British based bookmaker William Hill has announced the closure of 200 shops across the UK as the company continues to deal with the fallout from the most recent Labour Party budget.
The brand, which has been synonymous with the British high street for more than 60 years, will also begin engaging in a round of staff cuts over the coming weeks. In total, more than 1,500 jobs are expected to be cut from the workforce as a result of the move.
Shops closure a result of strategic review
Earlier in the year, Evoke confirmed it was exploring a full or partial sale amid £1.8bn debt, with advisers Morgan Stanley and Rothschild & Co. The review for any potential sale was established to maximize shareholder value, but no deal was guaranteed, the company said at the time. Instead, it looks like the company has decided to sell assets to satisfy the board.
In a statement, Evoke said: “Following a thorough review and further to increased cost pressures on the regulated sector including significant tax increases announced by the Government in last year’s Autumn Budget, from May we are closing a number of shops that are no longer sustainable.
“We are offering our full support to our retail colleagues who are affected by these closures.
“These decisions are never taken lightly, however in the face of rising cost pressures we must take action to ensure we can continue to invest in our core retail estate, with the right shops, in the right locations.”
In the Labour Party budget last year, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced sweeping tax increases targeting the UK’s online gambling sector, including a sharp rise in Remote Gaming Duty (RGD) from 21% to 40% and an increase in online betting tax from 15% to 25%.
Reeves said the measures respond to the growth and harms of remote gambling, with the changes expected to generate more than £1 billion annually by 2031. Horse racing bets and high street bookmakers were spared additional taxes, while operators serving UK customers, whether based domestically or offshore, will be required to pay the higher duties.
BGC says betting jobs on the decline
According to the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), there was a 30% fall in the number of betting shops from 2019, with the amount shrinking from 8,304 to 5,825 in March 2025. That figure has led to over 10,000 industry workers losing their jobs.
The BGCl said the latest tax increases, combined with what it described as unfair business rates, are accelerating the decline of betting shops, adding pressure on operators with both retail and online gambling operations.
Economic analysis by multinational professional services network EY, commissioned by the BGC before the budget was announced, suggested the budget would cut 40,000 jobs from the betting industry.
“Tax raids like those proposed would mean fewer betting shops, casinos and bingo halls, fewer jobs, and a huge boost to the growing, unsafe gambling black market, while not raising anywhere near the tax claimed,” Grainne Hurst, BGC chief executive, said at the time.
William Hill refuses to pay out jackpot sums after glitch
Meanwhile, customers have been left bitterly disappointed after jackpot windfalls on William Hill’s online slots were deemed a glitch.
One such customer was Stephen Harvey, 53, from Dunstable, who said he initially won £200 on William Hill’s Jackpot Drop game on March 16 before later hitting a £330,906.96 jackpot.
Harvey said the win felt “life-changing,” prompting him to look at buying a home and replacing his car. He withdrew the funds, but later that day noticed the payments had been declined. The balance briefly reappeared before his account was suspended.
He later received an email stating the transactions were void under the terms and conditions and was asked to repay his initial £200 winnings. He is now considering legal action.
That’s not the only incident the company has faced. A woman from Wakefield said she was “absolutely gutted” after being told she must repay £33,000 from an online jackpot she had initially been awarded via William Hill.
A customer identifying as Gemma, said she had been “crying with happiness” after being told she had won £47,182 on a similar Jackpot Drop game and had hoped to use the money to pay off her mortgage. Instead, she is being asked to repay the money.
William Hill said more than 35,000 jackpot payouts were recorded during the affected period, compared with just over 500 in the same timeframe a week earlier. Customers impacted by the suspected error were offered settlement deals equal to 11% of the disputed winnings, on the condition they returned the funds within three days, but some have chosen to challenge the outcome.
