In a move that is shocking to the Igaming world, Paddy Power has decided to close lots of its betting shops in the UK and Ireland.
The betting giant is closing 29 shops in the UK and 28 in the Republic of Ireland.
The conversation around closures has been rampant recently, with other betting shop giants like Entain warning of shop closures if the proposed UK gambling tax rise goes ahead later this autumn.
William Hill’s owner also mentioned the possibility of closure if the disastrous taxes come into play.
Paddy Power’s parent company Flutter said the store closures are due to “cost pressures and challenging market conditions”.
29 UK stores will be closed. One will be in Northern Ireland, and 28 in Ireland.
The stores will be gradually shut over the next month, and then there will be a review of the remaining high street stores.
Why Are The Closures Happening?
The closures are happening because of market changes, according to Flutter. Honestly, some closures could be because of potential tax rises proposed by Labour MPs. If the tax rise goes ahead, betting shops would have to pay double the amount in taxes on selected games.
Undoubtedly, the taxes will eat into betting shop profits and possibly force some permanent closures.
Another side effect of the store closures is the redundancies, totalling 128 in the UK.
While the company did not confirm that all those at risk will lose their jobs entirely, the inevitable store closures will put them out of work.
However, it is important to note that Flutter denied that potential tax increases are the direct reason for the closures.
There is concern in the industry that the tax rises could also lead players to move towards other markets.
It is worrying if the idea is floating around the heads of the biggest betting brands like Ladbrokes, William Hill, and now Paddy Power, is mass store closures.
The industry continues to take hits. In 2019, the tax on remote gaming increased to 21%, which also affected the online UK casino industry.
Also taking hits is the UK high street.
The UK government has even proposed that residents will be able to prevent the opening of new unwanted stores in their high street soon, like betting shops.
Could This Happen To Other Betting Shops?
Unfortunately, this seems likely. If a brand like Paddy Power, which predicted its profits would surge to £2.45 billion earlier in the summer, is now having to close stores, smaller and similar-sized brands should be worried.
What’s frustrating is Flutter didn’t reveal the exact reason for the store closures, which is why we can only speculate on the ‘market changes’ they are referring to.
Still, stay tuned for updates on the UK betting industry!
