Flutter Entertainment is reviewing up to 100 Paddy Power betting shops across Ireland and the UK for closure, putting around 400 jobs at risk of redundancy, according to a Business Post IE report published on 3 September.
Flutter has not confirmed a final shop count, a split between the Irish and British estates, or a closure timetable. The company has framed the process as a review of its high street portfolio rather than a decided programme, and consultation with affected staff has yet to conclude.
What Flutter has said
A Flutter UK and Ireland spokesperson confirmed the scale of the potential job losses, saying approximately 400 roles could potentially be put at risk of redundancy, and that impacted colleagues will be offered redeployment opportunities where possible.
The spokesperson also defended the retail business itself.
“We are incredibly proud of our high street estate, and it remains a key part of our business.”
Flutter attributes the review to a combination of the increase in Remote Gaming Duty (RGD), competition on the high street, and economic uncertainty. That first factor is the one the company has returned to repeatedly this year.
The tax arithmetic
RGD rose from 21% to 40% of gross gaming revenue in April 2026, following the measures set out in the UK Autumn Budget in November 2025. Remote Betting Duty is scheduled to rise from 15% to 25% in April 2027, covering online betting profit but excluding spread betting, pool bets, horse racing and self-service betting terminals.
The UK government projects gambling tax receipts of £4 billion in 2025-26 and £5 billion in 2026-27. Its own forecast assumes operators pass roughly 90% of the increased duties to consumers, and that reduced consumer demand cuts the yield from the measure by £500 million by 2029-30.
The duty rises apply to online gaming, not to over-the-counter retail betting. The connection to shop closures runs through group economics: online margin funds the estate, and a smaller online margin reduces the tolerance for marginal shops. Flutter cited the same duty increase earlier in 2026 when it restructured its UK and Ireland marketing department.
The second round in under a year
This is not the first cut to the Paddy Power estate. In October 2025, Flutter closed 57 shops across the two markets: 28 in Britain, 28 in the Republic of Ireland and one in Northern Ireland, affecting 247 jobs. Those closures were completed within roughly a month of the announcement, and Flutter cited increasing cost pressures and challenging market conditions at the time.
A review of up to 100 further shops would take the total removed from the estate to more than 150 in under twelve months, alongside close to 650 roles across both rounds.
Pressure on the group numbers
The retail review lands against a difficult set of group results. Flutter reported a net loss of $296 million in the second quarter of 2026, against a $37 million profit in the same period a year earlier. Revenue in the UK and Ireland division grew 4% year on year to $971 million in the quarter, so the pressure is on profitability rather than top-line demand in the market.
The Irish estate carries a separate cost base. Ireland’s betting duty applies to turnover rather than gross profit, which leaves retail margins in the Republic exposed to stake volumes in a way British shops are not, and the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) is still phasing in the licensing regime created by the Gambling Regulation Act 2024.
Rivals face the same maths
Flutter is not alone in shrinking retail. Entain and evoke both warned during the 2025 Budget process that higher duties would lead to shop closures and job losses across their own estates. The April 2026 duty change gives every multi-channel operator a reason to test which locations still cover their costs.
What happens next
Flutter has a leadership handover running in parallel. Peter Jackson is leaving the chief executive role, with Flutter International chief executive Dan Taylor taking over. Any decision on the final number of closures, and on how they are split between Ireland and the UK, falls to the incoming management team.
Flutter has not said which shops are under review or when staff consultation closes. Until it does, up to 100 locations and around 400 jobs sit in a review the company has not committed to completing.
Source: Business Post
