J D Wetherspoon (LSE:JDW) has issued a public rebuttal to a Financial Times article questioning whether the pub operator earns more from gambling machines than from food and drink.
The FT piece noted that fruit machines accounted for 3.4% of Wetherspoon's sales in 2025.
Wetherspoon said it does not dispute that figure, nor the 3.6% share of gross profit before costs such as rent, rates, energy and labour are allocated.
Where it disagrees is with the FT's conclusion that "Spoons might be making more from gambling than food".
Wetherspoon said food sales are 11 times higher than machine sales, and food gross profit is more than 10 times higher, arguing the FT's analysis had allocated nearly all overheads to bar, food and hotel rooms while leaving machines largely cost-free.
The British pub company also challenged the FT's framing of the machines as "casino-style", noting pub machines carry lower stakes and prizes than those found in casinos or bingo halls, and pointed to a long-term decline in machine income, from about 7% of sales at its 1992 flotation to 3.4% today.
Chairman Tim Martin said: "This fruit machine debate makes it three-nil to Timbo," referencing past disagreements with the FT over the euro and EU membership.
