Member Info for AF2018

There we are: https://www.gamingtoday.com/industry/News/article/92553-William_Hill_takeover_of_CG_Technology_approved

Bet fred entering SA:

Betfred has offered to provide an additional R650m loan to ensure Phumelela’s creditors’ claims are paid in full – versus only 72% repayment under the MOD proposal – and paid well in advance of MOD’s timeline. Betfred has put up 20m shares in UK bookmaking rival William Hill (currently worth R700m) as proof of its sincerity.

it's something I intend to ask either Ulrik or Satty next time we have a company wide catch-up. I think it's a no brainier that we list the US separate from the UK/european MKT.

over the last 2 or 3 months there have been questions about possible takeovers due to the share price being so low but Ulrik has always said we're a major player with a good foothold in the US and an improving online division in the EU and that there was no need to worry about a possible takeover......but he would say that wouldn't he ; )

No worries Morbox - I've held shares since 2010 (through various share save schemes) and have been an employee since 2007 so have always had a massive interest in the company and what's going on.

on a personal note (Job security) I'd much rather a casino group takeover as we'd more than likely be safe in our roles rather than another bookie swooping who already have trading/software development background.

Also looking at the terms of the agreement

Eldorado receives $50m of stock in William Hill PLC (equivalent to circa 1.6% of its market capitalisation), subject to a 3-5 year lock up; a 20% stake in William Hill US and a share of profits attributable to its licences, closely aligning the two partners’ interests.

They only have a 1.6% stake of WMH overall.

Morbox - Whilst I agree and have said the same myself to colleagues in the office (pre covid) do you see the debt levels of Ceasars as a stumbling block for such a takeover? I've seen figures of around 13BIllion of debt.

Is your gut feeling another bookmaker or a casino group?

https://issuu.com/sbc.global/docs/sbc_magazine_10?fr=sMDczZjE3NjI2ODQ&utm_campaign=SBC%20Magazine%20&utm_source=Issue%2010

Page 20 onward is an interview with Ulrik.

I do wonder if the only reason they've kept both brands from a sportsbook perspective is the deals that were signed with ESPN and CBS? Both of which were only done early 2020

https://www.caesars.com/corporate/newsroom/press-releases/espn-and-caesars-entertainment-announce-innovative--collaboratio

https://www.williamhillplc.com/newsmedia/newsroom/corporate-news/2020/cbs-sports-and-william-hill-announce-official-partnership/

I may be talking Bullsh** but thought I'd put it out there.

Basically increased regulation in the UK which was WMH main market.
FOBT cuts wrote off nearly 800M of value.

hence the purchase of Mr Green and the US Push.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.barrons.com/amp/articles/william-hill-is-big-in-u-s-sports-bettingand-its-stock-is-cheap-51597763136

https://www.legalsportsreport.com/43385/caesars-sportsbetting-q2-earnings-2020/

I also know the casino app is ready to be launched stateside very soon.

No Problem @ Longview2020 @Jet7.

https://www.gamingtoday.com/industry/News/article/92102-Caesars_CEO_Reeg_encouraged_by_numbers

"With William Hill taking over Caesars’ sportsbooks, Reeg said he was excited about the partnership and expected $600 to $700 million in revenue in 2021 including Caesars’ iGaming portfolio"

This is in the pipeline also: https://www.gamingtoday.com/industry/News/article/92084-GCB_to_review_William_Hill_app_for_sportsbooks

As of yesterday this is what Ulrik thinks of WMH in the US: We’ve got an estimated 29% of market share and we’re now live in 12 states with a growing online presence.

International, now generates 39% of our revenue compared to 33% last year, and we saw revenue go up by 17% as customers substituted sports betting with gaming. In Sweden we saw a return to growth following the introduction of more regulation last year and in Denmark our revenue has almost doubled. And we launched Mr Green in Spain – that’s our second market launch since we acquired Mr Green last year.

The US has been hit hard by COVID-19. Sports books were closed and there were no major league or college sports. But before COVID-19, we took more than 70% of US wagers through digital channels and 100% online during March to June while the casinos were closed. We’ve got an estimated 29% of market share and we’re now live in 12 states with a growing online presence. The team used the time to push forward product development and we launched the new retail platform ‘ROSi’ in West Virginia and our new iGaming product in New Jersey will go live soon. In February we announced our exclusive media partnership with CBS Sports and following Eldorado’s acquisition of Caesars Entertainment last month, we’ll start to run Caesars’ 29 live sports books in the coming months and integrate them into the William Hill platform, giving us access to 25 states

Despite the better-than-expected performance, William Hill will keep its dividend suspended until further notice.