Flutter commits £8 million to UK and Ireland charitable causes

Flutter Entertainment’s UK and Ireland (UKI) division has committed nearly £8 million to charitable initiatives this year through its Paddy Power, Sky Betting & Gaming (SBG) and Betfair brands.

The funding campaigns form part of Flutter’s wider global pledge to “Do More” for the communities in which it operates as part of the group’s sustainability strategy, the Positive Impact Plan.

The goal is to improve the lives of 10 million people by 2030, leveraging Flutter’s scale and the collective passion of its colleagues across three main areas of Sport & Play, Health and Wellbeing, and Tech4Good.

“I am really proud of the progress the UKI division has made this year to Do More for our communities as part of Flutter Group’s Positive Impact Plan,” said Flutter UKI CEO Ian Brown. “Our market-leading brands have each launched creative and impactful campaigns that directly support the causes that are close to our customers and our colleagues.

“Across Flutter, we hold ourselves to the highest standards in the industry, and we are passionate about making a lasting positive impact.”

Earlier this week Paddy Power announced that it will be donating up to £1 million to Prostate Cancer UK as part of its lead sponsorship of the 2023 PDC World Darts Championship, which begins this month. The operator has pledged to donate £1,000 for every 180 hit during the tournament, with last year seeing 901 maximums scored.

This follows shortly after the launch of Betfair’s ‘Serial Winners Fund’ last month, in conjunction with Betfair ambassador and legendary jockey Rachel Blackmore. The campaign will see Betfair support both the Injured Jockey’s Fund and the Irish Injured Jockeys with an initial donation of £100,000, with a further £5,000 for every winner Blackmore rides between Betfair Chase Day and the Randox Grand National. This is likely to total a £250,000 donation, split equally between the two charities.

Earlier in November, Sky Bet launched its £6 million ‘Building Foundations Fund’ in partnership with the English Football League (EFL), while Flutter also held its inaugural Charity Ball in Dublin in September in support of BUMBLEance, the Children’s Ambulance Service of Ireland, and its Annual Charity Gala in Leeds in November in support of the Children’s Heart Surgery Fund in Yorkshire.

Flutter UKI donated £240,000 between the two charities and raised a further £250,000 across both events. Meanwhile, other donations across the year totalled £330,000, which included the re-launch of Cash4Clubs, which provides small grants to local community sports clubs across the UK and Ireland.

Shares in Flutter Entertainment plc (LSE:FLTR) were trading 0.75 per cent higher at 12,685.00 pence per share in London earlier Wednesday.