SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The number of people working in the gambling industry plummeted by 15 per cent between March 2010 and September 2013, Gambling Commission statistics reveal.
There were 122,339 employees as of March 31st 2010, versus a reported 104,137 by the end of September last year. This represents a loss of 18,202 or 14.87 per cent, with the biggest decreases seen in the arcade and remote sector, 9350 and 2632 respectively. However, the Gambling Commission noted: “The decrease in arcades employee numbers is in part due to the clarification given to motorway service area operators on the classification of staff directly associated with gambling activities.”
Meanwhile, William Hill, Ladbrokes, Coral and Betfred continue to dominate the UK betting sphere, with their estates accounting for 87 per cent of all retail shops and the number of units growing year on year.
Figures show that it hasn’t all been doom and gloom. The British gaming sector generated a gross gambling yield of almost £6.7bn during the period October 2012-September 2013, with the non remote betting sector securing 48 per cent of the market, followed by the casino and regulated remote sector, both on 16 per cent. GGY grew by £1.3bn across all groups during the same period (2010-2013), with gaming machines also performing strongly.
The overall number of gaming machines and terminals in betting shops decreased by 893 since April 2009. GGY increased from £1.18bn to £1.55bn, a rise of £371m (31 per cent).
