Hill first past post in bookie rivalry

Graeme Evans

William Hill said it had struck an agreement to buy 624 betting shops from rival Stanley Leisure. The shops will be rebranded and Hill will then be Britain’s biggest bookmaker.

The deal leaves William Hill with 2,237 betting offices but still requires the approval of shareholders and competition authorities.

A sale of the betting business, which trades as Stanleybet, would still leave Stanley with its casino arm.

William Hill described Stanley’s bookmaking estate as “highly complementary” with its own, as Hills is currently under-represented in the North West of England and has no shops in Ireland.

The company said that Stanleybet’s profitability was “substantially below” its own and offered opportunities for improvement.

The deal will leave Hills with around a quarter of Britain’s 8,500 sites, so it could yet be referred by the Office of Fair Trading to the Competition Commission for a full investigation.

However, the company was hopeful of avoiding a referral. It said: “The UK betting market is highly competitive and, accordingly, the board believes that any potential competition issues will not be material.”