Online gambling group BetGoodwin eyes punt on £80m London float

The father-and-son team who control BetGoodwin, an online sports betting and casino operator, have begun plotting a London stock market listing even as their peers intensify warnings over tax rises in next week's budget.

Sky News understands that Julian Head, BetGoodwin's chief executive, and son Ben, who is the company's chief operating officer, have been working with investment bankers on an initial public offering (IPO) which could value the company at about £80m.

City sources said there was no guarantee that a flotation would go ahead, and that its timing was unclear.

BetGoodwin was founded as Goodwin Racing in 1997 as a traditional high street bookmaker, before the company was acquired by the Heads in 2015.

They subsequently established a phone-betting operation and online platform offering sports and casino betting activities.

Allenby Capital is understood to have been enlisted to work on the prospective IPO.

The company, which closed its sole retail shop in the aftermath of the pandemic, is understood to believe that its capital-light operating model gives it significant cost advantages relative to much larger competitors.

The older Mr Head previously owned 50% of Choicebet, which was sold in 2013 to Gala Coral, now part of the Ladbrokes-owner Entain.

One source said that if an IPO did go ahead, BetGoodwin would not seek to raise any new money but that the current owners would probably elect to sell down roughly 20% of their interest.

A flotation would take place on London's junior AIM market.

BetGoodwin's revenues have been growing rapidly, according to insiders, with plans in place to grow its customer base.

The company works with affiliates such as Oddschecker and At The Races to drive traffic to its own platform.

BetGoodwin could not be reached for comment, while Allenby Capital would not discuss the potential IPO when contacted by Sky News.

Even so, any imminent public listing in the gambling industry would appear to be counter-intuitive, given the volume of warnings about the impact of any tax rises imposed by John Healey, the chancellor, next week.

Remote Gaming Duty was increased in April, while General Betting Duty scheduled to rise in April 2027 on sports bookmaking, with the exception of horseracing.

On Tuesday, Flutter Entertainment - which owns Paddy Power and Betfair - announced that it is cutting more than 1,000 jobs in the UK as a result of the tax hikes being imposed on the online gambling sector.

The owners of Betfred, William Hill and Ladbrokes have all closed shops in recent months, with other companies, including Bet365, axing jobs.

The Times reported this week that Machine Games Duty would rise by five percentage points in the budget to 25%.

Although lower than the industry had feared, Grainne Hurst, chief executive of the Betting and Gaming Council, said: "Any further tax increase would heap more pressure on an industry already facing substantial tax rises, threatening jobs, high streets and vital funding for British racing.

"The industry is already grappling with the near doubling of Remote Gaming Duty and preparing for a sharp rise in General Betting Duty.

"Further tax increases would add to the burden on businesses already making difficult decisions about jobs, investment and their future."

(c) Sky News 2026: Online gambling group BetGoodwin eyes punt on £80m London float