GiG Close to Deal With Evoke to Acquire 888Africa Stake

Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) is closing in on a deal to buy evoke’s stake in 888Africa, the B2C sports betting brand the two companies built together as a joint venture, according to a report from NEXT.io. The move would mark a return to consumer-facing operations for GiG, which sold off its original portfolio of B2C brands to Betsson Group six years ago and has operated primarily as a B2B platform supplier ever since.

The timing is no coincidence. Evoke, the parent company of William Hill and 888, is in the middle of being acquired by Bally’s Intralot in a deal valued at roughly £243 million in equity and about £2.2 billion enterprise value including debt. With that transaction still awaiting shareholder and regulatory approvals, evoke has reportedly been shopping around non-core assets to shore up its balance sheet — and its 19.9% stake in the Christopher Coyne-led 888Africa venture appears to be one of them.

Evoke’s Cash Crunch Adds Urgency

Evoke’s motivation to sell becomes clearer in light of its most recent financial disclosures. In its H1 results published this week, the company flagged “material uncertainties” tied directly to its ability to continue as a going concern if the Bally’s Intralot acquisition doesn’t close as planned. Both uncertainties were linked to the pending takeover rather than evoke’s underlying business performance, but the disclosure still signals how tightly the company’s near-term stability is now bound to the deal proceeding on schedule.

Against that backdrop, unloading its share of 888Africa — a joint venture evoke entered in March 2022 to pursue regulated markets across the continent — gives the company a chance to realize value from an asset that sits outside its core UK, US, and European operations while the bigger acquisition plays out. The Bally’s Intralot deal itself is expected to close between the fourth quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027, pending court sanction and additional approvals.

Why GiG Wants Back In

For GiG, acquiring evoke’s share would represent a notable strategic pivot. The company built its business as a platform and technology supplier to other operators after exiting the B2C space in 2020, and a deal for 888Africa would put it back in direct control of a consumer betting brand for the first time since then. African markets have drawn increasing interest from operators and suppliers looking for growth outside saturated regions like the UK and parts of Europe, and a foothold in an established joint venture — rather than a market entry from scratch — would give GiG a faster path in.

Multiple sources cited by NEXT.io indicate the two sides are close to finalizing terms, though neither GiG nor evoke has issued a formal announcement confirming the transaction. As with most M&A activity tied to a larger corporate takeover, timing and final terms could still shift before anything is made official.

What to Watch Next

The 888Africa sale, if finalized, would be one of several moving pieces tied to evoke’s broader corporate transition. Investors and industry watchers will be looking for confirmation of the deal alongside further updates on the Bally’s Intralot acquisition timeline, particularly given evoke’s own acknowledgment that its financial footing depends heavily on that larger transaction closing without delay.