Flutter Entertainment announced on October 20 a restructuring of its business in the United Kingdom and Ireland (UK&I) and said up to 1,400 people could lose their jobs. The company links the decision to British tax increases on betting and gaming announced in the autumn 2025 budget. The same is stated in its 8-K filing with the US regulator.
The cuts will affect staff in Leeds and Dublin, as well as UK&I employees at hubs in Porto (Portugal) and Cluj-Napoca (Romania). A Flutter representative told iGB that the cuts will be “across every function.” All redundancies are subject to consultation. Employees began to be notified on the day of the announcement, and the company expects to complete most of the restructuring by the end of 2026.
Costs are estimated at $80–90 million, mainly severance and redundancy payments. They will be recognised in the fourth quarter of 2026. Expenses for options and other non-cash share-based payments will also arise, but cannot yet be estimated.
Flutter has about 28,500 employees in total, roughly 9,000 of them in UK&I. UK&I head Kevin Harrington said taxes have “fundamentally changed” the economics of licensed operators. He also noted that the company warned about this a year ago. He is nevertheless confident Flutter will gain market share as the country’s largest operator.
For the market, the news is only partly new. According to Casino Beats, the tax on online casino and slots rose from April 1, 2026, and a new rate on remote bets takes effect from April 1, 2027 (bets on British horse races are excluded). Flutter included the cost of mitigation measures in its forecast as early as its Q2 2026 report, so the market already knew the size of the expenses. What is new is the scale of the cuts and their geography.
It is unclear how many cuts will fall on each site and in each country; the company has not said. It also has not disclosed whether the restructuring will affect marketing and partnership teams. For affiliates and buyers working with Flutter brands in the UK, it is worth checking with their managers. Await the results of the consultations and the Q4 report.
