Star Racing Limited, the parent company of independent bookmaker Star Sports, has reported a sharp fall in revenue for the year to 31 March 2025, with the group pointing at the cost of UK regulation as a key factor.
Turnover at the Hove-headquartered operator dropped to £57.9m, down from a restated £85.4m the previous year, marking a decline of 32.2%. Net gambling gains and losses fell 36% from £83.4m to £53.6m.
The strategic report, filed with Companies House at the end of July, showed that while total stakes rose to £2.188bn from £2.038bn, total gambling revenue fell from £85m to £47m, with net profit margin dropping from 4% to 1%.
Operating profit fell from £4.75m to £1.55m, profit before tax dropped from £3.37m to £1.46m, and the bottom line contracted from £1.72m to just over £690,000.
The group said the year had been marked by “growth in total stakes, but a decline in total gambling revenue, gross profit margin and net profit margin,” adding this was “mainly due to regulatory challenges and the costs associated with running UK regulated operators.”
The company also flagged the sector’s mounting compliance burden as a principal risk, noting that “Star Sports is at the forefront of this issue as the gaming industry faces increasing scrutiny over protecting vulnerable individuals”.
It pointed to continued investment in affordability checks and anti-money laundering technology, both internally and through third-party suppliers.
Star Sports is one of the UK’s remaining independent bookmakers, running high street betting shops alongside online and phone betting services from its Sussex base.
The group has been building out its digital offering through technology subsidiary Playbook Engineering Limited, with the accounts citing continued spend on an in-house platform the company wants to make “first in class”.
Headcount rose over the year, from 79 to 114 staff, with total payroll costs climbing to £8.1m from £6.8m.
The accounts also show a boardroom change, with Flynn Emerson Goward taking over as director from April 2024, succeeding Russell Candler.
Former Conservative MP Philip Davies, a vocal critic of gambling reform, briefly joined the board as a director between September and December 2025, after the period covered by the filing.
The post Star Sports revenue slides 32% as regulatory costs bite first appeared on EGR Intel.
Independent bookmaker sees growth in stakes in year to March 2025 but “regulatory challenges and costs associated with running UK operators” hit bottom line
The post Star Sports revenue slides 32% as regulatory costs bite first appeared on EGR Intel.