LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Caesars Entertainment will acquire sports betting giant William Hill under a $3.73 billion agreement reached on Tuesday.
Caesars announced the deal in a news release just after midnight.
“The opportunity to combine our land based-casinos, sports betting and online gaming in the U.S. is a truly exciting prospect,”said Caesars Entertainment CEO Tom Reeg.
“William Hill’s sports betting expertise will complement Caesars” current offering, enabling the combined group to serve our customers in the fast-growing U.S. sports betting and online market,” Reeg said. “We look forward to working with William Hill to support future growth in the U.S. by providing our customers with a superior and comprehensive experience across all areas of gaming, sports betting, and entertainment.”
Before the acquisition, Caesars had a 20% share in William Hill.
Caesars anticipates a $30-$35 billion market for sports betting, and has been working toward capturing a larger share of the business.
The acquisition is subject to antitrust and regulatory approvals and completion is expected to take place in the second half of 2021.
The move comes on the heels of the Reno-based Eldorado Resorts acquisition of Caesars Entertainment, which only recently cleared final approvals. Eldorado retained the Caesars name.
“The historic acquisition would bring together Caesars as one of the largest gaming-entertainment companies in the U.S. and one of the world’s most diversified gaming entertainment provisions, and William Hill as one of the world’s leading betting and gambling companies,” the Caesars statement said.
