William Hill: Layoffs in England and start in the USA

William Hill is a bookmaker and recently online casino with 85 years of experience. But there is cause for concern in the UK at the moment.

Finally, a law has been passed, which makes betting terminals less attractive. The result is shop closures. Many employees lose their jobs as a result. While the company in England could slide into a small crisis, William Hill in the United States wants to get off to a good start. Legal sports betting is now permitted there.

The British betting provider has already entered into a partnership with the Eldorado Resorts. This is cooperation at the Iowa location. But while the partnership has been in place since 2018, progress has been slow. However, this is not due to the entrepreneurs, but to the gambling authority in the state. Although the law has long since been passed, it still has to be finalized on paper.

William Hill in Great Britain: 4,500 employees before dismissal

Those who are currently working for William Hill in Great Britain are certainly worried about their job. Because 700 betting offices are expected to close their doors on site. As a result, up to 4,500 employees could lose their jobs. For the bookmaker, one-third of his stationary shops would be closed. But why is this massive reduction being driven forward? The main reason is the law of the British government against the betting terminals.

Currently, only four vending machines may be installed per branch. But with this alone, the gross turnover is GBP 1.8 billion a year. But there has been a change in the law. While previously stakes of up to 100 GBP (approx. 112 euros) were possible, 2 GBP can now still be risked per round.

For the stationary betting providers, the law was a small catastrophe. Because overnight, they lost an important source of income. William Hill has explained that since April there has been a significant decline in income from slot machines. Retail sales accounted for over 50 per cent of bookmakers’ sales. The company predicted that 900 betting stations would have to close according to case law.

There are now 700 closures, undercutting the forecast. But with this measure, 35 per cent of the retail workforce is still threatened with dismissal. This has shown the company that it is highly dependent on Great Britain. This makes the commitment to the international stage all the more important. The bookmaker can already be reached online. We have addressed this in our William Hill Test.

Not only William Hill was affected: Other betting providers active in the United Kingdom (UK), such as Betfred, are also struggling with a decline in revenues from fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs).

William Hill and his strategy: Mr Green and the USA

William Hill’s leadership had to work out a plan. On the one hand, the commitment of the Mr Green Group was strengthened. It is 100 per cent owned by William Hill. So there was an increase of 242 million pounds. The goal is to push the expansion in the World Wide Web. RedBet also belongs to the group. After all, these companies are licensed in seven countries. Thus William Hill can attain a larger range, than only on its core market, Great Britain. But probably the greatest hope rests on the United States of America. Sports betting is now permitted there. Only the implementation is sluggish.

The formulation of the company’s goals remains ambitious. The company plans to double its profits by 2023. But for this to happen, the USA must lead the way. Companies that are active locally could make a name for themselves there, especially at the start. William Hill has been active in America since 2012. At that time, three small bookmakers from Nevada were purchased for 49 million euros.

The British bookmaker was already the leader in this segment with 32 per cent in the last financial year. In the meantime, William Hill has expanded his commitment and is active in over twelve states – either as operator, service provider or with a lottery partnership. The recent agreement with Eldorado Resorts alone brings in a customer base of 23 million people in 13 states. In return, Eldorado will receive 20 per cent of the US business.

Eldorado and Caesar Entertainment merge: This could benefit William Hill. This would increase access even further.

William Hill announces business figures from the United States

William Hill has looked back on the first 17 weeks of 2019. In terms of US business, the amounts set rose by 65 per cent. Nevertheless, net sales increased by 48 per cent. At the same time, the number of sports bets settled in the USA doubled. And where redundancies are imminent in the UK, new hires are taking place in New Jersey. Here William Hill is looking for people in marketing, sales, payment, customer service and product development.

As the British betting provider is also investing in the United States, for example, in a technology platform, a tight profit is expected at best in fiscal 2019.