Iliad Group H1 earnings reach €502M behind 10.1% Italian growth

Iliad's performance demonstrates that aggressive infrastructure investment in 5G SA and fiber is yielding tangible churn reduction and margin expansion across fragmented European markets. By integrating YouTube Premium into its French plans and launching 5G home internet in Italy, the company is successfully pivoting from a pure-play telco to a converged digital services provider. This growth trajectory, particularly the 10.1% revenue lift in Italy, pressures incumbent operators to accelerate their own network upgrades to maintain market share. Watch for the regulatory outcome of the proposed SFR asset acquisition, which would significantly alter the competitive landscape in France.

Iliad Group has been aggressively expanding its footprint across European markets, with its Italian subsidiary Iliad Italia now serving as a key growth engine. In early 2026, Iliad Italia surpassed 12 million mobile subscribers, cementing its position as the fourth-largest operator in the country, a milestone that reflects the company's strategy of undercutting incumbents on price while investing heavily in network quality. The group's Polish operations under the Play brand have also contributed to consolidated growth, with Play reporting steady fiber subscriber additions throughout the first half of 2026. Meanwhile, Iliad's Free brand in France launched its Free Max plan bundling YouTube Premium at no additional cost to subscribers, a move that differentiates the operator in a market where content bundling is becoming a primary retention lever.

On the infrastructure and cloud side, Iliad's subsidiary Scaleway has emerged as a strategic asset for the group's diversification beyond connectivity. Scaleway signed a multi-year cloud infrastructure contract with Airbus in early 2026 to support the aerospace manufacturer's data processing workloads, marking one of the largest enterprise deals for a European sovereign cloud provider. The company has also been investing in 5G standalone core deployment across its French network, with Iliad announcing commercial 5G SA availability in over 3,000 French communes by mid-2026, positioning itself ahead of regulatory timelines that may eventually mandate standalone capabilities for spectrum license compliance. In Italy, the 5G Box Casa fixed wireless access product has gained traction as a fiber alternative in underserved areas, contributing to the 10.1% revenue growth reported in the half.

Competitive dynamics in France are shifting as Iliad pursues a potential acquisition of SFR assets, a deal that would reshape the market from four operators to three. French competition authority ARCEP opened a formal review of the proposed SFR asset transfer in July 2026, with a decision expected before year-end. The outcome will determine whether Iliad can consolidate spectrum and infrastructure to further reduce costs. Thomas Reynaud, Iliad's CEO, has framed the acquisition as essential for sustaining investment in rural fiber and 5G coverage obligations. Analysts note that approval would give Iliad combined market share approaching 35% in French mobile, raising questions about pricing power and consumer choice that regulators must weigh against the infrastructure investment commitments the combined entity would undertake.