Bally’s Intralot Granted Extended Deadline to Make Offer for Evoke

Bally’s Intralot has been granted an extension to the date by which it is required to make a proposal to buy Evoke, owner of William Hill and 888, to 5pm UK time on Monday, 8 June.

In April, Evoke confirmed it has opened talks with Bally’s Intralot over a potential takeover. Evoke, which also owns 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. Bally’s Intralot had been expected to announce its intention to make an offer by the middle of May.

However, following further discussions, Bally’s Intralot has been allowed three more weeks in which to make a decision; by that time, Bally’s Intralot will either have to make a proposal or announce it is walking away from a potential deal. The revised deadline could be extended further with Evoke’s consent.

A statement from Evoke read:

“Bally's Intralot has confirmed that any firm offer, if made, would be subject to customary conditions and approvals and that it reserves the right to vary the terms of any such offer, including the price, the form and mix of consideration and the structure of the transaction. There can be no certainty that an offer will be made nor as to the terms on which any offer might be made.”

Market pressure

Consolidation may be a necessary step for Evoke, particularly in light of increased taxation in the UK. From the start of April, remote gaming duty, paid on online casino bets, was raised from 21% of gross gaming yield (GGY) to 40%.

In addition, general betting duty, paid on online sports bets, will increase from 15% of GGY to 25% in April 2027; bets on horseracing will be exempt from this.

It has been widely expected that operators’ retail operations will suffer cuts as a means of mitigating the increased tax. When announcing its financial results for the full year 2025, Evoke said it will close around 270 of its betting shops. Evoke is yet to confirm which specific shops will close. Evoke also has net debt of about £1.8 billion.

Evoke’s loss after tax soared by almost 150% for 2025 to £549.1 million, with non-cash impairments to its UK retail and online business ahead of the tax hikes. Evoke mentioned £440.3 million of non-cash impairment charges, which it said reflected “the change in external market environment following the significant increase in UK online duties announced in November, alongside challenging high-street trading conditions.”

Bally’s keeping busy

In a FY 2025 earnings call, Bally’s Intralot CEO Robeson Reeves said the opportunity to buy Evoke is “a compelling opportunity to bring our operating model to a significantly larger business.” Bally’s has been active in M&A recently.

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.

Bally’s launched its UK online casino and sports betting operation under the name 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 2025.

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 generated in the period.