A major gambler appears to have cost Stanley Leisure dear

The company, which has 41 casinos and 600 bookmakers, did not say how much the high-rolling gambler had won, only that it amounted to "material losses".

Stanley Leisure shares were down 11% following the trading statement, which also bemoaned adverse sporting results.

The firm also said it was struggling to recover some unpaid casino debts.

Winning punters

Liverpool-based Stanley said the debts related to a small number of players and that although it was confident that they would be collected, "the timing is uncertain and they may remain outstanding at the year-end".

We see few catalysts for growth across the group beyond a normalisation of win margins Paul Leyland, Gambling industry analyst See Stanley Leisure's share price

On the non-casino gambling front, Stanley said racing results had been poor, while in football winning runs from Premiership title challengers Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea had also hit results.

"Whilst machine profits have continued to increase, this growth has been insufficient to offset the reduction in contribution from the core betting operation," Stanley said.

The company is set to announce its half-year results for the six months to 31 October 2004 on 26 January.

Analysts had expected profits of around �52m, but Stanley has now warned that it only expected to match its haul of �41.8m for the same period in 2003.

Possible deregulation

Despite the profits warning, Stanley said its profits situation could change "very quickly" if its luck turns at its bookmakers and casinos.

It has four casinos in London - Crockfords, The Colony Club, The Mint and The Palm Beach - as well as 37 regional sites in cities including Bristol, Liverpool and Birmingham.

Paul Leyland, of brokers Seymour Pierce, said the issues facing Stanley should not come as a surprise and warned that the company lacked the retailing expertise of its major competitors.

With the gambling industry likely to be deregulated by the government, Mr Leyland said Stanley's provincial casinos were mostly too small to benefit from any extra footfall.

"We see few catalysts for growth across the group beyond a normalisation of win margins," he said.