Entain has begun implementing organisational changes that will remove around 500 roles across the group over the coming months. GBC said the redundancies amount to about 2% of the company’s global workforce, and the biggest impact is expected in central corporate functions, including finance and human resources, as well as product and technology.
The restructuring will be led by Michael Snape, Entain’s new chief financial officer. Entain’s March results release said Snape joined as group CFO designate on 2 February and became group CFO and executive director on 6 March, after succeeding Rob Wood, who stepped down after 13 years as group CFO and deputy CEO and remained with the company until June to ensure an orderly transition.
Entain said it is consulting affected employees and will support them through the process. An Entain spokesperson told iGamingBusiness that the changes would help make the company a “stronger, better business” and form part of its ongoing focus on operational efficiency and agility.
The company also stressed that the redundancies are not a direct response to the UK’s increase in Remote Gaming Duty. The government has raised that rate from 21% to 40% from 1 April, and says the wider gambling duty changes are designed to raise more than £1 billion a year and create a fair, modern and sustainable tax system.
A separate remote betting rate of 25% will be introduced from 1 April 2027, though bets on UK horseracing and bets placed via self-service betting terminals on licensed premises will remain at 15%. Entain had already said in March that proposed UK online gambling tax increases were expected to add about £200 million a year to its costs.
The job cuts come after other changes in the group’s international business. In April, Entain closed 39 Ladbrokes betting shops in Ireland, saying it remained committed to the market and intended to operate through a smaller, more sustainable retail footprint.
It also agreed to sell a 20% interest in Entain CEE to its joint venture partner EMMA Capital.
