Bookmaker in talks to buy rival

William Hill said today it was in talks to buy around 600 betting shops from Stanley Leisure in a move set to create Britain’s biggest bookmaker.

The company, which already has 1,600 sites, confirmed it was considering a bid worth more than £500m (€732.4m) for the estate of Liverpool-based Stanley.

While a deal would take William Hill beyond the 2,000 outlets operated by Ladbrokes, it is expected to face competition from other parties, possibly Britain’s third-biggest bookie Coral and pooled betting business the Tote.