William Hill adds four Irish horse racing ambassadors

William Hill has strengthened its impressive stable of horse racing ambassadors by aligning with leading Irish trainer Gavin Cromwell, top National Hunt jockeys J J Slevin and Sean Flanagan and respected presenter and broadcaster Jane Mangan.

Aimed at increasing its content offering in Ireland, the deals with Cromwell, Slevin, Flanagan and Mangan will see the ambassadors provide blogs covering all the major racing news and meetings as well as regular video content for the bookmaker’s social media platforms. The activity will begin ahead of this weekend’s Dublin Racing Festival from Leopardstown, where Slevin is set to partner Irish Gold Cup contender, Fastorslow.

The four new deals come in conjunction with the news that the leading bookmaker has extended its sponsorship of the William Hill Champion Chase on the opening day of the Punchestown Festival for the next three years, with several other races set to be sponsored including the William Hill Boyne Hurdle at Navan on 11 February.

In addition, William Hill has also partnered with Irish sports media company, Off The Ball, who produce podcast, radio, website and live digital content. The partnership which will see joint branded William Hill and Off The Ball live horse racing events around Ireland in the coming months, with the first taking place on February 1st ahead of the Dublin Racing Festival. The live event will feature all four of the bookmaker’s new Irish horse racing ambassadors.

Andrew McCleave, Head of Marketing at William Ireland, said: “William Hill has a long proud history in horse racing, specifically in the UK, and for 2024 we want to position ourselves at the heart of racing in Ireland as well.

“We are delighted to announce Gavin Cromwell, J J Slevin, Sean Flanagan and Jane Mangan as our new horse racing ambassadors in Ireland. All four are very talented in their fields and will be able to offer fascinating and unique insight to our followers.

“We really want to get into the DNA of Irish racing by supporting big races and festivals, so it’s fantastic that we have extended our sponsorship of the William Hill Champion Chase at the Punchestown Festival for another three years, while our deal with Off The Ball should really help increase our exposure too.”

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Gambling: William Hill's app crash and embezzlement scheme

This week's gambling news from J. Todd is all about William Hill’s recent troubles that are being investigated by the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

First, the William Hill app crashed just prior to the Super Bowl betting frenzy, and to make up for it, the bookmaker is shelling out tens of thousands of dollars in "free sports bets.” Secondly, the Nevada Gaming Control Board just busted a William Hill embezzlement scheme by some of its employees.

App crashes before the Big Game:
On the biggest sports betting day in America, the William Hill app crashed for bettors in Nevada just prior to kickoff. Some players were unable to place bets on the app. What could be worse? How about the players who placed bets before the crash who were not able to collect their winnings. Some were told that there will be no payouts.

Now, the Nevada Gaming Control Board is getting involved and investigating the issues. In a statement to local news outlets the Board said they were “aware of the issue” and that their agents are currently investigating the matter.

Embezzlement scheme uncovered:
The Nevada Gaming Control Board also needed to get involved in another William Hill issue recently when it was discovered that employees from the bookmaker was embezzling money. Unfortunately, this was not until the criminals had pilfered over $100,000 from the company.

Control Board Agents were tipped to the thefts back in December, when William Hill reported potential fraud to the agency using internal information from its sports betting kiosks. And while the full impact of the crime has not been disclosed, the company, which is owned by Caesars, has well over a 100 sportsbook locations in the state.

There have been no public comments about the William Hill embezzlement operation from the company or from Caesars. However, public records of court documents name two individuals: Shravan Singh, who is charged with embezzlement, forgery, and more, while Paige Steiner is facing nearly 300 charges related to burglary, grand larceny and conspiracy.

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William Hill transforms in-shop betting experience in UK

William Hill has transformed the in-shop betting experience for its customers following Saturday’s opening of a state-of-the-art, digital-only shop in Leeds.

Ex-Leeds and England goalkeeper Nigel Martyn, former Yorkshire and England cricketer Craig White and ex-Leeds Rhinos player Stevie Ward attended the relaunch of William Hill’s Vicar Lane venue, which promises an unrivalled immersive and interactive betting experience not seen before in betting shops.

