Mr Green secures licence ahead of Spanish launch

| By Robin Harrison
William Hill is to launch its Mr Green brand in Spain, after the subsidiary was awarded a licence by the country’s gambling regulator, la Dirección General del Ordenación del Juego (DGOJ).

The core William Hill brand is already active in Spain’s online sports betting market, with Mr Green to be used to strengthen its casino offering in the country. 

The operator, which is to be acquired by Caesars Entertainment, struck a deal to acquire Mr Green parent MRG Group for SEK2.82bn (£245.9m/€272.4m/$319.1m) in October 2018. This was finalised in February 2019. 

“This is an important milestone within our strategy,” William Hill International managing director and chief executive of Mr Green Patrick Jonker said. 

“With the launch of Mr Green in Spain, we look forward to expanding our offer by expanding our already strong presence within sports betting, with one of the strongest casino brands in the industry,” he explained. 

“With the combination of two industry leading brands, we look forward to deliver the best player experience within sports and gaming.”

Last week the DGOJ reported second quarter figures for Spain’s online gaming market, which revealed that revenue was up 17.7% year-on-year to €208.9m, though this represented a 4.2% drop from the first quarter of 2020. 

At a time when the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic significantly reduced the sporting calendar, sports betting revenue across all licensees was down 20.8% at €68.1m. However, online casino grew strongly, with revenue rising to €93.5m, a 36.5% year-on-year improvement.

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