LEGO revenue surges 21% to £4.8bn as F1, Football and K-Pop fuel growth

The Danish toy giant reported record first-half revenue and a 32% rise in net profit as strong demand helped it gain market share in a growing global toy market.

LEGO has reported another record first half, with revenue climbing 21% as strong demand for its products helped the Danish toy company grow faster than the global toy market.

Revenue reached 41.9 billion Danish kroner (£4.8 billion) in the six months to the end of June, up from 34.6 billion kroner in the same period last year. In constant currencies, revenue growth was even stronger at 26%.

Operating profit increased 22% to 10.9 billion kroner, while net profit rose 32% to 8.6 billion kroner. LEGO said the results reflected strong demand across its product range, as well as continued investment in the brand, manufacturing capacity and sustainability.

Consumer sales, which measure demand from shoppers, increased 22%.

Strong growth across LEGO’s business

The results mark another strong period for a company that was already coming off a record year.

LEGO said revenue growth was particularly strong in the Americas, Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Asia Pacific.

The company also said it continued to outperform the wider global toy market and gain market share during the first half of 2026.

That performance is important because LEGO was not simply benefiting from a weak comparison. The group entered 2026 after reporting record full-year results for 2025, making another double-digit increase a significant continuation of its recent growth.

CEO Niels B Christiansen said the company had seen strong enthusiasm for the LEGO brand and pointed to its broad product portfolio and culturally relevant partnerships as important factors behind demand.

Sport and entertainment are bringing in new customers

LEGO’s product range has increasingly extended beyond traditional building sets, with partnerships and entertainment brands playing a bigger role in its sales strategy.

During the first half, the company highlighted several major collaborations, including Formula 1, the FIFA World Cup 2026 and Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters.

Formula 1 has become an important part of LEGO’s sports offering, with products connected to teams and cars from the championship. The company also released FIFA World Cup-related products ahead of the tournament.

KPop Demon Hunters provided another route into popular culture. The animated film became a major Netflix hit, and LEGO added products based on the characters to its portfolio.

The company said sporting and entertainment partnerships helped generate consumer excitement, although it did not break out how much revenue came specifically from any individual partnership.

That distinction matters. LEGO’s overall 22% growth in consumer sales came from demand across a broad product portfolio rather than one particular franchise.

More than 330 new products launched

LEGO introduced more than 330 new products during the first six months of the year.

The strongest-performing themes included established lines such as Speed Champions, Botanicals, Technic, Icons and Star Wars, alongside licensed entertainment properties.

The breadth of the range is central to LEGO’s strategy. The company sells products aimed at children as well as adult collectors and enthusiasts, allowing it to reach customers with very different interests.

LEGO also continued expanding its home-grown entertainment properties. NINJAGO, which launched in 2011, marked its 15th anniversary during the year with new products, collaborations and events.

LEGO pushes further into interactive play

The company is also investing in technology.

During the first half, LEGO launched SMART Play, a new platform designed to introduce more interactive experiences to physical LEGO sets.

The technology has so far appeared in LEGO Star Wars and LEGO Pokémon products.

It is still an early-stage development for the company, so its financial contribution cannot yet be separated from LEGO’s overall results. But the launch shows how the group is looking to expand the traditional brick-building experience rather than relying solely on its existing product model.

Investment in stores and attractions

LEGO is continuing to expand its physical presence as well.

The company invested 1.9 billion Danish kroner to acquire 29 LEGO and LEGOLAND Discovery Centres from Merlin Entertainments. The attractions collectively attract around five million visitors each year.

LEGO also opened new branded stores during the period, taking its worldwide total to 1,106.

The company said it was continuing to invest in its retail network and in interactive experiences that allow customers to see and try its products.

Cash generation also improved. Cash flow from operating activities rose 47% to 8.6 billion kroner, compared with 5.9 billion kroner in the first half of 2025.

Free cash flow reached 2.1 billion kroner, up from 1.7 billion kroner a year earlier.

At the same time, LEGO increased investment in manufacturing capacity and facilities. Capital expenditure reached 4.6 billion kroner during the first half, compared with 4.2 billion kroner in the same period last year.

Sustainability remains a major investment

LEGO’s rapid growth is happening alongside a long-term effort to reduce its reliance on virgin fossil-based materials.

The company said it continued increasing purchases of renewable and recycled materials for its bricks during the first half. It is also continuing its transition to paper-based packaging bags, with the remaining packaging lines across its factories targeted for conversion by 2027.

The company is investing in renewable energy as well. In June, LEGO began construction of its largest solar park in Billund, Denmark.

The project will contain around 160,000 solar panels and is expected to generate 99 gigawatt-hours of electricity each year once operational in 2027.

These investments come alongside LEGO’s wider expansion plans. Construction is continuing on a new factory and regional distribution centre in Virginia in the United States, both of which are scheduled to open in 2027.

A business growing while it invests

One of the more notable aspects of the results is that LEGO increased spending on long-term projects while still delivering strong profit growth.

Operating profit rose 22%, despite continued investment in sustainability, manufacturing and other strategic initiatives.

The company also continued expanding its physical footprint, product range and technology offering.

That combination gives LEGO several sources of growth rather than leaving the company dependent on a single product or market.

Its portfolio now covers everything from traditional LEGO themes to major entertainment franchises, sports partnerships, technology-based products and experiences at branded stores and attractions.

What the results say about LEGO’s strategy

LEGO’s first-half performance shows the strength of a strategy built around keeping the core product familiar while continually finding new reasons for customers to buy it.

Formula 1, the FIFA World Cup and KPop Demon Hunters give the brand access to different audiences, while long-running franchises such as NINJAGO and established product lines provide continuity.

The company is also putting significant money into factories, stores, attractions, technology and more sustainable materials.

The challenge will be maintaining that investment while continuing to grow at a pace that supports its recent expansion. The 21% increase in first-half revenue is a strong result, but it follows several years of growth and comes after a record 2025.

For now, the numbers show that demand remains strong. LEGO’s revenue and consumer sales are growing at double-digit rates, profit is rising faster than revenue, and the company says it is continuing to gain market share in the global toy market.

The second half of 2026 will show whether that momentum can continue.

Source: The LEGO Group’s official first-half 2026 financial results, published on 25 August 2026.