Bally’s Corporation Moves Into Online Sports with Bet.Works
Bally Corporation, the widely-known US online and offline slot machine brand, has acquired US sports betting platform Bet.Works. The deal will cost Bally $125 million, half of which will be paid to Bet.Works shareholders in Bally stocks.
Bally’s only recently (this month) rebranded from Twin River Holdings after purchasing the iconic Bally name and game catalog from Caesars for $20 million in October.
The original Bally Manufacturing company made slots for casinos from 1932 until 1996, when the failing brand was sold to Hilton Hotels.
Bally’s (under its new ownership in 2020) now operates nine physical casinos across the US, including venues in Colorado, Missouri, Mississippi, and Rhode Island.
Its new move into the online space through the purchase of Bet.Works is expected to become a finalized deal in Q1 2021.
Bet.Works provides online betting services.
It will see Bally’s form “two distinct operating divisions.” Bally’s Casinos will handle the land-based side of things, while Bally’s Interactive will deal with online casino and betting operations.
Next Steps
The Chairman of Bally’s Board of Directors, Kim Soo, was feeling bullish in a company statement.
He said Bally is “the first US gaming company committed to serving our customers with an omni-channel approach, combining the best of our physical properties with a superior online experience.”
“This is the next step in our company’s evolution,” he finished.
The release cited “investment research by major Wall Street analysts,” who expect the online betting and casino gaming market in the US to reach $12 billion by 2025. They also predicted a cool $50 billion at maturity – whenever that may be.
14 Million Customers
Bally’s CEO George Papanier was full of praise for Bet.Works and its Founder/CEO David Wang.
The team at Bet.Works have already demonstrated impressive growth and the ability to execute while creating a differentiated platform. We are very pleased to bring this technology to our more than 14 million active customers who will experience Bally’s Casinos and Bally’s Interactive as a unified brand with a single player card and rewards system
George Papanier
David Wang himself will become CEO of Bally’s Interactive division upon the deal’s completion.
Big Fish Small Fish
During any other year, this purchase from Bally’s would have been one of the biggest gambling deals in the US market – but not in 2020.
Three of the biggest ever gambling mergers and purchases in history happened this year. Caesars and Eldorado Resorts merged in a $20 billion deal, followed by William Hill US and Caesars shortly after.
The Stars Group of PokerStars and Europe’s GVC Holdings also merged into the world’s biggest gambling company back in May in a $14 billion deal.
Also over in Europe, UK regulators recently gave the OK to Evolution’s $2 billion takeover of Swedish slot developer NetEnt.
Incoming Bally’s Interactive CEO David Wang was confident his new company could keep up with the giant operators, though.
“We remain committed to creating the world’s best sports entertainment products, as well as delivering innovative and exciting solutions for sports betting and online gaming consumers across Bally’s national footprint,” he said.
For the latest updates on the fortunes of America’s biggest online gambling companies, keep checking online.casino/news.
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