Betfred’s £996m turnover highlights enduring value of betting shops

UK bookmaker Betfred recorded a £39.6 million after-tax profit in 2025/26, with its latest accounts highlighting the continued importance of retail betting as it completes its withdrawal from the United States.

Turnover reached £996 million in the year to March 29, comprising £544 million from betting shops and £452 million online, although comparisons with the previous accounting period are complicated by its 78-week duration.

The bookmaker operated 1293 shops at the end of the financial year, down from 1351 a year earlier, before announcing in July that 132 outlets would close in response to increased gambling taxes, while the accounts also pre-date the near-doubling of remote gaming duty.

Owner Fred Done has warned that a proposed doubling of machine games duty in this month’s federal budget could force the closure of 495 shops, raising the prospect of Betfred disappearing from the British high street by 2030.

Betfred paid £147.4 million in betting duty and almost £54.5 million in machine games duty during the reporting period, while employee costs rose by £19.2 million on a like-for-like basis, largely due to increases in the national minimum wage and employers’ National Insurance contributions.

The accounts also recorded higher online marketing expenditure, which contributed to a £23.3 million like-for-like increase in turnover, alongside reduced staff numbers, while the company confirmed it had ceased trading in its final US state and completed its withdrawal from that market.