The transformed shop in Leeds will provide William Hill customers with a range of exciting, new digital opportunities, including:

Digital only – William Hill will be going paperless across the shop
Integrated research table – customers can access digital versions of the Racing Post at William Hill’s new research table
Charging stations – customers will be able to charge their phones wirelessly while in the shop
Scent solutions – inspired by casinos, computer-driven scents configured to cover the entire shop have been installed
William Hill also placed delivering innovations in player safety at the heart of the relaunch, with the introduction of a player safety/customer service area named ‘Own Your Game,’ where customers and staff can privately interact around safer gambling issues and the various support measures available.

The leading bookmaker will also have access to real-time footfall information via a dashboard to understand customer dwell time and peak periods. Elsewhere, William Hill has introduced gantry cameras, providing access to which betting materials customers are engaging with on the shop floor to help tailor popular broadcast content, while also trialling the use of body cameras to ensure safety of its staff.

“We’re delighted to be able to offer our customers in Leeds such an innovative and exciting digital-focused shop,” said Ben McCann, Head of Marketing – Retail & Omni. “Being able to utilise the new digital features on offer will make for a far more enjoyable betting experience, and one that will appeal greatly to our existing customers while also helping to attract a new audience in the process.”

William Hill is set to roll out a similar digital-focused shop in Glasgow later this month.

“We are presenting a brand new, player-centric betting shop environment that delivers a fun, immersive and digital experience, with innovation at its core,” said Garry Fenton, William Hill’s UK Retail Director. “As well as offering our customers a wide range of cutting-edge digital features, we’ve also ensured that innovations in player safety have been key to this transformation. The relaunch in Leeds was a huge success and we look forward to bringing the same experience to other William Hill betting shops around the UK soon.”

Local Leeds sporting heroes Martyn, White and Ward all immersed themselves on Saturday in the digital experience that the new shop provides and they were impressed by what they saw.

“It’s been fantastic to see how William Hill are progressing the in-shop betting experience for its customers and great to see the innovation involved,” said Nigel Martyn. “Leeds fans looking to place a bet in-shop are set for a completely transformed digital experience and one that will certainly improve the way that they back their club.”

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Playson marches on in Italy with William Hill

Casino games and software developer Playson has announced a deal to provide the prominent operator William Hill with its content.

The supplier’s enthralling suite of hits, including long-time fan-favorites such as Buffalo Power Megaways, Royal Coins: Hold and Win and Diamond Fortunator: Hold and Win, will be integrated with William Hill Italy's market offering.

The widely renowned operator will also benefit from access to Playson’s retention-boosting collection of integration-free engagement tools, comprising Jackpots, Tournaments, Feature Trigger and Free Spins.

The games studio has further strengthened its ever-growing Italian footprint during 2021, with a string of tier one commercial agreements allowing it to entertain local players with its widely acclaimed content portfolio.

Blanka Homor, Sales Director at Playson, said: “We are thrilled to team up with one of the industry’s best-known operators in William Hill, in a move that solidifies our strong position within the crucial Italian market.

“Our player reach continues to grow across Europe and beyond, after racking up a range of major commercial deals and new market entries during recent months.”

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William Hill ready for football season to start

With the 2021 football season just over a month away, William Hill Sportsbook & Racebook is rolling out two Nevada football contests both with potential seven-figure payouts, including the nation’s premier $1 million College Pick’em contest and the return of the popular Pro Pick‘em contest rounding out the lineup.

With a guaranteed prize pool of $1 million cash, the 2021 College Pick‘em contest costs $1,000 to play, with a maximum of five entries allowed. Players choose eight games against the spread from a menu of designated games, with the season’s top record earning at least a $500,000 cash reward.

Each entry into the Pro Pick‘em contest costs $25, and up to 15 entries are allowed per customer. Each week, players will pick the winner of all Sunday and Monday pro football games, with a $10,000 weekly prize paid to the entry with the most winners. The entry with the most winners at season’s end will collect a $20,000 cash prize. New for 2021, there is a $1 million cash bonus if the season-long Grand Prize winner finishes with at least 215 wins.

Registration is now open. The deadline to register for the College Pick’em is Saturday, 11 September 2021. Entries for Week 1 of the Pro Pick‘em contests must be made by Sunday, 12 September 2021. Pro Pick’em entries can be purchased each week after that date.

