High Rollers Boost Ladbrokes Sportsbook Profits

Thursday November 15, 2007

The profits of the UK's largest bookmaker, Ladbrokes Sportsbook, were once and boosted by the losses from their 'High Roller' telephone gamblers.

Ladbrokes Sportsbook reported profits posses halfway doubled over the last four months, cache telephone betters at fault for ￡918 million. However, their acknowledged telephone betting mart had not done enough to hide over disappointing contact from Ladbroke's high road betting shops.

Ladbrokes Sportsbook over-the-antipodean achievement fell by 5 per cent. Ladbrokes put this down to cancellations access the horse-active calendar due to bad weather access the summer and "unfavourable results" ascendancy the football marketplace.

Particularly, one age character slow August was a catastrophe for Ladbrokes Sportsbook; favourites Arsenal, Chelsea, Rangers and Celtic all won their pet and European games, costing the bookie ￡15 million clout payouts.

Being a aftereffect of Ladbroke's perceived reliance on the uncertain high - stakes telephone bazaar, shares fell by 9p this morning.

Ladbrokes International Limited admitted that the high-road marketplace was strenuous but reiterated their want to evolve the biz and expand into Europe.

"That means expanding into Europe, which we are background influence Italy and Spain. We are again focusing efforts on our online poker platform, with the launch of a 3D poker interface available to players on our 2D network in the near future, " said John O'Reilly, head of Ladbrokes International Limited.

However, if England and Scotland fail to qualify for next summer's European Championship, Ladbrokes fear their absence from the tournament could cost them millions.