Caesars Sportsbook App Finally Launches
World-renowned casino operator Caesars Entertainment has finally launched its new official sportsbook app. The news comes not long after the casino giant acquired British gambling operator William Hill in April 2021. The app is currently live in eight US states, including Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, New Jersey, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
World-famous casino operator Caesars Entertainment has finally launched its new official sportsbook app, following its major acquisition of British gambling operator William Hill in April 2021.
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Caesars App Uses Liberty Platform Acquired in William Hill Deal
Major global casino operator Caesars Entertainment has finally announced the launch of its brand new, official Caesars Sportsbook app, coming several months after its acquisition of British gambling operator William Hill in April 2021.
The app will be working off of the Liberty platform acquired as part of its highly lucrative takeover of William Hill. It is currently live in eight major US sports betting markets, including the likes of Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, New Jersey, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. There are also plans in the works to launch the app in Arizona, Maryland, and Louisiana — however only when these states’ sports betting markets go live.
Co-president of Caesars’ digital division, Eric Hession, stressed the importance of creating an easy and enjoyable app for users to navigate in the pursuit of being as nimble and adaptable as possible in a constantly evolving industry:
“Caesars Sportsbook puts the bettor at the center of everything. We understand that we need to be nimble, we need to give bettors what they want in terms of depth of odds and breadth of sports, and we need to make our app easy and fun to navigate. But beyond that, we want to treat every Caesars Sportsbook player like a Caesar. And that means generous offers and a way to earn through Caesars Rewards.”– Eric Hession, Co-President, Caesars’ Digital
Certain Players Will Enjoy Upgraded Version of Caesars App
Bettors residing in the three territories in which Caesars offers online betting that also require in-person registration (Illinois, Nevada, and Washington DC) will be able to enjoy access to a custom, upgraded version of the Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill mobile application.
Chirs Holdren, the other co-president of Caesars Digital, explained in a statement that he believes Caesar’s bettors deserve to be treated like royalty, citing the operator’s wide offering of ways to play and experience sports:
“Sports bettors deserve a sports betting experience that treats them like royalty. In our world, everyone’s an emperor, and the Caesars Sportsbook app delivers an experience worthy of them. We invite people to play with us online, stay with us at our resorts and experience their favorite sports in new ways through our unparalleled partnerships.”– Chirs Holdren , Co-President, Caesars’ Digital
The recently launched Caesars Sportsbook app will be propelled by a “multi-million dollar comprehensive marketing campaign”, integrating mobile betting together with the Caesars Rewards loyalty program, thereby allowing players to rack up rewards points at Caesars’ casinos through simple betting and playing. Furthermore, actor and comedian JB Smoove will be leading the marketing campaign by taking on the role of Caesar.
Chief executive of Caesars Tom Reeg touted the app’s rebranding and upgraded offerings as key aspects behind an intuitive user and betting experience for Caesars’ players:
“We are excited to launch our new comprehensive marketing campaign for Caesars Sportsbook. The rebranded and upgraded offerings for our Caesars Sportsbook will provide customized offers, flexible limits, a wide range of betting lines and an intuitive user experience. Caesars Sportsbook also brings players into an empire of play where, win or lose, every wager gives them more through our award-winning Caesars Rewards.”
Caesars Acquired William Hill in April 2021; Fended Off Apollo Global
As a little background to the launch of the official Caesars Sportsbook app, powered with the help of William Hill’s Liberty technology, the two operator’s boards signed off on an acquisition deal in which Caesars would take over William Hill all the way back in September 2020. Following this initial agreement, Caesars formally acquired William Hill in April 2021.
The acquisition of William Hill has been quite the saga for Caesars, with the global gambling giant fending off a rival bid from Apollo Global, followed by a concerted legal challenge mounted by investment management fund HBK Investments — delaying the deal from taking place on April 1st, 2021 as was initially planned.
The nitty gritty details of the massive deal saw Caesars agree to pay a whopping £2.9 billion (€3.35 billion/$4.04 billion) to acquire the British business, purchasing William Hill’s 1.08 billion shares for £2.72 apiece.
Caesars admitted at the time of the deal that the main purpose of the large acquisition was to target William Hill’s US betting businesses and technology operations, with the operator’s UK division, as well as its remaining assets, now likely to be sold off.
UK Gambling Commission Held Caesars Staff Accountable in March 2021
Some slightly dramatic news for Caesars Entertainment arrived in March 2021, when the UK’s main gambling regulator, the Gambling Commission, announced that it was holding Personal Management License holders at Caesars Entertainment accountable after several notable customer failings were discovered.
The regulator took action against Caesars’ British division, Caesars Entertainment UK Limited, after it uncovered failings towards its VIP customers, largely based on concerns that they encourage unsafe gambling behavior.
The regulator’s move followed a record-breaking £13 million fine issued against Caesars Entertainment in April 2021. The UKGC ended up targeting staff responsible for looking after VIP customers. Three PML holders immediately surrendered their licenses upon learning the regulator’s investigation was underway, resulting in a decision to hold those responsible for these short fallings to account.
Caesars Revenue Fell Almost 50% in 2020
Much like most of the gambling industry, and especially the physical gambling world, Caesars Entertainment was hit hard in 2020 by the global coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, reporting an annual same-store retail gambling revenue leveling out at $6.1 billion, thereby representing a 42.5% loss from 2019.
The United States’ nationwide gambling revenue decreased 31% year-on-year between 2019 and 2020 due to the pandemic. Such low revenue levels hadn’t been seen since at least 2003. Nevertheless, two relatively nascent gambling sectors continued to show promising growth — online gambling and sports betting.
