• About Us / Contact
  • Responsible Gambling
This site contains commercial content
SportsHandle
  • US Sports Betting
    • Arizona
    • Arkansas
    • Colorado
    • Connecticut
    • Delaware
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Iowa
    • Kansas
    • Louisiana
    • Maine
    • Maryland
    • Massachusetts
    • Michigan
    • Mississippi
    • New Jersey
    • New Mexico
    • New York
    • Ohio
    • Oregon
    • Pennsylvania
    • Tennessee
    • Virginia
    • West Virginia
    • Wyoming
  • Pending States
    • California
    • Florida
    • Georgia
    • Missouri
    • North Carolina
  • Canada
    • Ontario
    • British Columbia
    • Alberta
  • Sportsbook Apps
    • FanDuel
    • BetMGM
    • Caesars
    • PointsBet
    • BetRivers
  • Tools
    • Sportsbook Bonuses Explained
    • Sports Betting Revenue Tracker
    • Sports Betting Podcasts
    • Partnership Tracker
    • Expected Value
    • Sports Scores And Odds Apps
    • Sports Betting Twitter
  • News
No Result
View All Result
SportsHandle
  • US Sports Betting
    • Arizona
    • Arkansas
    • Colorado
    • Connecticut
    • Delaware
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Iowa
    • Kansas
    • Louisiana
    • Maine
    • Maryland
    • Massachusetts
    • Michigan
    • Mississippi
    • New Jersey
    • New Mexico
    • New York
    • Ohio
    • Oregon
    • Pennsylvania
    • Tennessee
    • Virginia
    • West Virginia
    • Wyoming
  • Pending States
    • California
    • Florida
    • Georgia
    • Missouri
    • North Carolina
  • Canada
    • Ontario
    • British Columbia
    • Alberta
  • Sportsbook Apps
    • FanDuel
    • BetMGM
    • Caesars
    • PointsBet
    • BetRivers
  • Tools
    • Sportsbook Bonuses Explained
    • Sports Betting Revenue Tracker
    • Sports Betting Podcasts
    • Partnership Tracker
    • Expected Value
    • Sports Scores And Odds Apps
    • Sports Betting Twitter
  • News
No Result
View All Result
SportsHandle
No Result
View All Result

Caesars Threatens To Terminate Sports Betting Market Access Deal If William Hill Rejects Bid

Casino giant ups the ante in bidding war with private-equity firm

Matt Rybaltowski by Matt Rybaltowski
September 29, 2020
in Industry
Caesars William Hill Bid

(Shutterstock

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Caesars Entertainment announced Monday that the company has entered advanced negotiations concerning a potential $3.7 billion takeover of William Hill, raising the stakes in a potential bidding war with a prominent private equity firm.

The announcement came several days after the English sports betting operator disclosed it received separate takeover offers from alternative investment management firm Apollo Global Management and Caesars, one of the world’s largest casino operators. Caesars’ offer of $3.7 billion (Β£2.9 billion) represents a 25% premium to William Hill’s closing price of 217.60 pence on Sept. 24, the day before the bookmaker announced the two offers.

Caesars and William Hill already have a U.S. joint venture, but Caesars cautioned Monday that if Apollo subsequently acquires William Hill, Caesars will be entitled to terminate the U.S. joint venture’s mobile market access rights, as well as William Hill’s retail sports betting operations in Caesars’ physical casinos. Under that scenario, William Hill risks losing a revenue source at casinos in select states.

If Caesars makes a firm offer for William Hill, it intends to consummate the acquisition at some point in the second half of 2021, the company said in an SEC filing.

Market-access threats

In conjunction with the bid, Caesars commenced an underwritten public offering of 30 million common shares on Monday for general corporate purposes, including the possibility of financing a portion of the William Hill acquisition. The offering is not contingent on the completion of a potential acquisition of William Hill, Caesars Entertainment said in the filing.

Under a current agreement, William Hill runs online sports betting operations through Caesars’ market access in numerous states. And as part of a multi-year partnership between Caesars and ESPN, announced earlier this month, the media giant now provides link integrations from its digital platforms to William Hill’s sports betting apps. In turn, William Hill has gained added visibility with the display of pre-game and live offerings on ESPN.com.

Caesars owns a 20% stake in the U.S. joint venture with William Hill. By accepting a bid from Apollo, rather than one from Caesars, William Hill runs the risk of losing a valuable revenue stream from more than a dozen Caesars properties in existing states with legalized sports betting. Caesars also operates properties in states such as Louisiana, Maryland and Missouri that could legalize the activity in the coming years.

If its bid is successful, Caesars said its focus would be on William Hill’s U.S. assets and it would β€œseek suitable partners or owners” for the other businesses, such as the U.K. #sportsbetting #iGaminghttps://t.co/KTd51vcJj1 via @business

— Daniel Kustelski (@djkustelski) September 28, 2020

Assuming that only half of U.S. states eventually legalize sports betting, a discounted cash flow estimate from Jefferies values William Hill at 330 pence ($4.26) per share. Under a bullish case, William Hill could be worth as much as 460 pence per share, according to Jefferies analysts. Shares of William Hill closed Monday on the London Stock Exchange at 275.90 pence, down more than 11%. Last week, William Hill surged more than 30% in Friday’s session on news of the takeover attempts.

