Entain puts cost of UK Budget gambling tax rise at £25m a year for its betting shops

Entain has criticised the UK Government’s decision to raise gambling taxes again in the Budget, saying the change will cost its UK and Ireland betting shop business about £25m a year before any action to offset it.

The increase comes through Machine Gaming Duty (MGD), which is charged on gross gaming revenue from type 2 gaming machines in betting shops. The rate will rise from 20% to 25% from 1 April 2027. Entain’s £25m estimate is an annualised figure based on consensus forecasts for its UK and Ireland retail net gaming revenue in FY27.

A second tax rise in a year

The owner of Ladbrokes and Coral said it was “disappointed” by the decision to add to the tax burden on an industry it described as already highly taxed. It said the rise would damage the wider industry, UK high streets, jobs and livelihoods, on top of the pressure created by what it called the “disproportionate” tax increases announced in November 2025.

Stella David, Entain’s chief executive, said:

“This is another disappointing decision by the Government. The previous gambling tax increases announced in November last year have already had detrimental consequences across the industry, with the effects being felt by employees, communities as well as customers. These additional tax changes will further compound that damage and push more people into the growing illegal market.

We will continue to work hard to limit the impact of these changes on our business, our people, and the communities in which we operate. Our priority is to protect jobs wherever possible whilst supporting a sustainable retail presence on UK high streets.”

How Entain plans to offset the cost

Entain expects to fully mitigate the extra cost by the end of 2028. It plans to do this through a mix of closing or consolidating shops, cost-saving work across the group and winning market share. Because it runs the largest betting shop estate on UK high streets, the company expects to pick up customers if rivals scale back their own UK presence in response to the tax change.

The group’s FY26 guidance, last set on 15 October 2026, is unchanged, as is its target of generating £500m in annual adjusted cash flow in 2028.

The UK tax change lands in a busy period for regulation in the market. The Gambling Commission recently set out how breach reporting under its remote technical standards should work for B2B and B2C licensees.