Britain's Most Admired Companies 2013: Gaming
It's been the type of year to make even seasoned punter quake in his boots: the stakes are high for the British gaming sector.
There have been plenty of highs and lows in the gaming industry this year. Some big players have gone from strength to strength; our reigning champion, Paddy Power - famed for its cheeky ads - reported a 12% rise in first-half pre-tax profits and it won the award for quality of marketing and was joint winner of the award for innovation. Troubled Betfair does well to make second after fighting off a takeover bid from CVC. It now values itself at £1bn. Q3 profits at William Hill were down £20m after slow trading in its betting shops, but web-based 888's boss Brian Mattingley predicts a boom in US revenues as online gaming laws are liberalised. Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casino operator Rank is fifth for the second year running, with revenues up 7% to £625m.
