William Hill Reveals £14m Hit In Worst Week

William Hill (Other OTC: WIMHF - news) has revealed how it suffered its biggest weekly sportsbook loss in January, at a time when Chelsea thrashed Swansea 5-0 in the Premier League.

The bookmaker said it lost £14m in the third week of the month and it was yet to make up the shortfall following the winning streak by customers.

The time in question included the mauling at the Liberty Stadium for Swansea, who suffered their worst defeat since winning promotion to football's top flight in 2011.

William Hill revealed the loss while announcing its first quarter trading performance.

Group operating profit fell 19% - or £16m - following a £20m hit associated with the new point of consumption tax, introduced in December last year, which is payable by UK-facing gaming operators on the profits they make from customers.

It also cited increased rates of Machines Games Duty which came into force in March.

The company, which has around 2,300 UK shops and operations online in Australia, the US and Europe, said it remained "well positioned to benefit" from growth in the UK online market, despite the extra tax burden.

James Henderson, its chief executive, said: "After a weak January, we saw improved wagering trends over the remainder of the quarter.

"Online wagering grew 20% in February and March and 29% for the Cheltenham festival."

The William Hill share price, which was up 2.8% in the year to date, fell 4% when trading began on Thursday.