William Hill Takeover: Bally's Intralot Buys Evoke for £243m

⏱ 3 min read

William Hill owner Evoke PLC has agreed to a £243 million ($326 million) all-share takeover by Bally's Intralot, the Athens-listed lottery and gaming operator, in the most significant European iGaming M&A deal of 2026. The offer, announced on 5 June 2026 and unanimously recommended by Evoke's board, values the Gibraltar-headquartered group at 52 pence per share — a 138% premium to Evoke's closing price on 9 December 2025, the day before its strategic review was disclosed.

The catalyst is blunt: the UK government's decision to raise Remote Gaming Duty (RGD) from 21% to 40%, effective April 2026, threatening to lift Evoke's annual tax bill by between £125 million and £135 million once fully phased in. With net debt of roughly £1.86 billion at end-2025 — a legacy of its £2 billion acquisition of William Hill's non-US business from Caesars Entertainment in 2022 — the company had no viable path forward as a standalone entity. The deal is now progressing toward a shareholder vote, with the Scheme Document to be dispatched by 24 July 2026.

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Deal Terms & Structure

Under the scheme of arrangement, Evoke shareholders will receive 0.537 new Bally's Intralot shares for each Evoke share held, with a limited cash alternative of 52 pence per share capped at £117.1 million. The cash option is being funded via a bridge facility arranged with Deutsche Bank and Jefferies. Assuming all shareholders take the share consideration, Evoke investors will own approximately 11.5% of the enlarged group, whose shares will trade on Euronext Athens under the ticker BYLOT.

Private lenders TPG Credit, Oaktree, and OHA have committed approximately £889 million to refinance Evoke's existing debt pile, pushing near-term maturities further down the road. A further £157 million senior facility has been secured from institutional investors. Bally's Intralot estimates the transaction will generate pretax cost and capital savings of around £180 million by the end of the second year post-completion, with the enlarged group's proforma adjusted EBITDA margin expected to reach 27%, versus Evoke's standalone 20% in financial year 2025.

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The UK Tax Trigger

The sequence of events that forced Evoke's hand is now well documented. The UK Autumn Budget 2025 announced the Remote Gaming Duty would more than double, from 21% to 40%, taking effect in April 2026. A further rise in online sports betting duty, from 15% to 25%, is due in April 2027. Evoke quantified the combined annual impact at between £125 million and £135 million, with roughly £80 million hitting in 2026 alone. The company had already closed approximately 270 betting shops to partially offset the effect before any deal was in place.

Evoke chairman Mark Summerfield launched a formal strategic review in December 2025, exploring a full company sale, asset disposals, and alternative capital structures. Bally's Intralot made its first non-binding approach at 32 pence per share in January 2026, worked through four further revisions, and landed at the final 52 pence figure after an extended deadline that ran to 8 June 2026.

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What the Combined Group Looks Like

Bally's Intralot was formed in 2025 when Intralot — a Greek lottery and gaming technology provider with operations across multiple regulated markets — acquired Bally's International Interactive, the digital gaming arm of US casino group Bally's Corporation. Adding Evoke's consumer brands creates a materially larger entity.

The combined group will operate across six core markets and will carry the following UK positions:

• Second-largest operator in UK interactive (online casino) gaming
• Fourth-largest in UK online sports betting
• A retail presence through the remaining William Hill shop estate
• Total addressable market of €36 billion across core geographies

The combined group's consumer brand portfolio will include William Hill, 888casino, 888sport, 888poker, Mr Green, and Winner.ro. Bally's Intralot CEO Robeson Reeves has stated there is no current intention to sell any of these assets, though exceptionally high offers for individual units would be considered.

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Key Deal Figures at a Glance

Metric	Figure	Context
Offer price per share	52p	138% premium to Evoke's 9 Dec 2025 close of 21.9p
Equity value	£243.1m ($326m)	All-share; limited cash alternative capped at £117.1m
Enterprise value	~£2.2 billion	Includes refinanced debt
Evoke net debt (end-2025)	£1.86 billion	~5× 2025 EBITDA; inherited from 2022 William Hill deal
New financing committed	~£889m (second lien) + £157m (senior)	TPG Credit, Oaktree, OHA; refinances 2028 maturities
Projected synergies	£180m pretax	Cost & capex savings by end of year two post-close
UK RGD increase (trigger)	21% → 40%	Effective April 2026; annual duty impact £125–135m
Expected completion	Q4 2026 or Q1 2027	Subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals

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What Happens Next

The immediate milestone is the dispatch of the Scheme Document to Evoke shareholders, now expected by 24 July 2026 — a delay from the original 28-day window following the 5 June announcement, confirmed by a formal company notice this week. The document will contain the full timetable for the Court Meeting and General Meeting at which shareholders will vote on the scheme.

Regulatory clearances will run in parallel. The transaction touches multiple licensed markets, meaning scrutiny from the UK Gambling Commission, the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner, and potentially other national regulators where the enlarged group holds licences. Analysts at advisory firm Corfai have flagged that the combined net debt of over £3 billion appears to be underpriced by markets and could prompt pressure to dispose of non-core units — particularly the Italian operations and Mr Green — despite Reeves' current stance against asset sales.

For bettors in the UK, India, and elsewhere, near-term disruption is unlikely. Brand continuity is a stated priority. The longer-term question is whether a combined entity carrying substantial leverage can absorb further tax shocks — and whether the April 2027 sports betting duty rise will put that resilience to the test before the deal has even bedded in.

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Sources

This article draws on primary regulatory filings, official company announcements, and trade press reporting. Primary sources are listed first.

Tax changes have brought about this opportunity. Any large operator is essentially growing while the long tail is being squeezed.

— Robeson Reeves, CEO, Bally's Intralot · Press conference following deal announcement, 5 June 2026