Horse-racing fans bet €275 million with Paddy Power owner Flutter Entertainment’s businesses during last month’s Cheltenham festival, the group said on Thursday. Jonathan Hill, chief financial officer, said punters had bet £240 million (€275 million) with its companies Paddy Power, Betfair and Sky Bet during the Cheltenham national hunt festival last month. Mr Hill joked that this made it a “truly Irish festival”, drawing on the fact that 23 of the 28 winners over meeting’s four days were trained in Ireland. Covid-19 restrictions kept Flutter’s Paddy Power bookmaker shops closed in the Republic and the UK during the quarter. Mr Hill said that Flutter could also use any flotation proceeds to pay for further mergers and acquisitions.

Source: The Irish Times April 30, 2021 04:25 UTC