Bally’s £180m savings plan puts William Hill jobs at risk

Bally’s Intralot recommended a £243 million all‑share takeover of evoke plc last Friday and said it can deliver roughly £180 million of gross annual pre‑tax run‑rate savings from the combined group by the end of the second year after completion. The target savings, the company states, could require workforce reductions and further closures of William Hill retail shops.

The proposed deal would bring William Hill, 888 and Mr Green under the Bally’s Intralot group. The acquirer was formed in October 2025 when Intralot and Bally’s International Interactive merged. Completion is expected in either Q4 2026 or Q1 2027, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.

Bally’s Intralot told investors it expects most savings to come from marketing spend optimisation, including lower above‑the‑line investment, renegotiated sponsorship and affiliate contracts, and consolidation of brand partnerships. Operational efficiencies such as resizing the combined workforce and removing duplicate corporate functions, together with IT consolidation — combining software vendors, renegotiating technology contracts and rationalising data centres — make up the remainder. The company has budgeted about £25 million of one‑off implementation costs during the first two years and expects early savings in marketing and operating overheads within the first year.

Both businesses maintain UK corporate offices, compliance teams, finance, HR and technology divisions that could overlap after a merger. William Hill operates more than 1,400 retail betting shops. Evoke had previously announced plans to close around 200 shops, affecting about 1,500 jobs, after UK tax changes reduced retail profitability. Bally’s Intralot said it intends to approach integration with the aim of retaining and motivating talent and will fully review the enlarged group’s structure after completion, while noting it does not plan material changes to business locations except where internal reorganisations are required.

Evoke acquired William Hill four years ago for £2.2 billion. The proposed equity consideration of £243 million and an enterprise value of about £2.2 billion reflect a decline in shareholder value since that transaction. UK tax changes confirmed in November 2025 raised Remote Gaming Duty on online casinos from 21% to 40% in April, and further tax increases for online sports betting are scheduled for next April. Evoke estimates those measures will add between £125 million and £135 million in annual costs once fully implemented. The evoke board launched a strategic review in December that led to the agreement.

Bally’s Intralot plans to roll out its Vitruvian AI and machine‑learning platform across evoke’s roughly 1.7 million monthly active players to improve customer segmentation, reduce marketing intensity and lower churn. The buyer attributed about a 16% year‑on‑year increase in its UK net gaming revenues in May to the platform.

Robeson Reeves, Bally’s chief executive, described the acquisition as an opportunity to extend Bally’s operating model across a larger business and to realise the planned synergies. Evoke chairman Mark Summerfield said the board considered a range of options and judged the offer to be the most attractive and deliverable outcome for shareholders. The Shaked family, founders of evoke with a 19% stake, agreed to receive shares rather than cash.

The transaction will be reviewed by investors, employees and regulators as the combined group works to meet its cost‑saving targets and integrate large retail and online operations.