In 2008, Apollo and TPG Capital completed a $27.8Β billion leveraged buyout of Caesars, then known as Harrah’s Entertainment. The two private equity firms owned a 16% minority stake in Caesars when the company emerged from bankruptcy in 2017, before unloading the remaining stake valued at $323 million in March 2019.

The New York-based private equity firm has not publicly disclosed the terms of its offer.

A request to an Apollo spokesman for comment was not immediately returned.

Caesars ended Monday’s session at $58.21 per share, up 2%.

ShareTweetShare
Matt Rybaltowski

Matt Rybaltowski

Matt is a veteran writer with a specific focus on the emerging sports gambling market. During Matt's two decade career in journalism, he has written for the New York Times, Forbes, The Guardian, Reuters and CBSSports.com among others. In his spare time, Matt is an avid reader, a weekend tennis player and a frequent embarrassment to the sport of running. Contact Matt at [email protected]

Related Posts

big-scissors-group-cutting-ribbon
Industry

Caesars Guides Toward 2023 Profitability In Sports Betting Division

February 22, 2023
whats on tap
Industry

What’s On Tap: Caesars Q4 Earnings, MGC Hearing, And LIV Golf Opener

February 20, 2023
Load More

Top Stories

taylor mathis

Taylor Mathis Got Sacrificed At The Altar Of Responsible Gambling

March 20, 2023
fanduel baseball wall

Premade Same Game Parlays Are Sucker Bets

March 13, 2023
maginfier-over-small-print

Read The Fine Print: A Proposed Federal Rule Could Change Everything For Indian Gaming

March 6, 2023
roman reigns wwe

Colorado Denies Report Stating That It’s Considering WWE Wagering

March 8, 2023

State Sports Betting Guides

Ohio (U.S. state) flag waving against clear blue sky, close up, isolated with clipping path mask alpha channel transparency, perfect for film, news, composition

Ohio Sports Betting – Where To Play, Bonus Offers And Promo Codes

by Brian Pempus
March 27, 2023

Downtown Detroit at twilight (Shutterstock)

Michigan Sports Betting – Where To Play, Online Sportsbooks, And FAQ

by Brett Smiley
March 27, 2023

VA captial

Virginia Sports Betting – Where To Play, Online Sportsbooks And Bonus Offers

by Brett Smiley
January 17, 2023

nj flag

New Jersey Sports Betting — Where To Play, Online Sportsbooks, And FAQ

by Brett Smiley
March 22, 2023

pa online sportsbooks

Pennsylvania Sports Betting – Where To Play, Online Sportsbooks And Bonuses

by Brett Smiley
October 6, 2022

Canada Sports Betting Guides

Canada Sports Betting – Best Sportsbook Apps & Bonus Offers

British Columbia Sports Betting – Legal Update, Available Sportsbooks, and FAQ

Ontario Sports Betting – Legal Status And Where To Play

SportsHandle

  • Analysis
  • Casino
  • Features
  • Horse Racing
  • Industry
  • Legal
  • Legislation
  • Opinion
  • Podcasts
  • Poker
  • Politics
  • Promotions
  • Regulation
  • Sports
  • Uncategorized

Better Collective

This website is owned and operated by Better Collective USA. Trademarks and copyrights referenced on this website are and shall remain the exclusive property of their respective owners and/or licensors. Please be sure to visit the operator’s website(s) to review their terms & conditions. We advise you to read these carefully as they contain important information. Copyright Β© 2023 USBets.com | Better Collective USA
21 Play Responsibly
Gamble Aware West Virginia
Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-Gambler.
GameSense

Search Sports Handle

No Result
View All Result
  • About Us / Contact
  • Responsible Gambling

No Result
View All Result
  • US Sports Betting
    • Arizona
    • Arkansas
    • Colorado
    • Connecticut
    • Delaware
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Iowa
    • Kansas
    • Louisiana
    • Maine
    • Maryland
    • Massachusetts
    • Michigan
    • Mississippi
    • New Jersey
    • New Mexico
    • New York
    • Ohio
    • Oregon
    • Pennsylvania
    • Tennessee
    • Virginia
    • West Virginia
    • Wyoming
  • Pending States
    • California
    • Florida
    • Georgia
    • Missouri
    • North Carolina
  • Canada
    • Ontario
    • British Columbia
    • Alberta
  • Sportsbook Apps
    • FanDuel
    • BetMGM
    • Caesars
    • PointsBet
    • BetRivers
  • Tools
    • Sportsbook Bonuses Explained
    • Sports Betting Revenue Tracker
    • Sports Betting Podcasts
    • Partnership Tracker
    • Expected Value
    • Sports Scores And Odds Apps
    • Sports Betting Twitter
  • News

loading

Please wait while you are redirected to the right page...