Budget carrier sets aside €85M for contested Italian penalty, slashing quarterly earnings by 74% despite strong passenger demand and operational growth.
Ryanair disclosed an €85 million ($101 million) exceptional charge in its third-quarter results to account for a contested fine from Italy’s competition regulator, slashing the European budget carrier’s quarterly profit by 74%.
The charge stems from a €256 million penalty imposed last year by Italy’s AGCM competition authority, which accused Ryanair of exploiting a dominant market position by attempting to obstruct travel agencies from purchasing flights through the airline’s website.
Ryanair generated a pre-exceptional net profit of €115 million for the third quarter, down more than 20% from the previous year. After accounting for the fine allocation, net profit fell to just €30 million.
“Both we and our Italian legal advisors are confident that the courts will overturn this AGCM ruling on appeal,” Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary said.
Despite the legal uncertainty, the airline has set aside €85 million — one-third of the total penalty — as a precautionary measure while it challenges the ruling through Italy’s court system.
The carrier maintains an optimistic outlook for full-year performance, lifting its passenger forecast slightly to nearly 208 million due to strong demand and earlier-than-expected Boeing aircraft deliveries.
Although the fourth quarter will not benefit from the Easter 2026 holiday period, Ryanair expects fares will exceed prior growth projections. The airline is cautiously forecasting a pre-exceptional net profit of €2.13 billion to €2.23 billion for the full year.
The AGCM’s allegations center on claims that Ryanair systematically prevented travel agencies from accessing its website booking system, potentially limiting competition in the Italian aviation market. The case highlights ongoing tensions between airlines and third-party booking platforms over distribution control and market access in Europe.
Key Takeaways
- Ryanair set aside €85 million for an Italian competition fine, reducing third-quarter net profit from €115 million to €30 million — a 74% decline.
- Italy’s competition regulator fined the carrier €256 million for allegedly obstructing travel agencies from purchasing flights through its website.
- Despite the legal challenge, Ryanair raised its full-year passenger forecast to nearly 208 million and projects pre-exceptional profit of €2.13-2.23 billion.
- The airline remains confident its legal appeal will overturn the penalty, though it provisionally allocated one-third of the fine amount.
