Earnings per share jumped 53% to 56.61p, while a 45.7% higher final dividend of 12.52 cent has been declared. There was predominantly strong growth in online betting profits, with chief executive John O'Reilly saying that this business had now 'come of age'.

Chairman Fintan Drury described the year as 'a game of two halves', as favourable sporting results generated bumper first-half profits, but the second half was flat compared with the same period in 2003 as the pendulum swung back towards punters.

The company said it hoped to increase revenues from activities such as virtual games, online poker and fixed odds betting terminals in the UK, as these would reduce volatility caused by sports results.

Paddy Power said the coming year would be important for its UK business, which now has 31 outlets. 'We remain optimistic that deregulation in this area will benefit Paddy Power,' chairman Fintan Drury said.

A breakdown showed that profits at betting shops were up only slightly at €17.8m, but online profits jumped from €1.4m to €8.8m, while telephone betting profits rose from just under €1m, to €4.6m. The company said trading so far this year was satisfactory.