Ladbrokes shareholders overwhelmingly back Gala Coral takeover

LONDON, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Shareholders in bookmaker Ladbrokes (LSE: LAD.L - news) backed its 2.3 billion pound ($3.5 billion) tie-up with Gala Coral, a deal it hopes will give it the clout to make a bigger splash online where it has been outgunned by rivals.

The holders of 96 percent of Ladbrokes shares voted to approve the deal at a meeting on Tuesday.

Opposition to the merger has been led Irish billionaire Dermot Desmond, who says it will not be the answer to Ladbrokes' online problems and will instead saddle the group with debt and result in lower payouts to shareholders.

Desmond, who holds a 2.8 percent stake, vowed after the meeting to continue the fight.

"This is only the first round of 15 rounds, or 10 rounds or seven rounds," he said. "There's a long way to go."

Desmond said one option would be to convene another shareholders meeting, for which he would need the support of the holders of 5 percent of the shares.

($1 = 0.6630 pounds) (Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Jason Neely)