Pennsylvania enforcement officials have objected to a licensing arrangement intended to clear a local obstacle to Bally’s Intralot’s proposed £243 million acquisition of evoke, the parent of 888 Atlantic.
The proposal would allow 888 Atlantic to surrender its Pennsylvania interactive gaming manufacturer licence while regulators consider a conditional change of control. Bally’s and evoke want the acquisition to be able to close before that surrender takes effect, with temporary measures governing 888 Atlantic as it winds down its activities.
The arrangement is necessary because Pennsylvania restricts the acquisition of an interactive gaming manufacturer by a group that also holds interactive gaming certificates. Bally’s Corporation controls Bally’s Intralot and owns Bally’s Pennsylvania, an online casino operator with two such certificates.
According to Next.io, Pennsylvania’s Office of Enforcement Counsel and board staff formally opposed granting the requested relief. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has the final decision on whether the proposed structure can proceed.
The enforcement office nevertheless outlined conditions it recommended if the board approves the transaction. They include weekly updates to the office, final approval before 888 Atlantic gives up its licence, and measures to prevent unlicensed people from obtaining control of the company. It also proposed that the parties pay $20,000 a month to cover the office’s supervision costs.
The office said the unusual exemption could set a precedent, although it was not overly concerned that this would materially harm the public or licensed gaming in Pennsylvania. A conventional licensing process could take nine months or more, potentially delaying completion of the acquisition.
888 Atlantic supplies technology, player-account management and customer support for Caesars’ Pennsylvania WSOP Online offering under its manufacturer licence. Its latest agreement extension ran through Sept. 19 and provided for a wind-down period of up to six months. The filing identifies Caesars Interactive Entertainment as evoke’s sole remaining US business-to-business customer, in a relationship dating to January 2012.
The regulatory issue arises despite evoke’s limited direct US presence. The company agreed in 2024 to pay $50 million to end its Sports Illustrated partnership and leave US consumer-facing operations, while retaining business-to-business contracts.
Caesars expanded WSOP Online’s shared player liquidity to Pennsylvania in 2025, joining Nevada, New Jersey and Michigan, according to Caesars Entertainment. The addition made it the first US online poker platform to pool liquidity across four jurisdictions.
Evoke said the acquisition remained on track and that it had already obtained most of the necessary regulatory approvals. The deal therefore remains subject to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board’s ruling on the requested conditional arrangement.
