William Hill owner evoke announced its Q3 trading update, reporting group revenue of £406 million, which marks a 7% year-on-year decline.
The downturn was primarily attributed to the closure of 270 retail betting shops across the United Kingdom, alongside customer-friendly sports results at the commencement of the football season that created additional headwinds for year-on-year growth. When excluding the impact of the retail shop closures, like-for-like revenue experienced a more modest fall of 2%.
The sweeping retail closures were initiated following the impact of this year’s legislative increase in the UK online gambling tax rate, which surged from 21% to 40%.
Executive commentary on industry taxation
Addressing the broader regulatory and fiscal climate, Evoke CEO Per Widerström emphasized the underlying resilience of the business while highlighting the tangible consequences of escalating tax burdens.
“On an underlying basis the business continues to show resilience and reflects our continued emphasis on profitability and cash generation following the substantial increases in gaming duties, particularly in the UK. The closure of 270 shops over the past year shows the real impact on jobs and livelihoods from higher industry taxation, and we urge the UK government to carefully consider any further increases ahead of its forthcoming Autumn Budget.”
Industry concerns have intensified amid circulating reports that Machine Games Duty could rise to 25% in the upcoming budget announcements. These fiscal pressures follow a challenging period for evoke, which reported an almost 150% surge in net losses after tax in April due to non-cash impairments stemming from increased taxation across its UK retail and online operations. For the first half of the fiscal year, group revenue stood flat at £887.5 million compared to the prior-year period, though it represented a 2% increase on a like-for-like basis when adjusting for reduced retail footprint.
Acquisition update
Amid operational adjustments and regulatory headwinds, evoke confirmed that its planned acquisition by Ballys Intralot is progressing smoothly. Leadership anticipates that the transaction will be finalized by the end of the fourth quarter of 2026 or the beginning of the first quarter of 2027.
“We remain focused on disciplined execution and operational efficiency as we progress towards completion of the acquisition, which continues to progress as planned towards completing in late Q4 2026 or early Q1 2027,” Widerström added.
