* CEO says World Cup boost has spilled over into current

quarter

* First-time bettors for World Cup doubled versus 2022

version

* H1 profit of £479 million versus £455 million estimate

(Adds shares in paragraph 5, CEO comments in 3 & 8, details and

background throughout)

By Yamini Kalia

Aug 13 (Reuters) - Ladbrokes owner Entain ( GMVHF ) beat

first-half profit expectations on Thursday as group-wide cost

cuts and a surge in player engagement during the men's Soccer

World Cup helped the bookmaker absorb the impact of higher

British gambling taxes.

The scale of Entain's ( GMVHF ) revenue stream across the U.S. and

Britain helped it mitigate the impact of the taxes, which have

put pressure on smaller rivals such as Evoke, while the

sporting spectacle also lifted consumer spending and morale.

CEO Stella David told Reuters that "massive engagement" from

the World Cup has spilled over into Entain's ( GMVHF ) current quarter,

with first-time bettors doubling from the 2022 version.

Group net gaming revenue rose 5% on a constant currency

basis in the first half, with online net gaming revenue up 7%

and retail up 1% on the same basis.

Entain ( GMVHF ) shares were up marginally at 0830 GMT, having risen

as much as 3% earlier.

BETMGM STRATEGY

Entain ( GMVHF ) operates BetMGM in the U.S. along with MGM Resorts ( MGM )

, and that business has been a highly lucrative one for

the British group.

Analysts believe BetMGM could be a good independent asset

for Entain ( GMVHF ), thanks to its strong U.S. market position and

standalone technology infrastructure.

Entain's ( GMVHF ) David, who has been vocal about being open to a

change in ownership structure for the business, said the company

has been separating BetMGM's technology and infrastructure from

MGM Resorts ( MGM ) so that Entain ( GMVHF ) could run the business independently

if needed, though there is no plan for a transaction yet.

Entain's ( GMVHF ) first-half underlying core profit fell 2% to £479

million ($645.6 million), but still topped company-compiled

estimates of £455 million.

It began a phased exit from its Central and Eastern European

business in late June, with plans to also cut 500 jobs, as it

reduces its cost and debt burden, which stood at £3.6 billion at

the end of June.

($1 = 0.7420 pounds)