Ladbrokes CEO Jim Mullen thanked the "sporting gods" for conditions that allowed the bookmaker to up its revenues by 13.1% to £661.8M ($868M) in the first half of '16 -- "but also said the company's investment in marketing had paid off," according to Simon Gwynn of CAMPAIGN LIVE. Mullen said that "a string of upsets throughout the year, exemplified by Leicester City’s Premier League triumph" and England’s "ignominious" exit from Euro 2016 at the hands of Iceland, meant that "week in week out customers' accumulators and coupons were victims of surprise results." But he said that the strategy of "bolstering the marketing presence of the Ladbrokes brand, including becoming the official betting partner of the FA," had also allowed it to attract more recreational customers, "increasing the sums being stakes, especially on football." The company’s income boost was "thanks in large part to soaring digital revenues," which were up 40.9% to £158.1M ($207.4M), accounting for 63% of all revenue growth. In June, Ladbrokes and Coral agreed to the demand of the Competition & Markets Authority that they sell between 350 and 400 shops in order to seal their £3.3B ($4.3B) merger, "which has been in the works for more than a year." Without the disposals, the merged company would have "more than 4,000 betting shops -- compared to only 2,360 for the next largest chain, William Hill." Mullen added, "We will continue to compete hard on pricing, product and customer services and maintain a relentless focus on meeting and exceeding customer expectations." Since the Ladbrokes-Coral process began, Paddy Paddy and Betfair "also came together" in a £5B ($6.56B) merger (CAMPAIGN LIVE, 8/4).
