The Gibraltar-based sports betting and gambling company 888 Holdings has begun a “controlled exit” of its remaining U.S. operations with the sale of select assets to Hard Rock Digital. This will enable the Seminole Tribe-owned company to enter the competitive Michigan iGaming market, Covers reported March 28.
888 will be gone from the U.S. market completely by the end of this year, it announced. It will reinvest $12.6 million of the savings in “value-creation initiatives,” although it will take a one-time cash hit of $50.5 million—which it will pay off over the next five years.
The parent company of William Hill will instead focus its efforts on its core market that includes the U.K., Italy, Denmark and Spain.
The company previously announced that it will rebrand itself as “Evoke Plc” as part of its “Value Creation Plan,” and that it was ending its relationship with Sports Illustrated. This was all part of a review of its strategic business strategy to reverse significant revenue losses in the last two years. The termination of the partnership made of Michigan’s 15 online operator licenses available.
Hard Rock Digital has casinos in Arizona, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, New Jersey and Florida, where the Seminole tribe is based. Acquisition of 888’s business to consumer assets in the U.S. could position it to enter Michigan’s online gaming market. That would first require approval of the Michigan Gaming Control Board.
Last week gambling industry analyst Steve Ruddock wrote in his Substack newsletter Straight to the Point that Hard Rock’s entry into the market could be accomplished by either buying Rush Street Interactive or fill the void created by 888/SI Casino.
Three days later Ruddock narrowed it down to Hard Rock, which has already applied for the state’s one available license.
