888 Holdings (Now Evoke): The Israeli Online-Gambling Pioneer

888 Holdings — now operating as Evoke — is one of the longest-running online gaming companies globally. The company was founded in 1997 by Israeli entrepreneurs, took on the William Hill International business in 2022 in one of the largest transactions in the history of the gambling industry, and rebranded as Evoke in 2024.

The Founders

888 was founded in 1997 by Avi Shaked, his brother Aaron Shaked, Shay Ben-Yitzhak, and Ron Ben-Yitzhak. The original launch was as Virtual Holdings — an early online casino operating from Antigua. The company subsequently rebranded as 888 and moved its operations to Gibraltar.

The Shaked and Ben-Yitzhak families remained active in the business through the public-company era. Avi Shaked served as co-chairman and remained a significant shareholder for many years. The family-founder anchoring of the public company through multiple cycles is unusual in the gambling-tech sector and reflects the Israeli pattern of long-running operating control by founding families.

The London IPO

888 went public on the London Stock Exchange in 2005. The IPO valued the company at approximately £500 million. The listing made 888 one of the first major Israeli-founded gambling companies on a non-US public market and established the template for subsequent listings by Playtech, NeoGames, and others.

The Product Portfolio Through The 2010s

Through the 2010s, 888 built one of the broader licensed portfolios in regulated online gambling:

• 888casino — one of the longest-running licensed online casinos in the world
• 888poker — leading regulated poker network
• 888sport — sportsbook, with particular focus on UK and European markets
• 888bingo — UK and European bingo operations
• Mr Green — Swedish gaming brand acquired by 888 in 2019 for approximately £242 million

The William Hill International Acquisition

In September 2021, 888 announced an agreement to acquire the non-US operations of William Hill — the UK gambling and sportsbook giant — from Caesars Entertainment. The acquisition closed in July 2022 at a transaction value of approximately £2 billion.

The deal more than doubled 888's revenue base and transformed the company into one of the largest publicly listed online gambling operators in the world. The William Hill brand — one of the most recognized in UK sports betting — became part of the 888 group.

The 2024 Rebrand To Evoke

In November 2024, the company announced its rebrand from 888 Holdings to Evoke plc. The constituent consumer brands — 888, William Hill, Mr Green — continue to operate under their existing names. Evoke is the new corporate identity.

The rebrand reflected the company's expanded scope post-William Hill integration. The Evoke identity is positioned as the umbrella entity housing a portfolio of leading consumer gaming brands rather than a single operating brand.

The Israeli Roots Today

Evoke remains substantially Israeli in its engineering and operating culture. Major technology centers operate in Israel. The board and senior leadership include Israeli executives. The founder families have rotated out of operating roles over the years but remain visible in the broader Israeli business landscape.

The company's listing is in London, its licensing in Gibraltar, Malta, and other regulated jurisdictions, and its core engineering in Israel. The geography is the standard pattern of the Israeli gambling-tech industry.

Why This Piece Matters For The Olam Map

888 / Evoke is the case study of how an Israeli-founded online gambling company can build a multi-decade public-market operating history through acquisition and brand-portfolio expansion. The William Hill transaction in particular was one of the largest acquisitions ever executed by an Israeli-founded company on a non-US listing.

Part of the Olam Israeli Gambling-Tech Diaspora cluster. See the pillar: The Israeli Gambling-Tech Diaspora.