William Hill has announced that it will be exiting 13 markets across Africa and Asia, as the operator appears to be re-examining its global strategy.
The news first came to light from customers on social media, although it was unclear at the time which markets were impacted, or if it was a complete and somewhat surprising closure of the evoke brand altogether.
However, information on the impacted markets has since been discovered on William Hill’s help page, with the departure of services and offerings coming into effect from 2 December 2025.
The countries impacted are:
- Angola
- Bolivia
- Burkina Faso
- Cameroon
- Kenya
- Mozambique
- Nepal
- Nicaragua
- Nigeria
- Republic of Congo
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- Somalia
- Vietnam
William Hill noted that customers in these countries will still be able to log into their account and withdraw their funds up until 5 January 2026, after which their login details will no longer work and they will have to contact customer service to withdraw their remaining balance.
Any open bets will be settled as normal up until 2 December, with bets due after this date being voided and refunded.
An evoke spokesperson told iGaming Expert: “On a periodic basis, we review the products we provide in markets across the world. In this instance, we have made the decision to close the William Hill, MRG and 888 brands in a selection of markets across Africa and Asia.
“Customers can still enjoy evoke’s brand 888Africa across Africa, which is not affected and continues to perform positively, and via 888.com in other markets.”
Closing trend?
William Hill’s exit from these 13 markets follows the brand’s departure from India, Jamaica and Botswana at the end of September.
For several of these markets, tax changes can be cited as having a significant impact on the ecosystem in which William Hill was operating. Kenya, Botswana and Nigeria are all in the midst of substantial tax reform, not just in terms of level, but in terms of structure as well.
The departure underpins that market volatility across Africa is beginning to have a tangible impact on the presence of major operators in the continent.
It also comes as the brand’s future presence in the UK market remains uncertain, mostly in the land-based sector, ahead of the UK government’s autumn budget announcement next week, which is speculated to include tax increases for the country’s gambling industry.
Last month, William Hill issued a warning about potential gambling tax hikes, noting that it may be forced to close between 120 and 200 betting shops, putting up to 1,500 jobs at risk.
During evoke’s Q2 earnings call earlier this year, CFO Sean Wilkins urged the government to take a “balanced approach” to potential tax increases to protect the industry.
“Increased tax beyond a certain point we know leads to black market growth, which leads to less tax take and zero player protection and is completely against the objectives of the Government. This is not speculation, this is evidenced in the Netherlands,” he said.
