Layoffs hit LADbible Group’s social video team amid slower user-generated content growth

But growth driven by shareable, user-generated content — often the bulk of LADbible Group’s presence on Facebook and TikTok — may be slowing.

Four sources confirmed the layoffs to Digiday. Senior staff on the social video team have not been affected by the layoffs, according to a former LADbible Group employee who requested to speak under the condition of anonymity. The layoffs are hitting video editors, channel managers and social editors. It remained unclear at the time of publication how many people make up LADbible Group’s social video teams. LADbible Group also has a separate video team focused on its original content, which is primarily published on YouTube. 

A LADbible Group spokesperson confirmed the company is in the process of letting some U.K. staffers go, but declined to comment on the number of roles impacted by this round of layoffs, as well as the roles affected, citing the fact that it is ongoing.

“As the media landscape evolves — particularly around platform dynamics, audience behaviour and monetisation — we are deliberately evolving parts of our operating model to position the business for the next phase of growth,” Solly Solomou, the CEO of LADbible Group, said in a statement provided to Digiday. “Our strategy is increasingly focused on building scalable brand-led IP, deepening creator partnerships and investing in areas where we have greater control over distribution and long-term value creation. As part of this strategic evolution we have begun a consultation process affecting some roles within our U.K. social and editorial teams.”

The LADbible Group spokesperson said the changes reflect the company’s focus on its direct business, which grew 11 percent in the U.K. and 29 percent in the U.S. year over year, according to earnings filed just last month. LADbible Group breaks up its revenue into two categories: indirect revenue from programmatic and social media ads, and direct revenue from its own sales business, driven by original video production (often featuring celebrities and brand sponsorships). Solomou recently relocated from the U.K. to New York to more closely oversee a push into the U.S. market.

In comparison, LADbible Group’s indirect revenue grew just 1 percent year over year. 

LADbible Group’s direct business accounted for 54 percent of the company’s total revenue in the 2025 financial year, up from 51 percent the year prior.

Meta deprioritized reshares of user-generated content on Facebook and pushed for more original video content, hurting LADbible Group’s engagement on the platform — and the revenue coming from Facebook ads, according to a former employee who agreed to speak under the condition of anonymity. Two sources told Digiday that the layoffs in London last year were a cost-cutting move by the company to centralize the social video team in Manchester, a less costly market than London in the U.K.

“RPMs were down for us,” said the former employee. “We did get the sense… that Facebook was falling out of love with content aggregators.”

Tubular Labs data paints a bleak picture: LADbible Group’s Facebook video engagement fell by 89.8 percent from February 2025 to February 2026 (from 154.5 million to 15.8 million). Facebook views fell 84.8 percent year over year (from 7.22 billion to 1.1 billion). Facebook uploads decreased by 27.9 percent (from 6,800 videos to 4,900 videos) in that time period.

TikTok monthly views also fell for LADbible Group, by 65 percent from January 2025 to January 2026, according to Tubular Labs data. However, YouTube monthly views increased by 93 percent in that time.

LADbible Group’s social and revenue executive leadership positions have recently been through some changes, which may be a contributing factor to some of the internal staffing reorganizations. 

Last March, LADbible Group hired Nick Speakman as director of social. He was formerly the global head of social media for the football club Manchester United. And LADbible Group appointed Darren Singer as its new chief financial officer, roughly a year after its former CFO Richard Jarvis stepped down (Dave Wilson became executive chair in January 2025 to support LADbible Group’s finance, legal and investor relations teams in the interim). This is Singer’s first week on the job.