PokerStars said its software will launch for Betfair players in the UK on 13 August under the name PokerStars on Betfair. Existing UK PokerStars players will see no immediate change; Paddy Power Poker and Sky Poker are expected to adopt the software in the coming months as Flutter brings its brands into the PokerStars Network.
The change combines players from Flutter’s poker brands on the PokerStars software in the UK.
Quarter ended 30 September 2026
The day’s most important stories, free. One email a day.
Flutter said regulatory changes have made Betfair Exchange commercially unsustainable in Italy and that it will soon end Betfair Sportsbook and Casino there. The group said it will progressively deactivate all three products, with its affiliate programme ending on 31 October 2026 and Italian-facing promotional materials due to be removed by 29 October. Flutter said the withdrawal will not affect its other Italian brands or local staff.
Flutter Entertainment has decided to end Betfair Sportsbook and Casino in Italy shortly, after planned regulatory changes made the Betfair Exchange service no longer commercially sustainable there, the company said in a statement. The decision will lead to the progressive deactivation of the Betfair Exchange, Sportsbook and Casino products in the country.
Flutter Entertainment will cut up to 1,400 jobs in its UK and Ireland division to absorb higher UK gambling taxes, the company said. The restructuring, committed to on 20 October 2026, affects staff in Leeds, Dublin, Porto and Cluj-Napoca and remains subject to consultation. Flutter employs 28,500 people worldwide; around 240 of the redundancies are expected in Ireland, according to The Currency.
Flutter Entertainment began integrating PokerStars onto the Betfair platform in the UK on 13 August 2026. The company said the step is the first in a process that will later involve Sky as well, as it seeks a single network for its group brands.
Flutter Entertainment will add Betfair customers in the UK to the PokerStars network from 13 August, the company said. Customers will access the service through a co-branded PokerStars offering on Betfair as Flutter pools poker liquidity across its brands.
Flutter expects to gain UK market share as higher gaming tax pressures smaller operators. Richard Clarke, managing director at Paddy Power and Betfair, said Flutter expects a £500m impact from next year. He warned that faster growth in unlicensed gambling would undermine gains for regulated operators.
Flutter expects to gain UK market share as the remote gaming tax pressures smaller operators, Richard Clarke, managing director at Flutter-owned brands Paddy Power and Betfair, said at the SBC Summit in Lisbon. Clarke said Flutter expects a £500m impact from next year, adding that the effect has already begun to appear this year and is being managed. He declined to set out the company's response in detail, saying plans would not be shared and that four areas for optimisation would be allowed to play out over the coming months.