Flutter Entertainment, owner of Paddy Power, plans to eliminate approximately 1,400 positions across its UK and Ireland operations. This restructuring follows significant increases in betting and gaming duties, according to a GB News report on October 20, 2026.
What Happened
Flutter, which operates brands including Paddy Power, Betfair, and Sky Bet, announced its intention to reduce its workforce by approximately 1,400 employees. The proposed redundancies will affect staff in Leeds and Dublin, as well as UK and Ireland employees working in the company’s hubs located in Porto, Portugal, and Cluj-Napoca, Romania, as reported by GB News.
The gambling operator attributed this overhaul to a “significant increase” in betting and gaming duties, which were announced in the previous year’s autumn Budget. Kevin Harrington, Chief Executive of Flutter UK and Ireland, stated that the substantial rise in duties had fundamentally altered the economic model for the regulated betting and gaming industry in the UK, while also contributing to the growth of the unlicensed market (GB News).
Key Details
- Flutter expects the restructuring process to incur costs between $80 million and $90 million, with these charges projected for the final quarter of 2026 (GB News).
- Remote gaming duty, applicable to online casino-style games, increased from 21 percent to 40 percent in April, following budget changes from the previous year (GB News).
- Remote betting duty is scheduled to rise from 15 percent to 25 percent in April of the upcoming year (GB News).
- Prior to this announcement, Flutter indicated that up to 100 Paddy Power betting shops in Britain and Ireland could close due to “economic uncertainty,” placing approximately 400 jobs at risk (GB News, Racing Post).
Why It Matters
The job reductions by Flutter underscore the impact of recent and upcoming tax increases on the regulated betting and gaming sector. According to GB News, Flutter had previously cautioned that it could not fully absorb a tax rise of this magnitude without reducing its fixed cost base. The company anticipates that these tax increases will have a “very significant impact on the overall market,” according to GB News.
Other operators, including Betfred, Entain, and Evoke, have also announced plans for betting shop closures, citing concerns that further increases in machine games duty could render more branches unprofitable (GB News). Independent analysis firm Regulus Partners reportedly estimated that over 4,000 betting shops could close, potentially reducing horse racing’s annual income from betting by £92 million (Racing Post).
What’s Next
The announcement of Flutter’s job cuts precedes the Chancellor’s next Budget, during which the gambling industry is reportedly concerned that machine games duty could be doubled to 40 percent (GB News).
Originally reported by GB NewsPublished
Sources & References
Primary source
- GB Newsgbnews.com
Additional references
- Paddy Power cuts 1,400 jobs and blames betting tax rises – BBC Newsbbc.co.uk
- Paddy Power owner to axe 1400 jobs after Labour tax raidtelegraph.co.uk
- Paddy Power owner Flutter axes 1,400 jobs blaming Labour’s gambling tax hikes | This is Moneythisismoney.co.uk
- Paddy Power to close up to 100 betting shops with 400 jobs at risk as budget tax rises bite | Racing Postracingpost.com