Ladbrokes owner warns MORE high street closures to come as Labour’s gambling taxes leave it facing £250million bill

THE boss of Ladbrokes owner Entain has warned more betting shops will disappear from Britain’s high streets as gambling firms grapple with soaring tax bills. Stella David said further closures were likely across the industry as operators struggle to absorb the cost of Labour’s gambling tax hikes. Entain has closed around 70 shops over the past 12 months, while William Hill owner Evoke has lost more than one in five of its outlets, with numbers falling from 1,302 last June to 1,024 this June. FTSE 100-listed Entain said the tax rises were expected to cost it £150million by the end of this year, followed by a further £100million bill in 2027. Sign up for the Money newsletter Thank you! This comes on top of the £500million it paid in UK taxes last year. Remote gaming duty rose from 21% to 40% in April, while a new 25% online betting duty on all sports except horse racing will take effect next year. The Sun’s Save Our Bets campaign has urged ministers not to raise betting duties at the Budget. Ms David confirmed that further closures were likely across Entain’s estate of 2,300 betting shops, although she declined to specify how many could shut. She noted that the company had closed fewer outlets than its competitors. Betting shop numbers have been falling for years, with more than 3,000 closing since 2019, but Ms David insisted Entain would keep its outlets open wherever possible. Entain employs 14,000 people in the UK, where the vast majority of its workforce is based. Most read in Money The company said its shops offered flexible, entry-level jobs, including roles for young people not in education, employment or training (NEET). Ms David said: “We’re really proud of the fantastic people working in these shops. “We’ve never seen such a strong retail estate, supported by a fantastic leadership team.” She also hit out at the lack of action against black-market gambling operators, which pay no UK tax despite regulated firms such as Entain contributing hundreds of millions of pounds to the Treasury. She said: “What doesn’t make sense to us is that black-market operators are allowed to pay no tax. “We paid half a billion pounds last year.” She warned that punters switching to unregulated sites would ultimately deprive the Treasury of much-needed revenue. Her warning came as the FTSE 100 firm revealed strong recent trading, particularly in the UK, boosted by the World Cup. Entain said its UK performance showed “impressive” momentum despite “digesting the recently increased UK remote gambling taxes”. Net gaming revenue rose 5% in the six months to June 30 compared with the same period last year. The company, which also owns Foxy Bingo, said growth was driven by a 7% rise in online revenue, with particularly strong performances in the UK and Australia. Revenue across the UK and Ireland rose 8% during the period, with 13% online growth helping to offset the impact of high-street shop closures. UK gaming revenue increased 13% in the half-year, while sports betting revenue rose 11%. The sports betting division was also boosted by the expanded World Cup in June, which drove a jump in first-time customers and the number of punters using its BetBuilder accumulators. Entain reported underlying earnings of £479million for the six-month period, down 2% from a year earlier but ahead of expectations. Ms David said: “I am pleased with Entain’s start to 2026 with strong momentum and volume growth continuing as well as strong player engagement across the group throughout the World Cup tournament. “This performance reflects our strengthening operations and focused execution which reinforces the resilience of our globally scaled business and its ability to consistently deliver high-quality growth. “I am confident our disciplined focus on growth and optimisation will deliver strong future cash-generation, and that Entain remains well positioned to be a long-term industry winner.” Comment now