Pennsylvania board weighs Bally’s proposed evoke acquisition safeguards

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) is to decide whether Bally's proposed acquisition of evoke may proceed under a conditional change of control, after the state's Office of Enforcement Counsel (OEC) objected to the companies' proposal. According to documents cited in a report, the OEC said it objected to the relief requested in the petition and recommended additional conditions should the board approve the deal.

At the centre of the dispute is evoke's 888 Atlantic subsidiary, which supplies Caesars' Pennsylvania World Series of Poker online offering with technology, player account management and customer support, operating under an interactive gaming manufacturer licence. Per the filing, the most recent extension of that Caesars arrangement was set to expire on 19 September 2026, and it included a wind-down window of as much as six months. Pennsylvania's rules bar groups that already hold interactive gaming certificates from acquiring interactive gaming manufacturers. Bally's Corporation, the parent of Bally's Intralot, also controls Bally's Pennsylvania, a licensed online casino operator with two such certificates.

The companies' answer is a conditional change of control: 888 Atlantic would give up its Pennsylvania manufacturer licence, with the regulator's approval of the change coming first in principle, so the deal could close before the surrender takes effect. Temporary measures would govern 888 Atlantic until its activities were wound down. Should the PGCB approve, the OEC wants weekly reports to the enforcement office, sign-off before any licence surrender, and safeguards stopping unlicensed people from taking control of 888 Atlantic. The office also seeks $20,000 a month for its supervision costs, and it stated that it was not overly concerned any precedent set would materially harm the public or licensed gaming in the Commonwealth.

The transaction is Bally's Intralot's £243.1m acquisition of evoke, which requires approval from regulators in jurisdictions worldwide. The filing identifies Caesars Interactive Entertainment as evoke's only remaining US B2B customer, under an agreement dating to January 2012. Evoke has a limited US presence following its $50m agreement to terminate its Sports Illustrated partnership in 2024 and its exit from US consumer-facing operations.

According to evoke, the transaction was still progressing as of last week, and most of the regulatory clearances it needs had already been obtained. When approached, the company opted not to comment. No date has been given for when the PGCB will rule.