Rank ,,,,,,,,,,,,, 2007 , in play or not

This year, Rank appointed Merrill Lynch to carry out a strategic review of the group, which culminated in an auction of the Hard Rock Café.

Since the first Hard Rock Café opened in London in 1971, the business has grown to include 121 sites, of which 68 are operated and the rest franchised, in about 40 countries.

There are also four Hard Rock hotels and two casino-hotels.

In 2005, the business had revenues of £250.1m ($492.4m) and operating profits of £34.8m.

Native American tribes are a growing force in the gaming business, with more than 350 casinos in 28 states.

The National Indian Gaming Commission of the US said 2005 gross revenues for Indian gaming facilities were $22.63bn, an increase of $3.3bn, or 16 per cent, over 2004 gross gaming revenues.

The sale of Hard Rock is expected to fuel speculation of a bid for the rest of Rank’s businesses. These include Mecca Bingos; Blue Square, its online bookmaker; Top Rank España; and Grosvenor Casinos, the UK’s second-largest casinos business.