Rank Group Warns of Potential Closures at UK Casinos and Bingo Halls Over Machine Games Duty Hikes

Rank Group, the company behind Grosvenor Casinos and Mecca Bingo, has issued a direct warning that further rises in machine games duty could trigger venue closures across Britain, with knock-on effects for jobs and nearby communities, and the statement comes after the April 2026 doubling of remote gaming duty from 21 percent to 40 percent plus the scheduled introduction of a new general betting duty in 2027.

The operator pointed to its latest financial figures, which recorded revenue growth alongside falling profits under the weight of existing tax increases, and company executives used the results to highlight how additional duty pressure on physical machines would compound those challenges.

Details of the Tax Changes and Company Response

Remote gaming duty rose sharply in April 2026, moving from 21 percent to 40 percent, while a fresh general betting duty is set to begin in 2027, and Rank Group stated that any parallel increase in machine games duty would push operating costs beyond sustainable levels at many sites, leading to reduced opening hours or outright closures in some locations.

Observers note that the firm has already absorbed the remote duty increase across its online operations, and the same management team now flags machine games duty as the next area where margins could collapse if rates move higher, with the result that certain bingo halls and casinos might no longer cover their fixed costs.

Financial Performance Amid Rising Tax Pressure

Rank Group reported revenue growth in its most recent period, yet profits declined as higher duties ate into returns, and the company linked the profit drop explicitly to the tax environment rather than to changes in customer behaviour or operational efficiency.

Those figures showed continued footfall at many venues, but the margin squeeze left less capital available for maintenance, refurbishment, and staff costs, and executives indicated that further duty rises would accelerate decisions to exit marginal sites.

Data from the results also revealed that online channels absorbed much of the remote gaming duty increase without immediate volume loss, whereas land-based venues operate under tighter local cost structures where machine games duty forms a larger share of total expenses.

Potential Effects on Jobs and Local Communities

Rank Group emphasised that venue closures would remove employment opportunities in towns and cities where Grosvenor Casinos and Mecca Bingo sites serve as both entertainment destinations and local employers, and the operator noted that staff numbers at each location range from dozens to over a hundred depending on size.

Community organisations that partner with the venues for events and fundraising would lose access to those facilities, while suppliers ranging from food service companies to security contractors would see reduced business, and the company presented these outcomes as direct consequences of higher machine games duty rather than as speculative risks.

Local authorities in areas with multiple Rank Group sites have already been briefed on the possibility of reduced business rates income if closures occur, and the firm has shared scenario planning that models different duty rates against venue viability.

Context of the Warning Within Industry Tax Developments

The April 2026 remote gaming duty change applied uniformly to all online operators, and the forthcoming general betting duty in 2027 will extend similar treatment to additional betting products, yet machine games duty remains a separate levy focused on physical terminals inside casinos and bingo halls, and Rank Group has singled out this duty as the one whose further increase would produce the most immediate site-level impact.

Company statements made clear that the group continues to support regulatory frameworks that ensure fair taxation across channels, while also stressing that the cumulative effect of successive duty rises has already altered profit trajectories even as top-line revenue holds steady or grows modestly.

Conclusion

Rank Group has placed its recent financial results and forward projections into the public record to illustrate how additional machine games duty increases could force venue closures, and the operator has tied those risks directly to the post-April 2026 tax landscape that includes the higher remote gaming duty and the planned 2027 general betting duty, with the stated outcomes including job losses and reduced community access to existing bingo halls and casinos.