One of the UK’s largest bookmakers, William Hill, is to join the FTSE 100 index of companies tomorrow (8 April).

Britain’s second largest betting-shop chain will take the place of healthcare group, Amersham, which is being taken over by American engineering and manufacturing giant, General Electric.

It is the second leisure sector company to enter the prestigious blue-chip list this year, following the inclusion of pubs operator, Enterprise Inns, last month.

David Harding, chief executive, said: “We are delighted to be entering the FTSE 100. It is a major milestone for us, reflecting the considerable progress we have made since flotation in June 2002.”

“We are well positioned for continued growth and we will continue to focus on delivering value to shareholders,” he said.

The company has experienced rapid growth after its 2002 IPO, when it was listed at the FTSE 250 list at 225p a share.

It has expanded its portfolio to 1,586 branches in the UK and reported a 43 per cent increase in its pre-tax profits – to £202m – for 2003.

Shares in the company are currently worth around 507p each, valuing the business at £2.14bn. Details: www.williamhillplc.co.uk