Press Release

Gala Group Ltd ('Gala'), the UK's leading gaming company, today announces the acquisition of New Generation Bingo Ltd for a total consideration of £18 million. New Generation Bingo own and run Club 2000 a purpose built bingo club in Basingstoke.

The acquisition is Gala's largest investment in a bingo site to date. Club 2000 is one of the most profitable bingo clubs in Britain. In 2004 approximately 250,000 bingo players visited the club, spending an average of £40 each visit. The club is 25,000 sq ft, with facilities for nearly 1,200 players, and is located on Basingstoke's popular Leisure Park development.

Gala expects Club 2000 and its existing clubs to benefit from a recent liberalisation in gaming legislation. One of the significant components of this deregulation will be to eliminate the requirement for members to register 24 hours before playing at a bingo club.
 
In the UK, total money staked on bingo now exceeds £1bn each year, and Gala alone gives away £27 million every week in prizes. In the past few years bingo has become one of the country's most popular group leisure activity. There are three million regular bingo players in the UK, and two million admissions to bingo clubs every week. 

Neil Goulden, Gala Group chief executive, said:

"This is an exceptionally good bingo club, and today's acquisition demonstrates our confidence in Gala's bingo product. This is a terrific opportunity for Gala to expand its operations in the region and tap further into one of the nation's favourite leisure pastimes.  

"Clubs like this rarely become available. Gala is well placed to develop the business, adding operational, management, marketing and cost effective promotional skills to an already successful operation. "

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