The owner of popular gambling brands Paddy Power and Betfair – Flutter Entertainment – has seen its profits triple to a record high, while gamblers have been losing £6 million to the group on a daily basis.
The gambling giant, which also owns Sky Bet, revealed that the losses generated by its customers in Ireland in the UK increased by one-third to £1.1-billion over the first half of the current fiscal year. The losses, however, helped Flutter Entertainment’s profit increase to a new record high of £77 million. In comparison, the highest profit generated by the gambling group so far was £24 million in the same period a year ago.
The record results unveiled by Flutter Entertainment covered part of the Euro 2020 football tournament, which has also helped the company boost its profits. During the European football championship, many gambling companies have faced criticism for literally bombarding their customers with gambling adverts on television and social media channels.
The massive profit increase reported by Flutter Entertainment outraged anti-gambling campaigners and Members of Parliament who have been trying to tackle problem gambling and gambling-related harm. They even blamed the gambling company for taking advantage of the suffering and distress of vulnerable players and urged the UK Government to take stricter measures in order to tackle possible gambling harm that could be inflicted on such punters.
Currently, Flutter Entertainment has 3.3 million active customers in Ireland and the UK, with the figure representing a 44% increase on a year-on-year basis. The gambling giant, however, revealed that the average customer’s spend had declined. The operator also shared that it has been making significant investments in customer protection and anti-problem gambling measures.
UK Government Set to Make Significant Changes to Tackle Gambling Addiction Rates
Only yesterday, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) once again warned gambling operators to be extra careful when it comes to customer protection because many punters turn out to be more financially vulnerable because of the coronavirus pandemic. On the other hand, the UK Government is set to make significant changes to the country’s gambling laws, with proposals on the matter expected to be unveiled later in 2021.
For the time being, there are around 400,000 problem gamblers in the UK, with 55,000 underage individuals that can also be categorised as gambling addicts. According to data provided by the country’s gambling regulatory body, 2 more million are considered at risk of being affected by negative consequences associated with gambling.
As part of the massive review of the UK gambling legislation, ministers are expected to consider proposals aimed at implementing stricter measures on the industry, such as imposing a ban on so-called VIP bonuses and the gambling sponsorship deals in football, as well as the establishment of new consumer ombudsman figure. So far, the country’s gambling sector has been trying to fend off all the changes that could affect operators’ profits that marked a massive increase during the coronavirus pandemic thanks to the rapidly increasing popularity of online gambling services.
- Author
Olivia Cole
