888 Terminates Deal With Sports Illustrated, Expected to Exit US Market
It's market share in the US sports betting has been nominal at best and now one of the oldest iGaming brands, 888, is widely expected to leave the US market altogether.
The company revealed Wednesday it is considering a sale of its B2C business in the States. 888 will also cut ties with Sports Illustrated. It currently runs an SI branded sportsbook in Michigan.
The betting firm only maintains a presence in three other US states: New Jersey, Colorado and Virginia.
As part of the termination agreement with SI, 888 has agreed to pay SI $25 million immediately and a further $25 million between 2027 and 2029.
In Michigan, SI's February revenue numbers came in at $3,390,231 compared to $501,280,512 for the market leader FanDuel.
“Since commencing my role as CEO I have been focused on ensuring the Group is set up to deliver strong value creation in the coming years," Per Widerström, CEO of 888, said. " In the US, the intensity of competition and requirement for scale means huge investment is required to reach profitability.
"Our partnership with Authentic has consistently driven strong demand for the SI brand across both consumer experiences and product offerings. A series of record-breaking months for SI Casino has underscored the strength of the SI brand. However, despite these successes, we have concluded that achieving sufficient scale in the US market to generate positive returns within an accelerated timeframe is unlikely.
"The strategic review of our US B2C operations will continue at pace, and I look forward to updating shareholders on our plans for the wider Group in late March.”
No time frame was offered for any potential exit.
- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com
