William Hill betting shops face bidding war

Las Vegas casino giant Caesars Entertainment (CZR) plans to sell its non-US assets, just months after acquiring William Hill.

Caesars previously acquired one of the oldest names in the British gaming industry last month in a takeover deal worth $3.7 billion (£2.7 billion).

The sale involves around 1,400 William Hill stores in city centres across the UK and could fetch up to £1.5 billion, the Telegraph reported.

William’s Hill’s UK and European online businesses are also part of the auction.

According to the newspaper, Wall Street buyout group Apollo Global Management (APO) has entered the bidding war for the company with Israeli gaming tycoon Shaked Ventures, which is behind FTSE 250 (^FTMC) operator 888 Holdings (888.L).

Apollo, a private equity firm that was in the running to take over supermarket Asda last autumn, is said to be in pole position after already attempting to buy the entire package last year.

Founded in 1934, William Hill was one of the first British operators in the US, where the gambling gold rush is currently booming after a decades-long gambling ban was lifted in 2018.

Yahoo Finance has asked all parties involved for comment.

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It followed a wave of takeover interest in the British betting industry by American gambling companies.

With the boom in sports betting in America and the rise of online gambling during the COVID pandemic, US gambling companies have been turning to the expertise of British competitors in recent months.

In March, Jackpot Joy owner Gamesys (GYS.L) agreed to a possible takeover by Bally’s Corporation (BALY) in a deal worth over £2 billion.

FTSE 100 company (^FTSE) and Ladbrokes owner Entain (ENT.L) rejected an offer from American casino giant MGM earlier this year.

Entain reported a profit of £175 million in the year to the end of 2020 on flat revenues of £3.6 billion – a 28% increase in online gambling revenue.

Flutter (FLTR.L), the owner of SkyBet and Paddy Power, reported record revenues in its U.S. business in the first three months of 2021.

The FTSE 100 gambling giant’s revenue rose 32% to £1.5 billion in the three months to the end of March. The group’s online sales rose 42% compared to the same period last year, with online sales in the UK and Ireland up 35%.

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