Britons broke record to bet nearly £600 million on US election race on Betfair exchange, bookie reveals

Britons broke a bookie record in spending £600 million placing bets on the outcome of the US presidential election, Betfair has revealed. 

Punters place more than 3 million bets on their favoured candidate for president on Betfair’s London-based online exchange, platform owner Flutter Entertainment said.

The £600 million in trades far exceeded those placed on the exchange for the US election race between Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton in 2016, when  around £250 million was traded.

It came as Flutter - which also owns Paddy Power and host of other brands - reported surging profits for the third quarter.

The FTSE-100 company said it saw revenues reach £1.3 billion in the three months to September 30, up 30% on the same period a year earlier.

Flutter also held its position as top US online operator - a key growth market for the company in recent years following the US Supreme Court decision to legalise betting on sports. 

Flutter said it held 46% of the US online sports betting market via its FanDuel and FoxBet brands in the period, and 29% share of US online market overall.

Chief executive Peter Jackson said: “Flutter’s performance in the third quarter exceeded our expectations in both sports and gaming.

"Our strong trading continued as we grew market share in key regions while retaining our commitment to safer gambling practices.