evoke plc
Also known as: Evoke Plc, 888 Holdings, Virtual Holdings Limited
evoke plc, known as 888 Holdings until May 2024, is a business-to-consumer betting and gaming operator group that owns brands including William Hill, 888casino, 888sport, 888poker, Mr Green and Winner.ro. It is incorporated in Gibraltar and listed in London, and sold its B2B arm Dragonfish together with its bingo business in 2022.
- Founded
- 1997
- Headquarters
- Gibraltar, Gibraltar
- Ownership
- evoke plc, incorporated in Gibraltar and listed on the London Stock Exchange; head office Suite 601/701 Europort, Europort Road, Gibraltar, with a London office at 1 Bedford Avenue. As of October 2026 its investor site hosts documents on a recommended offer from Bally's Intralot S.A.
- Products
- online casino (B2C), sportsbook (B2C), poker (B2C), retail betting shops
- Also known as
- Evoke Plc, 888 Holdings, Virtual Holdings Limited
- Website
- www.evokeplc.com
- linkedin.com/company/evokeplc
History
The group's 888 side was founded in 1997 in the British Virgin Islands as Virtual Holdings Limited and launched the online casino Casino-on-Net that year. It added Reef Club Casino, the 888.com brand and Pacific Poker in 2002, moved its headquarters to Gibraltar in 2003, listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2005, signed its first white-label deals in 2007 and launched 888sport in 2008. On 1 July 2022 it completed the acquisition of William Hill, a bookmaker founded in 1934 that had bought Mr Green & Co AB for about £242 million in 2019 and was acquired by Caesars Entertainment in 2021. In July 2022 it also sold its whole bingo business, including the Dragonfish B2B operations.
In March 2024 the group announced its exit from US B2C operations, and in May 2024, after shareholder approval, it renamed itself evoke plc; in October 2024 it completed the acquisition of Romania's Winner.ro. Its divisions are UK&I Online, International Online, focused on Italy, Spain, Romania and Denmark, and UK Retail, built on the William Hill betting-shop estate. In December 2025 its board began a review of strategic options, and as of October 2026 its investor site hosts documents on a recommended offer for the company from Bally's Intralot S.A.
Notable
- Renamed from 888 Holdings to evoke plc in May 2024.
- Completed the acquisition of William Hill on 1 July 2022; William Hill had acquired Mr Green & Co AB in January 2019.
- Sold its bingo business, including the Dragonfish B2B operations, in July 2022.
- Completed the acquisition of Winner.ro in October 2024.
How well established
The group history, brands, divisions, the Gibraltar head office and the Bally's Intralot offer page are documented on the official corporate site, whose pages describe the group both as headquartered in London and as having its head office in Gibraltar. The site does not state the company's registration number.
