Betfred Warns 495 Shops Could Close Under Machine Tax Increase

Betfred founder Fred Done says another UK gambling tax increase could force the bookmaker to close almost half of its remaining betting shops.

Done told the Financial Times that a proposed increase in Machine Games Duty could put 495 Betfred shops and 2,575 jobs at risk within a year.

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Good to Know

• Betfred currently operates about 1,094 UK betting shops.
• Done estimates 495 closures could reduce government tax receipts by about £67 million.
• Remote Gaming Duty already increased from 21% to 40% in April 2026.

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Betfred Says Retail Economics No Longer Work

Betting machines remain a major part of Betfred retail economics. Done said they generate roughly half of shop profit even after the maximum FOBT stake fell to £2 in 2019.

The standard Machine Games Duty rate currently stands at 20% of net takings for qualifying machines. Chancellor John Healey is reportedly considering raising that rate to 40% in the Autumn Budget.

Betfred already closed 132 shops earlier in 2026 as higher taxes, employment costs and wages weighed on the retail business. Chief Executive Jo Whittaker said at the time:

“We have tried hard to protect all our sites and the colleagues who work in them, but the combined impact of higher employer National Insurance contributions, wage inflation, increases in gambling taxes and wider economic uncertainty has left us with no choice.”

Other major bookmakers have also reduced retail operations. Evoke announced plans to close around 200 William Hill shops, citing higher costs including gambling tax increases.

Entain CEO Stella David has separately warned that a 40% Machine Games Duty rate could add around £100 million to annual costs. She wrote to Prime Minister Andy Burnham:

“They are people losing their jobs and communities losing long-established high-street businesses.”

Fred Done Warns Betting Shops Could Vanish

Done went further than outlining possible Betfred closures. He said the economics of operating betting shops could become unworkable across the sector by the end of the decade.

“I believe that by 2030 we will have no betting shops. The high street will be dead. We’ve already worked it out that with the increases in taxes and salaries and other wages it won’t be worth operating,” he said.

The warning comes while the government also prepares planning changes for betting shops. Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced in August that the government plans to remove the existing “Aim to Permit” approach and give councils more control over new betting shops and adult gaming centres.

Betfred also has close financial links with British horse racing. The bookmaker sponsors all five British Classics, including the Derby, Oaks and St Leger. Its current agreement made Betfred the first company to sponsor all five at the same time.

Done said uncertainty around gambling taxation could affect future sponsorship decisions. He also argued that fewer regulated betting shops could direct some customers toward unlicensed gambling operators.

The Done family paid about £400 million in UK taxes during the previous year, while Betfred contributed around £210 million, according to the Financial Times.

“They keep saying those with the broadest shoulders should be paying more tax. Well, how broad do my shoulders have to be? We paid £400 million in taxes as a family last year.”

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