Entain will drop out of the FTSE 100 on 21 September, moving to the FTSE 250 after FTSE Russell confirmed the change in its September quarterly index review. The changes take effect at the close of business on 18 September and apply from the start of trading the following Monday.
The Ladbrokes and Coral owner joined the blue-chip index in June 2020 and leaves it with a market capitalisation of roughly £3.3bn, the smallest in the FTSE 100 at the point of exit. Shares trade at about 523p, down around 40% over 12 months and roughly 75% below the October 2021 peak of £21.56. At that peak, exposure to the newly opened US sports betting market drew a £16bn takeover approach from DraftKings.
What pushed the share price down
Three pressures account for most of the derating, and none of them are resolved.
The first is tax. The UK raised Remote Gaming Duty from 21% to 40% in April 2026, and General Betting Duty on online betting is set to rise to 25% in April 2027. The combined cost lands before any mitigation, and the sector is still lobbying against the second increase. The Betting and Gaming Council has been courting the new shadow chancellor as the first hike works through operator margins.
The second is regulation across Entain’s European markets. Compliance requirements in the Netherlands, France and Germany have tightened, with deposit limits, affordability checks and advertising restrictions narrowing what licensed operators can do in markets that were already slow-growing.
The third is the balance sheet. Acquisitions over recent years took group net debt to £3.6bn, roughly double its earlier level. The group also settled with UK authorities for £585m over the legacy Turkish business, a payment that removed the legal overhang but not the cash cost.
Trading has held up better than the share price suggests. Net gaming revenue rose 7% to £2.55bn in the first half of 2026, with growth across the main international markets.
Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, set out the mix behind the fall:
“Entain has battled with high UK gambling taxes, increased competition, and slower than expected growth in the US.”
Disposals and the gap between price and assets
Chief executive Stella David has responded to shareholder pressure on costs and portfolio complexity with targeted sales. In June the group agreed to sell a 20% stake in its Polish and Croatian businesses for up to £366m, and said it intends to divest a further 48% in later phases.
Those disposals have pulled attention to what the rest of the portfolio is worth. Analysts at Berenberg estimate Entain’s breakup value at about £12 per share, more than double the current price. A discount of that size invites the obvious questions about private equity interest, spin-offs of individual brands, or a second takeover approach five years after the DraftKings bid.
BetMGM remains the asset most of that value argument rests on. The US joint venture with MGM Resorts is Entain’s route into the largest regulated sports betting market in the world, and it is also the piece hardest to sell separately, given the joint venture structure and the regulatory approvals attached to it.
Index demotion adds a mechanical layer to the pressure. Funds that track the FTSE 100 have to sell, which puts supply into the market around the effective date regardless of the fundamental case, and Entain loses the visibility that comes with blue-chip status.
Guidance unchanged for 2026
Management has kept its full-year targets in place:
- Online net gaming revenue growth of 5% to 7% on a constant-currency basis
- Underlying EBITDA of £910m to £960m, excluding BetMGM parent fees
- An online EBITDA margin of 21% to 22%
Entain is not the only UK-listed operator adjusting to the new tax base. Flutter is reviewing the closure of up to 100 Paddy Power shops, a sign of how quickly the duty changes are feeding into cost decisions.
The next test is the April 2027 General Betting Duty rise and whether the disposal programme moves fast enough to change the debt picture before it lands. Until then, Entain trades at a level that either reflects a permanently smaller business or invites someone to buy it and take the assets apart.
Source: FTSE Russell