Players may register and place their weekly entries at any of the full-service William Hill Sportsbooks throughout Nevada.

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PGA Championship odds at William Hill

The 103rd PGA Championship will be underway tomorrow, with one golfer ending the week with his name etched into the history books after a first-place finish at Kiawah Island.

William Hill Nevada has the futures up for 136 golfers to win this major, as well as several different recently released prop markets like make/miss the cut and tournament head-to-head matchups.

“This course will benefit the ball-strikers,” said Nick Bogdanovich, Director of Trading for William Hill US. “This course is just so long. Apparently the wind was supposed to only be 10-12 [MPH], but they said yesterday at practice was like a hurricane. It’s hard to predict what the wind will be like every day because the course is next to an ocean and anything can happen. There’s no question wind will be factor though, and ball-strikers can hit it through that wind. And the greens, they’re exposed, so they won’t be running super fast.”

After being a co-favorite with Justin Thomas on Monday, Rory McIlroy now stands alone atop the board at 10/1. Thomas has risen slightly to 12/1, where he is tied with Xander Schauffele for the second-lowest odds. Schauffele was listed at 22/1 on Monday, which was the eighth-lowest odds at the time.

Jon Rahm and Jordan Spieth are each at 13/1, with Viktor Hovland (15/1), Bryson DeChambeau (17/1) and Dustin Johnson (18/1) all nearby. Johnson, however, has seen his odds continue to climb, as 18/1 is the highest he’s been since William Hill released its 2021 PGA Championship futures on April 12. Johnson withdrew from last week’s AT&T Byron Nelson due to knee discomfort.

“DJ’s price has been going up,” Bogdanovich said. “I think he’ll hit 20/1 by the time we close today. No one wants to bet on him [to win]. They are also betting him to miss the cut.”

But who has been the most popular bet to come out on top?

“Spieth has way more tickets than anyone else in the field,” Bogdanovich said. “He’s just been on a roll the past two months or so, so that’s why he’s getting this much action. We lose pretty good with him still.”

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William Hill releases odds for Canelo Alvarez and Billy Joe Saunders fight

(Ap)

Everything is bigger in Texas, including the massive boxing title fight this weekend at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

Canelo Alvarez and Billy Joe Saunders will square off in a unification showdown on Saturday night, and there’s a lot on the line. Alvarez (55-1-2, 37 KOs) currently holds the WBC and WBA super middleweight titles, while the undefeated Saunders (30-0, 14 KOs) possesses the WBO super middleweight title.

“Canelo is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters, he’s had the hype machine behind him the whole time,” said Nick Bogdanovich, Director of Trading for William Hill U.S. “But I think Saunders gives him all he wants, I can’t wait to see this fight. I think there’s value on Saunders now given how much his price has gone up.”

When William Hill Nevada first released the odds for this bout on 3 March, Alvarez was the -550 favorite whereas Saunders was listed at +425. Alvarez is now all the way up to -850 to hand Saunders his first career defeat. Meanwhile, Saunders is priced at +575 to pull off the stunning upset. The total is set at 10.5, with the over the sizable favorite at -170 and the under at +150.

Even with the heavy price, William Hill bettors haven’t been shying away from taking Alvarez.

“Canelo draws a lot of money in Las Vegas, he always has,” Bogdanovich said. “Right now we need Saunders, which is rare. Any time there’s a fight in this price range, we usually need the favorite to win cause the liability adds up so fast at +575 or so. We’re high on Canelo straight bets, we’ll always be high on him with parlays. We’ve taken some pretty big bets on Alvarez, it looks like this fight’s handle is going to surpass that Jake Paul-[Ben] Askren fight.”

Alvarez has commanded a whopping 96% of the total dollars wagered among all moneyline wagers against Saunders. That is highlighted by one Nevada bettor who put $110,000 on Alvarez -550 and then another $70,000 shortly after on Alvarez -600 for a total potential payout of $211,666.65.

Saunders, on the other hand, has actually received the majority of the total number of tickets at 71%. The biggest wager on the underdog thus far is another Nevada bettor placing $2,000 on Saunders +575 for a total potential payout of $13,500.

William Hill bettors are split on the total, with under 10.5 attracting 71% of the total number of tickets and over 10.5 seizing 55% of the total dollars wagered.

