reducing our leverage ratio to 2.5x at end-March and extending the average maturity of our debt. On the strength of these results, the Group is standing by its target of generating €2.0 billion in OFCF in full-year 2025.

The iliad Group, Europe's fifth-largest telecoms operator [1] , recorded a total of  263,000 net adds in Q1 2025, mainly in Italy. In light of the low-volume markets, we are prioritizing balanced growth, evenly weighted between value and volume.

With revenues up  4.3% , or  5.7% excluding revenues from devices [2] , the iliad Group was once again  the growth leader  among Europe's top telcos for the quarter [3] . In  France , despite a very high basis of comparison with Q1 2024 (which saw  10.0% growth), revenues rose by  3.3% [4] ( 3.7% excluding revenues from devices), driven by the convergent subscriber base and B2B activities [5] , and the Group was the country's  growth leader during the period. Excluding revenues from devices,  Poland posted a  9.0% revenue rise, led by 5.6% like-for-like growth and a favorable currency effect. In  Italy , revenues advanced 9.4% year on year, and the Group was once again the country's  growth leader despite extremely fierce competition. 

In  France , in a highly competitive market,  Free is keeping to its strategy  of combining quality of service, generous offers and a commitment on prices [6] . A net 8,000 new subscribers joined Free in Q1 (5,000 Mobile and 3,000 Fixed-line), with 48,000 on 4G/5G plans and 114,000 signing up for Fiber. In the annual customer satisfaction survey carried out by the French telecoms regulator, Arcep, published in the first quarter of 2025 [7] , Free topped the ranking for overall satisfaction for Mobile and Fixed services. It also came joint first for subscriber satisfaction with its Mobile and Fixed support service, and stood out as the operator with the least number of problems reported by its subscribers. At Free Pro, one of the key highlights of the quarter was the launch in January of the  new Freebox Pro , which combines ultra-connectivity, data protection, cybersecurity and environmental responsibility [8] . 

In  Poland , Play continued to apply its “more for more” strategy in the Mobile segment, with a  9% increase in revenues billed to subscribers (in local currency) in Q1 2025, and 17,000 net new subscribers on plans (with a 14,000 unit decrease in the prepaid subscriber base). In a highly promotional market, Play nevertheless notched up  3,000 net adds for Broadband and Ultra-Fast Broadband plans (with a decrease of 6,000 units overall in the Fixed segment due to losses on 1Play Telephony/TV subscribers).

In  Italy , iliad Italia maintained its position as the  net adds leader in the Mobile market for the 28 ^th consecutive quarter, with 218,000 net new Mobile subscribers – a performance achieved despite competitors' aggressive sales tactics specifically targeting the company. iliad Italia was also the country's  net adds leader [9] for Broadband and Ultra-Fast Broadband during the period, signing up 40,000 new Fiber subscribers.

Consolidated EBITDAaL  rose  6.0% [10] to  €931 million  in Q1 2025, and EBITDAaL margin widened by 60 basis points to 36.7%. This EBITDAaL growth was achieved despite the sharp rise in the IFER tax in France (€41 million increase, representing 1.7 EBITDAaL margin points), and was attributable to the operating leverage generated by revenue growth, combined with ongoing strict cost discipline. Profit for the period surged from €93 million year on year to  €522 million , reflecting the capital gain realized on the sale of 50% of OpCore at the end of March. 

Consolidated capex (excluding payments for frequencies) edged up 2.5% to  €428 million in Q1 2025. On a last-twelve-month basis, the Group's capex was  20% of consolidated revenues , mainly focused on providing 4G/5G coverage in its three geographies and driving the growth of its B2B activities. In Poland, Play was awarded two 2x10 MHz blocks of spectrum in the 700 MHz frequency band [11] at the end of March 2025, which will enable it to accelerate its investments in 5G and offer higher speeds and enhanced services nationwide.

The Group's  operating free cash flow rose by 9.3% in Q1 2025 to  €503 million. The improvement in our business model, combined with the completion of the sale of 50% of OpCore, enabled us to  reinforce our financial structure , reducing our leverage ratio to  2.5x at end-March 2025  from 2.7x at end-2024. At March 31, 2025, the Group had a  high level of liquidity , with €1.7 billion in cash and cash equivalents and €2.8 billion in undrawn credit facilities. Early May, the Group also proactively managed its debt maturities, extending the maturity on PLN 8 billion of its syndicated loans in Poland by four years, from 2026 to 2030. This stronger financial position has paid off, with Moody's upgrading its outlook for the Group from Stable to Positive at the end of April.

In an unsettled geopolitical context, which further emphasizes the importance of  digital sovereignty and generates exponential demand for  critical infrastructure , OpCore has a clear ambition to become an  independent European leader in hyperscale data centers . Backed by a strategic partnership between the iliad Group and InfraVia, OpCore is aiming to deploy one of the largest capacities in Europe, with a focus on innovation, sustainability and supporting the development of European artificial intelligence. This positioning will help strengthen Europe's digital resilience, while responding to the strategic challenges of security and competitiveness.

In late April 2025, the iliad Group published its Universal Registration Document for 2024, which for the first time includes a  section dedicated to sustainability disclosures in line with the EU's  Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) . In addition, last week the Group announced that it has signed  four new low-carbon Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) in its three geographies, bringing to eight the total number of PPAs it has contracted since its Climate Plan was published in 2021. 
 

Commenting on these results, Thomas Reynaud, Chief Executive Officer of the iliad Group, said: “ Against a highly competitive operating backdrop in all of our markets – and particularly in Italy – our strategy is making all the difference. The relevance of our offerings, the quality of our services and our rigorous strategy execution enabled us to maintain in the first quarter our growth leadership among Europe's top telcos. This momentum, combined with strict cost discipline, has reinforced our financial position and given us the means to pursue our investments, particularly in infrastructure dedicated to artificial intelligence via OpCore and Scaleway.”  

To know more: 

• Read our press release

[1] By number of subscribers.

[2] 3.7% and 5.3% respectively based on a constant scope of consolidation and exchange rates.

[3] Organic growth in Services revenues - among Europe's Top 15 telcos.

[4] Adjusted for the deconsolidation of OpCore (2.9% reported growth).

[5] Free Pro, Scaleway, ITrust, Stancer. 

[6] Free has pledged to keep the prices of its two mobile plans at €2 and €19.99 until 2027. 

[7] “Observatoire” customer satisfaction survey published by Arcep on April 3, 2025 (in French only). See also Free's press release .

[8] See the press pack for the new Freebox Pro.

[9] Out of Italy's top four telcos – internal estimates.

[10] 5.1% based on a constant scope of consolidation and exchange rates.

[11] The cost of these new frequencies amounts to PLN 726 million, with PLN 300 million already paid in Q1 2025 and the remaining payment due at the end of Q2 2025.