888casino
888casino is an international online casino brand founded in 1997 as Casino-on-Net and now operated by Evoke plc.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
888casino is an online casino brand operated by Evoke plc, the gambling group formerly known as 888 Holdings. The business began in 1997 under the name Casino-on-Net and is regarded as one of the oldest continuously operating internet casino brands. It was established by brothers Aaron and Avi Shaked together with brothers Ron and Shay Ben-Yitzhaq. The concept emerged during the early development of legally licensed internet gambling, when jurisdictions such as Antigua and Barbuda were creating frameworks that allowed online casino businesses to operate. The brand was renamed 888casino in 2010 as part of a wider effort to create a consistent identity across the 888 group’s online gambling services. Its core proposition is a regulated digital casino offering casino-style games through websites and related online channels. Depending on local law and licensing arrangements, the platform may provide slots, table games, live-dealer products, jackpot games, payment services, promotions, and responsible-gambling tools. Product availability, terms, promotional activity, and access requirements differ substantially between jurisdictions. 888casino developed an international footprint across European and other regulated markets. By the middle of the 2010s, it held or operated under licenses in Gibraltar, New Jersey, Denmark, Spain, and additional territories. The brand also expanded its third-party content catalogue, including a 2017 arrangement to carry slot games supplied by Merkur Interactive Services, part of the Gauselmann Group. It has received eCOGRA’s Safe and Fair assurance seal, reflecting external assessment of aspects of its gaming and operational standards. The company’s United States history was significant. In March 2013, the Nevada Gaming Commission licensed 888casino’s parent operation as an interactive gaming service provider, making it the first exclusively online gambling company to receive a license from a United States jurisdiction. In New Jersey, 888casino entered an arrangement with Caesars Entertainment in 2013 through the All American Poker Network, allowing the brand to provide online gambling products to eligible New Jersey customers. The business later discontinued sports betting in the state while preparing for a Sports Illustrated-branded sportsbook, and it ultimately withdrew from New Jersey and the broader United States consumer market. In 2024, the group cited high customer-acquisition costs, strong competition, and limited prospects for profitable scale as reasons for its strategic retreat from U.S. business-to-consumer operations. A major corporate development was the acquisition of William Hill International’s European business from Caesars Entertainment. Announced in September 2021 for a reported purchase price of £2.2 billion, the transaction expanded the group’s regulated European gambling activities and changed the competitive context in which 888casino operated. The parent company subsequently adopted the Evoke name. 888casino remains a consumer-facing casino brand within that broader portfolio, with its business shaped by local gambling regulation, age and identity controls, advertising restrictions, market exits, and the group’s emphasis on regulated markets.
History
888casino originated in 1997 as Casino-on-Net during the formative period of internet gambling. Its founders were brothers Aaron and Avi Shaked and brothers Ron and Shay Ben-Yitzhaq. The business emerged alongside the development of offshore and international legal frameworks for online gambling, including measures adopted in Antigua and Barbuda in the mid-1990s. The brand’s early significance came from operating a casino product designed specifically for the internet rather than adapting a traditional land-based casino to digital channels. In 2010, Casino-on-Net was renamed 888casino. The change was intended to bring the casino business into a common visual and commercial identity with other 888-branded products. The brand subsequently became part of a wider portfolio that included online betting, poker, and other gaming services operated by 888 Holdings, now known as Evoke plc. Its underlying model remained a direct-to-consumer online casino, with the exact games and services determined by market-specific licensing conditions. The brand’s international expansion focused heavily on regulated markets. By 2015, it was licensed or operating under regulatory permissions in Gibraltar, New Jersey, Denmark, Spain, and other countries and territories. Its European reach led Gaming Intelligence magazine to describe it that year as the only genuinely pan-European casino. The platform also relied on content partnerships. In 2017, it entered an agreement to distribute slot games from Merkur Interactive Services, part of the Gauselmann Group. 888casino has also received eCOGRA’s Safe and Fair assurance seal, an external certification associated with fair gaming and operational safeguards. The United States represented an important but ultimately temporary phase. In March 2013, the Nevada Gaming Commission granted the company an interactive gaming service provider license. This was notable because 888casino was identified as the first exclusively online gambling company licensed by a U.S. jurisdiction. In New Jersey, the brand used an arrangement with Caesars Entertainment and the All American Poker Network to provide its own online gambling products after the state authorized internet gambling. The platform published independently audited monthly casino payout information and disclosed game-level and overall payout percentages as part of its consumer-facing transparency measures. The group later adjusted its New Jersey strategy. In 2021, 888casino stopped offering sports betting in the state while preparations were made for a Sports Illustrated-branded sportsbook. The parent company then reassessed the economics of its U.S. business-to-consumer operations. In 2024, it announced a strategic withdrawal, citing customer-acquisition expense, competitive intensity, and the difficulty of achieving profitable scale across regulated American states. The New Jersey operation was subsequently closed, and selected U.S. assets were agreed for sale to Hard Rock Digital. By 2025, the group no longer operated online casino services for U.S. consumers. Another major turning point was 888’s acquisition of William Hill International’s European business from Caesars Entertainment. The transaction, agreed in 2021 for a reported £2.2 billion, expanded the group’s regulated European presence and added substantial operating complexity. The parent later changed its corporate identity to Evoke plc, while 888casino continued as one of its principal consumer brands. Today, the brand’s identity is defined by regulated online casino distribution, jurisdiction-specific product portfolios, responsible-gambling controls, digital customer acquisition, and selective participation in international markets rather than by a single global product configuration.
