PRISA Group closed the first half of 2026 with a strong increase in operating results. Revenue amounted to €513 million, a 26% increase on the figure recorded in the first half of the previous year. EBITDA, meanwhile, rose by 70%, reaching €86 million, compared with €51 million in the first six months of 2025.
Both PRISA Media and Santillana improved revenue, EBITDA and margins, in line with expectations for the year as a whole.
Both businesses are making progress in transforming their business models, expanding their recurring and sustainable revenue base. PRISA Media increased EL PAÍS’s total subscribers to more than 482,000, up 13% compared with June 2025, with digital revenue accounting for 30% of total revenue. Santillana reached 4 million subscriptions, up 19%, and sales of learning systems now represent 62% of total private-market sales.
The Group’s outstanding operating performance is driven by structural trends — such as the growth of the subscription models at Santillana and PRISA Media — as well as by the improved performance of advertising. In addition, these results are boosted by the recognition of revenue associated with the 2025 PNLD Ensino Médio public-procurement order in Brazil. Of the total amount awarded in 2025 (777 million Brazilian reais), approximately 72% was invoiced in the first half of 2026 (23% was recognized in 2025).
In the first six months of the current year, cash generation continued to strengthen, with a €13 million improvement in operating cash flow and a 10% increase in total cash generation. PRISA also continues to make progress in reducing leverage in line with its planned roadmap, with the net debt-to-EBITDA ratio falling to 3.78x, compared with 4.26x at the close of the first half of 2025. The net result improved by 49%, thanks to the solid operating results.
By business, PRISA Media’s revenue grew by 6% in the first half of 2026, driven principally by the improvement in advertising revenue and by events such as EL PAÍS’s 50th anniversary and the Football World Cup. PRISA Media continued to gain market share in Spain, Colombia and Chile. EL PAÍS’s digital subscription revenue rose by 12%. Likewise, Grupo Radiópolis — the advertising sales and radio content creation company in Mexico — has been fully consolidated since April 2026. PRISA Media’s EBITDA rose by 41% to €20 million.
Santillana, meanwhile, continues to drive the expansion of learning systems and is delivering solid performance across its other activities, enabling total revenue growth of 46%. It has now built a subscription base of 4 million. Particularly noteworthy is the contribution of new initiatives such as Richmond PRO and Sumun, as well as the increase in supplemental and English-language subscriptions. Growth was also supported by the aforementioned revenue recognition from the 2025 PNLD Ensino Médio order in Brazil, together with improved sales to Brazilian local public administrations. Santillana’s EBITDA reached €69 million in the first half of 2026, representing a 70% increase on the same period of the previous year.
PRISA’s commitment to sustainability continues, as demonstrated by its recent ISO 14064-1 certification for the quantification and reporting of its carbon footprint, covering PRISA Media in Spain and Santillana in Brazil.
