Bally’s Intralot shareholders have approved the company’s proposed acquisition of William Hill and 888 owner evoke, moving the £243.1 million ($324.7 million) transaction closer to completion as the companies await remaining regulatory clearances.
At the Athens-listed company’s annual general meeting, 99.585% of shareholders voted in favor of the takeover, while 0.415% opposed it. The result follows evoke’s own shareholder vote, published August 17, in which 99.63% backed the transaction.
Bally’s Intralot has offered 52 pence per share for London-listed evoke. With shareholder approvals secured at both companies, completion now depends on several regulatory steps, including a court sanction hearing at which a judge is expected to consider final approval of the scheme of arrangement. The hearing is expected in either the fourth quarter of 2026 or the first quarter of 2027, depending on the timing of other approvals.
The companies are targeting the same Q4 2026 to Q1 2027 period for completion of the acquisition. Evoke would delist from the London Stock Exchange once the transaction closes.
Debt levels at the companies have remained a focus surrounding the deal. Evoke reported £1.89 billion ($2.5 billion) in debt for the first half of 2026, while Bally’s Intralot disclosed more than about £1 billion ($1.34 billion) in net debt for the same period.
Bally’s Corporation, which owns a 58% majority stake in Bally’s Intralot, also carries substantial debt, with concerns raised over its ability to continue as a going concern.
Bally’s Intralot Chief Executive Officer Robeson Reeves and the company’s leadership have previously expressed confidence that the debt position will not prevent the combined group from pursuing its post-merger strategy and ambitions.
Evoke began looking for a buyer in December 2025 after launching a strategic review following the UK government’s announcement of higher online gambling taxes. Remote Gaming Duty increased from 21% to 40% on April 1, 2026.
The company expected the tax changes to have a significant effect on its financial performance and accelerated closures across the William Hill retail estate. In March, it confirmed that another 200 shops would close.
Evoke currently remains a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap and FTSE All-Share indices. It was previously part of the FTSE 250 before being downgraded in late 2023, when the business was still known as 888 Holdings. The company adopted the evoke name in 2024.
Bally’s Intralot was formed through the 2025 combination of Bally’s Corporation and Intralot, following Intralot’s acquisition of Bally’s International Interactive from Bally’s Corporation.