Overview
- Reports say the November 26 budget is expected to leave sports betting duty unchanged while raising rates on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals and online casino-style games to meet a roughly £1 billion target.
- Racing Post cites industry warnings that higher taxes on gaming would still hit the sport through shop closures, worse odds, and reduced marketing, even if sports betting duty is untouched.
- Betfred’s Fred Done says all of the firm’s roughly 1,270 shops could shut if rates rise, putting about 7,500 jobs at risk, with Entain and Evoke also flagging potential closures.
- Analysts at Regulus Partners estimate betting shops deliver about £100 million in media rights and £40 million in levy to racing each year, underscoring the financial stakes of any contraction.
- Operators have already cut promotional spend, with Flutter pulling a £1 million racing docuseries sponsorship, as the BHA continues lobbying after September’s ‘Axe The Racing Tax’ action.