Bally’s Intralot tables binding offer for UK’s Evoke Plc
The offer values the former 888 Holdings at £243.1m.
UK.- After weeks of extended negotiations, Bally’s Intralot has formally tabled a bid to acquire Evoke Plc, the London-listed operator behind William Hill, Mr Green and 888. The offer, pitched at 52 pence per share, values Evoke at £243.1m.
The valuation includes the former 888 Holdings’ 450.4m shares currently in issue, a further 18.5m that may be issued and 1.3m held in employee trusts. There’s an alternative option also on the table under which shareholders can choose to receive 0.537 new Bally’s Intralot shares listed on Euronext Athens, equivalent in value to the cash proposal based on the bidder’s €1.12 share price.
The offer represents a 77 per cent premium on the share price before talks were confirmed in April, and a 138 per cent premium compared with a trough of 21.9p on December 9. Evoke’s shares rose 14 per cent in trading in London this morning.
Evoke Plc’s strategic review
Evoke began a strategic review in December after the UK government announced a rise in Remote Gaming Duty to 40 per cent from April 2026, a move that would significantly hit the former 888’s digital-heavy business.
Evoke bought the European assets of William Hill and Mr Green from the US casino giant Caesars Entertainment for £2.2bn in 2022, that makes the current valuation a significant loss in valuation. The company’s share price remains down by 88 per cent from around £4 in 2021.
The board has recommended shareholders accept Bally’s Intralot’s bid. The two companies project that a combined entity would boast €3.2bn in full-year pro forma net revenue and €856m in adjusted EBITDA for 2025. They also highlight almost £200m in identified cash synergies.
Evoke chairman Mark Summerfield said the acquisition would “address key strategic and financial constraints” by combining Evoke with a larger, higher-margin business. He argued that the combination “offers the best route to deliver long-term value for our shareholders and broader stakeholders.”
Bally’s Intralot was formed in 2025 through the merger of Bally’s International Interactive and the provider Intralot. It has largely focused on lottery contracts in the Americas. Acquiring Evoke would significantly expand its presence in sports betting and online igaming, particularly through William Hill’s retail network and 888sport.
Chairman Sokratis Kokkalis described the bid as “the beginning of a major new chapter,” while Bally’s Corporation Chairman Soo Kim said a deal would create “a leading, diversified European gaming champion”.
Both companies carry heavy debt loads. Evoke reported £1.9bn in net debt at the end of 2025, while Bally’s Intralot disclosed €1.75bn in debt in Q1 2026. To support the bid, a group of private lenders including TPG Credit and Oaktree will provide a €889m Second Lien Term Facility earmarked to redeem Evoke’s 2028 obligations. Bally’s Intralot and Evoke expect a transaction to close between late 2026 and early 2027, subject to shareholder approval and regulatory clearance.
The deal comes after a spate of consolidation moves in Bally’s native US. A week ago, Fertitta Entertainment made a $17.6bn offer for Caesars Entertainment. Just days later, Barry Diller’s People Inc made an $18bn offer for MGM Resorts International.
Earlier this week, Evoke named Janice Duncan as its new Group Finance Director. She steps into the role after serving as CFO at the online casino brand Casumo.
While she began her career in banking, first at National Australia Group and then Royal Bank of Scotland and RBC Insurance, she moved into the gaming sector in 2013. She spent five years at Coral before moving to William Hill in 2018. She became Finance Director at William Hill in 2019 and then moved to Rank Interactive as CFO in late 2020 and then to Casumo in 2023.
