Ladbrokes plc is a British based gambling company. It is based in Rayners Lane in Harrow, London. It is a member of the FTSE 250 Index, having been relegated from the elite FTSE 100 Index in June 2006. Until 23 February 2006, Ladbrokes owned a major hotel business, including the Hilton hotel brand outside the United States. From 14 May 1999 to 23 February 2006 it was known as Hilton Group plc. Ladbrokes are known as the 'Magic Sign' within the industry.

Overall the largest betting company in the UK and largest retail bookmaker in the world, Ladbrokes owns over 2,200 retail betting shops divided between the UK, Ireland and Belgium. It also operates several online gambling websites offering sportsbook, poker, casino, games, bingo and backgammon. Ladbrokes uses the OpenBet system from Orbis Technology.

Ladbrokes also owns Vernons. Founded in 1925, until the intervention of the National Lottery, Vernons concentrated on Football pools. The company also owns and operates two greyhound stadia at Crayford and Monmore.

Ladbrokes has recently gone into partnership with the Chinese government to offer the first betting shops in China betting on the state lottery.

Hilton Group's turnover for the year ended 31 December 2005, including that for the hotel businesses which have been sold, was £13,354.4 million. Profit for the year was £351.8 million and net profit from continuing operations (that is excluding the hotels) was £190.7 million.

Source: Wikipedia