Potential buyers emerge for William Hill’s European business

Private equity firms CVC and Apax are said to be interested in buying the bookmaker’s retail business in Europe.

UK.- More potential bidders have emerged for William Hill’s European retail business following the brand’s acquisition by US casino giant Caesars Entertainment.

Caesars has already said that it will look to sell off the 86-year-old British bookmaker’s 1,400 European retail outlets following its £2.9bn acquisition.

Betfred and 888 had already been mentioned as potential buyers. Now the Sunday Telegraph has reported that the private equity firm, CVC Capital Partners, former owners of Sky Betting & Gaming, and Apax Partners are putting together rival bids that value the retail business at £1.5bn.

Apollo Global Management is also said to have drawn up a bid for the bookmaker’s betting shops and other non-US assets after having its original offer for a full takeover rejected in favour of Caesars.

William Hill has warned that the UK’s new Covid-19 restrictions could hit results in the fourth quarter following a recovery in footfall in Q3. It estimated that the new lockdown until December 3 could reduce EBITDA by almost £2m.