Bally’s Intralot’s £243.1 million purchase of Evoke faces a Pennsylvania licensing dispute over the continuing role of Evoke subsidiary 888 Atlantic in Caesars’ WSOP Online operation. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board must decide whether to permit a proposed interim arrangement after the state’s Office of Enforcement Counsel objected to it.
The obstacle arises because 888 Atlantic supplies technology, player-account management and customer support to Caesars’ Pennsylvania online poker offering under an interactive gaming manufacturer licence. Bally’s Corporation controls Bally’s Intralot and owns Bally’s Pennsylvania, an online casino operator with two interactive gaming certificates.
Pennsylvania rules restrict the acquisition of interactive gaming manufacturers by groups that also hold interactive gaming certificates, according to NEXT.io. More generally, the state’s interactive-gaming regulations require Board approval before a party acquires control of an interactive gaming operator; control includes acquiring more than 20% of securities, assets or ownership interests, or another interest that permits control.
The companies have proposed that 888 Atlantic surrender its manufacturer licence while the Board grants conditional approval for the change of control. Temporary measures would allow the subsidiary to wind down its activity, potentially enabling the takeover to complete before the licence surrender took effect.
The Office of Enforcement Counsel formally opposed granting that relief. In its filing, it said Board staff and the office objected to the petition, while also saying it was not overly concerned that an exemption in this instance would materially damage the public or licensed gaming in Pennsylvania.
The office proposed safeguards should the Board approve the transaction: weekly updates, final approval before the licence surrender becomes effective, and restrictions intended to prevent unlicensed individuals from obtaining control of 888 Atlantic. It also recommended seeking $20,000 a month to cover regulatory supervision costs.
An ordinary licensing review could take nine months or more, threatening to push the acquisition beyond its expected timetable. Evoke said the deal remained on track and that it had secured most required regulatory approvals.
The Caesars agreement dates to January 2012 and identifies Caesars Interactive Entertainment as Evoke’s sole remaining US B2B customer. Its latest extension ran until Sept. 19 and included a wind-down period of up to six months. Caesars announced in April 2025 that Pennsylvania had joined Nevada, New Jersey and Michigan in WSOP Online’s shared player-liquidity network.
Evoke shareholders approved the takeover bid in August. The transaction had been expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026 or the first quarter of 2027, subject to the Board’s resolution of the Pennsylvania issue.
