A nailbiting finish to the football season in England has helped Ladbrokes to weather the storm blowing through the rest of the economy.

In a trading statement covering the four months to April 30, the bookmaker said that, excluding bets from high-rollers, profits rose by 13 per cent, with the company’s gross win up 16 per cent, or up 34 per cent including higher-rollers.

The City was cheered by the results, which analysts said compared favourably with William Hill, its rival. Ladbrokes shares rose 5p to 315p.

However, Chris Bell, Ladbrokes’ chief executive, remained cautious. “I’d never say this business was recession-proof but it is recession-robust.

We are mindful of the economic climate and the spending of our customers but, like any hobby, it is what you do, and you still do it.

Mr Bell said that he thought that betting remained affordable, with the average stake placed costing about £8.50, and that there was a degree of reverse psychology about it. “If times are hard then you may as well have a bet because you never know,” he said.

Mr Bell is expecting brisk business in the next few days as money pours in for this afternoon’s FA Cup Final, and Wednesday night’s Champions League Final.

“There is a match on nearly every night now and this season it is going right down to the wire.There were three English teams in the Champions League semi-finals and there have been lots of draws, the idiosyncrasies of form have helped us.”

Mr Bell said that he would be watching Wednesday night’s final between Premiership rivals Chelsea and Manchester United closely and predicted that the game was likely to be a record betting event for the Champions League.

Looking forward to football’s European Championships, which start next month, he said that although it didn’t help that none of the home nations was in the competition, it was still likely to generate huge interest, with many of the top players plying their trade in England.

He also highlighted the increasing numbers of people in the Far East who are logging on to the company’s website to take a punt on football. “If you go to Asia all they want to do is bet on football,” he said.

Ladbrokes also benefited from a recent easing of regulations affecting gambling by opening its shops in the winter evenings when football matches were played, and new regulations allowing gambling advertisements on television for the first time.

Mr Bell said its advertising campaign, which featured former football players Ian Wright, Ally McCoist and Lee Dixon, had been well received and encouraged the public to make a bet.

Increased betting on football, which accounts for about 15 per cent of the company’s business in its shops and 50 per cent online, helped to offset lower numbers from horse racing. The joint favourite Comply or Die won the Grand National.

Away from sports, Mr Bell said punters had taken an interest in the American presidential elections and that there was also an uptake in the amount of money being placed on British politics given recent uncertainty.

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