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Caesars Entertainment completes acquisition of William Hill

Caesars Entertainment, Inc. today announced that it has completed its acquisition of William Hill PLC for approximately $4.0 billion. The transaction gives Caesars ownership of one of the world’s leading betting and gambling companies and gives the company the ability to maximize the opportunity within sports betting and online gaming in the U.S.

“We are thrilled to complete the acquisition of William Hill, combining two of the premier operations in the sports betting and iGaming industries under one roof,” said Tom Reeg, CEO of Caesars Entertainment. “We look forward to announcing future sports partnerships that will drive long-term growth.”

The combined companies currently operate sports betting in 18 jurisdictions in the U.S., an industry-leading 13 of which offer mobile sports betting. The Company expects to be operational in 20 U.S. jurisdictions by the end of 2021.

The transaction further expands the reach of Caesars Rewards by providing William Hill members access to the Company’s industry-leading loyalty program, including the ability to earn tier status that can be used at all of the Company’s land-based and online properties. This combination also enables the Company to further enhance its services to customers by providing a single-wallet offering of sports betting and online gaming products across the enterprise in the future.

As previously disclosed, Caesars intends to sell the non-U.S. businesses currently owned by William Hill, including the U.K. and international online divisions and the retail betting shops.

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William Hill releases odds for The Masters

Augusta in April is back, and the competition is as strong as ever. After a one-off edition in November last year due to COVID-19, we’ve reached Masters week once again. William Hill Sportsbook & Racebook has futures odds up for 85 golfers to win golf’s most prestigious tournament, including three co-favorites at the top of the board.

Defending Masters champion Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas are all currently at +900 at William Hill Nevada. Johnson led the way at +700 when William Hill first released its 2021 Masters futures on 15 November. Thomas was tied for the second-lowest odds at 10/1 with Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy.

Meanwhile, Spieth opened at 50/1 and was as high as 60/1 back in early February.

“Spieth plays well in Augusta and now he’s back in great form,” said Nick Bogdanovich, Director of Trading for William Hill US. “Obviously he’s been on fire the past two months, so it’s not a surprise to see the masses going with him here. He’s the leader in the clubhouse right now in tickets and money.”

Thanks to a strong performance at the Waste Management Open in which he tied for fourth place, Spieth’s Masters odds dropped to 30/1 on 6 February. A week later, he tied for third at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and went down to 20/1 on 13 February. Then the next day, his price shifted again, this time to 14/1.

His Masters odds remained in that general area until finishing in first at the Valero Texas Open on 4 April. His odds had fallen to +850, where he was the sole Masters favorite until slightly rising back up to +900.

After the three +900 co-favorites, DeChambeau sits at 12/1, followed by Rahm (14/1), McIlroy (16/1) and Patrick Cantlay (18/1). Xander Schauffele is next at 22/1, while Collin Morikawa (25/1), Patrick Reed (25/1) and Tony Finau (28/1) are all in range.

One notable name not on the board is Tiger Woods. The five-time event winner is out for this Masters because of serious leg injuries he suffered in a February car crash.

“It’ll be business as usual, but it’d be nice to have Tiger there because he’d be up there in tickets and dollars,” Bogdanovich said. “Those tickets and dollars will mostly be distributed to someone else, but some won’t because they just wanted Tiger to root for. So that dings us there. But it’s still the Masters, and we’ll write huge numbers regardless of who is playing.”

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William Hill releases March Madness region futures

Looking for more ways to bet March Madness? Take a stab with tournament region futures at William Hill, where you can bet on any team to advance to the Final Four.

“We usually get some big bets on the No. 1 seeds to make it through,” said Nick Bogdanovich, Director of Trading for William Hill US. “But the masses are mostly focused on who will win it all. Now the sharps will try and pick off a number of the regions. They’ll scour them pretty good and see if we put up a bad number.”

The biggest odds-on favorite to come out of their respective region at William Hill is Gonzaga. The Bulldogs are currently -240 to represent the West Region in the Final Four after opening at -200.

“It makes sense why Gonzaga is such a big favorite,” Bogdanovich said. “They definitely got a pretty good schedule break. If you look at who they could possibly play, I don’t think you could ask for much more. But I’ve seen -200 favorites for regions before, this isn’t new.”

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