William Hill is preparing to close up to 200 shops in the event of a widely expected gambling tax hike later this year.
The operator behind William Hill, Evoke – formerly known as 888, which acquired the bookmaker in a £2 billion takeover in 2022 – is planning for disaster ahead of Rachel Reeves’ autumn budget.
Entain CEO Stella David, who runs the group that owns the likes of Ladbrokes and Coral, also came out to say the proposals could force the closure of betting shops.
The Chancellor is set to harmonise online gambling tax into a single rate and last month argued gambling operators “should pay their fair share.”
Online gambling is currently taxed at 15% of gross profit for racing and pool betting and 21% for casino games and slot machines but it is anticipated that number could be as high as 30%.
The British Horseracing Authority is fearing losses of up to £160 million on its sport alone, putting horse racing’s future at risk alongside thousands of jobs, rural communities and vital funding for horse welfare.
First reported by the Sunday Times, Evoke could cut its number of William Hill shops by around 120 to 200 – amounting to between 9% and 15% of the firm’s 1,300 betting shops with up to 1,500 jobs on the line.
Each betting shop typically employs between five and ten people and Evoke, which also owns the 888 and Mr Green brands, has 10,000 staff in total.
A spokesperson for the company said: “We are mindful of potential tax increases in the forthcoming budget which would impact investment in the UK and drive more customers to the black market.
“As part of our ongoing planning, we are assessing the potential impact of different overall tax scenarios on our UK operations. This includes the difficult but necessary consideration for shop closures.”
In July, a YouGov survey revealed 28% of gamblers in the United Kingdom could head for the black market due to tax harmonisation.
Joe Lyons is a betting industry writer for GamblingIndustryNews with years of experience on reputable gambling websites. Joe specialises in long form content in the world of sports betting and gambling. Joe is recognised as an expert in sports fields such as horse racing, soccer, NFL and NBA.
