Bally’s Intralot has made an official bid of 52p per share for evoke, the owner of the William Hill, Mr Green and 888 group of brands, following several weeks of negotiations.
The duo first confirmed that talks had been taking place on 20 April, after ongoing media speculation suggested that a takeover could be imminent. An initial deadline of 18 May was set for Bally’s Intralot to make a firm offer for evoke, but this was extended to 8 June by the William Hill owner at the bidder’s request.
With just a few days left, Bally’s Intralot has made its proposed bid a reality.
The 52p per share offer values evoke at £243.1m, calculated on the 450,403,766 evoke shares already in issue, plus 18,458,734 shares which may be issued after today’s announcement, and 1,329,201 evoke shares held by employee benefit trusts.
An alternative share offer has also been proposed to evoke stakeholders. Instead of 52p per share, stakeholders can instead accept 0.537 new company shares issued and listed on the Euronext Athens, where Bally’s Intralot is listed.
This is roughly equal to the value of the 52p per share cash offer, and is based on Bally’s Intralot’s €1.12 share price.
The duo expect the combined group to benefit from FY25 pro forma net revenue of €3.2bn and FY25 pro forma adjusted EBITDA of €856m, adjusted for UK tax increases. The companies also state that over £200m in cash synergies have been identified.
Big moves for both parties
LSE-listed evoke has been on the hunt for a potential buyout since December 2025.
The firm initiated a strategic review at the end last year, assessing its options for future growth, including the possible sale of some, or all, of its assets, This took place in the aftermath of the November UK budget, which saw the government pledge to increase gambling taxes in April 2026.
Citing the conclusions of its December strategic review, evoke is recommending that its shareholders approve the Bally’s Intralot bid.
The bid is higher than the initial 50p per share proposal under consideration in April, and represents a 77% premium on the company’s share price the day prior to the confirmation of talks that month.
The board has also emphasised that the bid is a 138% premium on the evoke share price of 21.9p on 9 December, the day before its strategic review was announced.
In its statement, the board asserted that the acquisition could “address key strategic and financial constraints facing evoke by combining evoke with a larger platform with a higher-margin profile, stronger cash generation and a proven operating model”.
Mark Summerfield, evoke Chairman, said: “Following the announcement of the strategic review in December 2025, we have been resolutely focused on how best to maximise value for our shareholders in light of the significant UK duty changes and the constraints posed by the Evoke Group’s existing capital structure.
“Having considered a range of options I am delighted to announce the Acquisition by Intralot and believe the agreed terms represent the most attractive and deliverable outcome for Evoke shareholders.
“The combination will create one of the world’s leading online betting and gaming groups with superior scale, exceptional brands, increased diversification, and a platform for strong growth through enhanced capabilities.
“I’m confident Intralot will be a strong and supportive owner of the business, and together with the more sustainable capital structure, the combination offers the best route to deliver long-term value for our shareholders and broader stakeholders.”
For Bally’s Intralot, acquiring evoke would mark a significant enlargement of the still relatively young company. The firm came into existence last year when Greek lottery technology firm Intralot acquired Bally’s International Interactive (BII), the international division of Bally’s Corporation.
Robeson Reeves, Bally’s Corporation’s Chief Executive Officer, subsequently became the head of the newly created Bally’s Intralot – the deal effectively being a merger of the two companies.
The firm initially stated that its focus would be on lottery contracts in the Americas, something that it is still pursuing in 2026.
Acquiring evoke would add another huge dimension to its business, particularly enlarging its footprint across the sports betting space via William Hill’s online and retail units, and the 888 group including 888sport.
Sokratis Kokkalis, Chairman of the Bally’s Intralot Board, said: “Today marks the beginning of a major new chapter for our company with the submission of a binding offer for the acquisition of evoke, aimed at creating a very strong global player in the gaming industry.
“This move demonstrates the new momentum our company has gained, justifying the trust shown to us by the investment community.”
Bally’s Intralot expects the auction to conclude between the final quarter of 2026 or the first quarter of 2027, subject to terms and conditions and regulatory approvals.
There are, however, two big considerations the duo need to address…
How will Bally’s Intralot and evoke deal with the debt?
Both evoke and Bally’s Intralot are carrying a lot of debt, particularly evoke.
For the 12 months ending 31 December 2025, evoke reported net debt of just under £1.9bn; it carries refinancing risks related to 2028 debt obligations from a €450m Senior Secured Floating Rate Note and a$575m Term B loan.
Meanwhile Bally’s Intralot reported in its Q1 report published back in May that it holds atotal debt of €1.75bn and adjusted net debt of €1.49bn as of 31 March 2026. Addressing the combined debt, the enlarged business is therefore a key task for Bally’s Intralot and to evoke negotiators.
To support today’s bid, the proposal would be underwritten by a €889m Second Lien Term Facility from a group of private lenders including TPG Credit, Oaktree, Man Group Global High Yield & Credit Opportunities, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC and Shenkman Capital.
This will be used to help redeem evoke’s €450m and $575m 2028 debt obligations.
Bally’s Intralot will support evoke with a €200m commitment under the Second Lien Term Facility, but will not provide any guarantee or credit support to said facility.
Taking on UK headwinds
Debt aside, another crucial factor to consider is the UK tax situation. Bally’s Intralot is already active in the UK, including the Bally Bet sportsbook, as well as a number of iGaming brands such as Jackpotjoy, Virgin Games and Rainbow Riches Casino, among others.
Acquiring William Hill, Mr Green and 888 will considerably enlarge its exposure to the UK, however – with that comes a number of opportunities for growth, but also substantial challenges, especially given the new tax regime of 40% Remote Gaming Duty (RGD) on online gaming GGR, and, from next year, 25% General Betting Duty (GBD).
However, the enlarged group will have some respite knowing that retail betting, including William Hill’s chain of over 1,000 high street shops, will be excluded from all tax hikes.
This has given some relief to a sector which is steadily declining according to Gambling Commission data, though under evoke rollbacks of the retail estate have continued such as 200 shop closures confirmed earlier this year.
Also, Bally’s Intralot leadership has recently expressed confidence with how it has approached the UK’s new tax framework. The group will likely carry this same confidence into a new era of evoke ownership – shareholder and regulatory approval pending.
Soo Kim, Chairman of Bally’s Corporation, said: “We are excited about the opportunity to bring Intralot and Evoke together to create a leading, diversified European gaming champion with greater scale, resilience and operational capability.
“Underpinned by the combination of Evoke’s iconic brands of incredible heritage, such as William Hill and 888, with Intralot’s best-in-class technology and data capabilities, highly executable synergies and the ability to invest our substantial free cash flow in growth markets – we are confident that the Enlarged Group will not just be stronger than before, but stronger than ever.
“Intralot has a proven track-record of creating shareholder value through successful integration of acquired businesses whilst preserving their distinct strengths. We are confident that this transaction will deliver substantial benefits for both Intralot and Evoke shareholders.”
