Entain has opened a consultation on cutting 400 customer care jobs, about one in five of the 2,000 roles in that function worldwide, weeks after the Ladbrokes and Coral owner reported better than expected first-half profit.
The group, whose brands include Ladbrokes, Coral and Dutch operator BetCity, and which co-owns US business BetMGM, confirmed the proposal on 16 September. It’s the second round of job cuts Entain has announced this year.
Entain’s H1 2026 results showed revenue up 7% to £2.55bn, while underlying EBITDA fell 2%. The company leaves the FTSE 100 for the FTSE 250 on 21 September after FTSE Russell’s quarterly review.
Chief executive Stella David said:
“[The proposed changes ensure the] business remains competitive, financially resilient, and well positioned for the future as our sector faces an increasingly challenging operating environment.”
She added:
“This decision has not been made lightly, and our immediate priority is to support those of our colleagues who may be impacted through this transition.”
Entain’s letter on Machine Games Duty
Are you affected? Entain Plans 400 Job Cuts, 20% of Customer Care Staff
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Alongside the job-cut announcement, Entain shared a letter sent to the Prime Minister’s office about UK gambling taxes with Reuters, which published details from it. The letter targets proposals to double Machine Games Duty (MGD), the tax on net takings from gaming machines, including those in betting shops, to 40%.
The Sun, which said it had seen the letter, reported that it urges Burnham to scrap the MGD proposals. According to The Independent, Entain says doubling MGD to 40% would add around £100m to the annual cost of running its UK retail business. The letter also refers to a Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) report on shop closures and job losses.
This is Money published a longer passage. It quotes the letter as saying the increase could lead to up to 1,470 shop closures and 15,900 job losses. The letter describes those consequences as “not theoretical efficiencies in a financial model” and says they mean “people losing their jobs and communities losing long-established high-street businesses”.
The MGD proposals concern retail gaming machines. The 400 roles now under consultation are in customer care.
500 roles already cut in July
In July, Entain confirmed it would cut 500 roles from its global workforce.
Remote Gaming Duty (RGD), charged on online casino profits, rose from 21% to 40% in April 2026. Entain has estimated that the new gambling taxes will add about £200m a year to its costs.
If the customer care proposal goes ahead in full, Entain will have announced 900 job cuts in 2026.
How redundancy consultation works in the UK
The cuts are global, and roles outside Great Britain fall under local employment law. For staff in England, Scotland and Wales, the process follows the government’s rules on redundancy consultations.
An employer proposing 20 or more redundancies at a single establishment within any 90-day period must follow collective consultation rules. It must notify the Redundancy Payments Service by submitting form HR1 online, and the minimum timings depend on the number of roles:
- 20 to 99 redundancies: notify at least 30 days before the first redundancy, and consult for at least 30 days before any dismissal takes effect.
- 100 or more redundancies: notify at least 45 days before the first redundancy, and consult for at least 45 days before any dismissal takes effect.
There are no set rules for fewer than 20 redundancies, though the guidance calls full consultation with employees and their representatives good practice.
What affected staff should know
What must my employer tell me?
The employer must give written details of the reasons for the redundancies, the numbers and categories of employees involved, how staff will be selected, how the redundancies will be carried out and how redundancy pay will be calculated.
Who speaks for staff in the consultation?
The employer consults trade union representatives or elected employee representatives. Where there are none, it must consult staff directly.
What if my employer doesn’t consult?
The government guidance says redundancies made without consultation “will almost certainly be unfair”, and the employer could be taken to an employment tribunal.
Where the notifications show up
HR1 forms feed into the Insolvency Service’s monthly management information on the Advanced Notification of Redundancy Scheme.
In August 2026, the Insolvency Service received 282 HR1 forms covering 19,557 potential redundancies from 238 employers. The data covers England, Scotland and Wales, counts forms by the month they were received and excludes forms proposing fewer than 20 redundancies.
The figures are not classified as Official Statistics and may be revised. They record proposed redundancies, not confirmed job losses.
What happens next
The consultation will decide how many of the 400 customer care roles go. Entain has said its immediate priority is supporting staff who may be affected.
Entain’s UK betting shops face a separate question: whether the government goes ahead with the MGD proposals. Entain puts the cost at around £100m a year, and the letter cites up to 1,470 shop closures if the rate doubles.
Source: Entain
