Bally’s Intralot Aims for Further UK Growth Amid Evoke Takeover Talk

Bally’s Intralot CEO Robeson Reeves seems unperturbed by the issue of higher online tax rates in the UK, with the operator seeing market conditions moving in its favour as it attempts to purchase William Hill-owner Evoke.

On Monday, Evoke confirmed it has opened talks with Bally’s Intralot over a potential takeover; Bally’s Intralot is expected to announce its intention to make an offer by the middle of May. Evoke, which also owns 888 and Mr Green, said discussions have taken place over a potential offer for the company worth £0.50 per share, which would value it at £225 million.

While Bally’s Intralot released a statement on Monday stating there is no certainty an offer will be made, Reeves spoke about the opportunities the acquisition would bring to the operator on the company’s FY 2025 earnings call; a year in which Bally’s grew its revenue 35% to €518 million (£450.8 million).

Reeves said on the call with investors:

“We have built a business with a margin profile that stands out in this industry. Evoke has the scale. We see a compelling opportunity to bring our operating model to a significantly larger business, and the potential to transform its financial performance through massive synergies that we are uniquely positioned to deliver.

"This is an opportunity we are pursuing with conviction.”

How did Bally’s get here?

Last October, Bally’s International Interactive business was sold to Intralot for €2.7 billion (£2.33 billion), in a deal which allowed Bally’s to become the majority shareholder of Intralot with a 58% stake.

The deal included Bally’s UK and Spanish interactive businesses, as well as Bally’s Casino Newcastle, which reopened in March.

Bally’s launched its online casino and sports betting operation in the UK under the name of Bally Bet in 2023. The UK is Bally’s Intralot’s largest market, with 60% of total group revenue being generated from that market in Q4.

Bally’s Intralot’s group revenue for the quarter was €254.1 million, up significantly from €113.2 million. This would indicate the UK accounted for approximately €152.46 million for the period.

Significant regulatory shift

Bally’s Intralot is targeting further growth in the UK despite increased taxation. At the start of this month, remote gaming duty, paid on online casino bets, was increased from 21% of gross gaming yield (GGY) to 40%.

There will also be a rise in general betting duty, paid on online sports bets, which will go up from 15% of GGY to 25% in April 2027; bets on horseracing will be exempt from this.

Reeves called this the “most significant regulatory shift in years.” However, a result of the increased taxation could lead to consolidation in the market, and Bally’s Intralot is targeting further M&A opportunities while continuing to focus on the UK.

Reeves said:

“We are on the offensive. The competitive landscape is shifting in our favour. We’re not going to stand still, I don’t think we’ll ever stand still. We are evaluating M&A from a position of genuine strength.

"We understand the UK exceptionally well. We don’t necessarily understand other markets as well as we’d like.”

A key shift

A potential acquisition of Evoke would be a significant shift in the UK market, allowing the enlarged business to compete with the unofficial big two of Flutter Entertainment (owner of Paddy Power, Betfair and Sky Bet), and Entain (owner of Ladbrokes and Coral).