- 2024
United States consumer-market withdrawal
[1]The group exits New Jersey and announces a broader strategic withdrawal from U.S. business-to-consumer gambling.
- 2021
William Hill International acquisition agreed
[1]888 agrees to acquire William Hill’s European business from Caesars Entertainment.
- 2017
Merkur slot content partnership
[1]888casino agrees to add slot games supplied by Merkur Interactive Services.
- 2015
Broad European licensing footprint is established
[1]The brand is reported as licensed or operating in Gibraltar, New Jersey, Denmark, Spain, and other territories.
- 2013
Nevada grants an interactive gaming license
[1]888casino becomes the first exclusively online gambling company licensed by a U.S. jurisdiction.
- 2010
Casino-on-Net becomes 888casino
[1]The brand is renamed to align its identity with the wider 888 portfolio.
- 1997
Casino-on-Net is founded
[1]Aaron and Avi Shaked and Ron and Shay Ben-Yitzhaq establish the online casino that later becomes 888casino.
Products and positioning
An internationally oriented online casino brand focused on regulated digital gambling markets.
Online casino · 1997
888casino online casino platform
888casino’s principal product is a regulated online casino platform delivered through web and related digital channels. Depending on the jurisdiction, it can include slots, table games, live casino products, jackpots, promotions, payment functions, and responsible-gambling tools. The catalogue and user journey are not uniform worldwide: local licenses determine which games, bonuses, payment methods, advertising claims, and customer eligibility rules apply. Access is generally subject to age, identity, location, and responsible-gambling controls.
Casino content · 2017
Merkur slot catalogue
A third-party content offering associated with the 2017 agreement between 888casino and Merkur Interactive Services. The arrangement broadened the platform’s slot selection with games supplied by a major European gaming-content provider. Actual availability depends on the license and product permissions applicable in each market.
Marketing campaigns
- 2021Portuguese motorcycle Grand Prix sponsorship
Portugal · International motorsport audience
The brand became title sponsor of the 2021 Portuguese motorcycle Grand Prix.
Outcome. International sports-marketing exposure for the 888casino name.
- 2013World Seniors Championship sponsorship
United Kingdom · International snooker audience
888casino served as title sponsor of the World Seniors Championship in snooker, using a sports property to build recognition for its consumer gambling brand.
Outcome. Brand association with a televised and internationally followed snooker event.
- New York Jets sponsorship
United States
888casino has been associated with sponsorship activity involving the New York Jets of the National Football League.
- Dundalk FC sponsorship
Ireland
The brand has sponsored Dundalk FC as part of its sports-marketing activity.
Brand decisions
2024
Withdraw from the U.S. consumer marketStrategyBackground
The parent group determined that high customer-acquisition costs, strong competition, and the scale required to compete made a profitable U.S. business-to-consumer model difficult to achieve.
Action taken
The group ceased 888casino operations in New Jersey, agreed to sell selected U.S. assets to Hard Rock Digital, and redirected investment toward core regulated markets.
Aftermath
By 2025, the group no longer operated online casino services for U.S. consumers.
2021
Acquire William Hill InternationalM&ABackground
The transaction was intended to expand the parent group’s regulated European gambling operations.
Action taken
888 agreed to acquire William Hill International’s European business from Caesars Entertainment for a reported purchase price of £2.2 billion.
Aftermath
The acquisition materially broadened the group’s European portfolio and increased its operational scale.
Purchase price. £2.2 billion (Announced in 2021)
2021
Stop offering sports betting in New JerseyStrategyBackground
The group was preparing to launch a regulated Sports Illustrated-branded sportsbook in the state.
Action taken
888casino discontinued sports betting in New Jersey while the group adjusted its U.S. product strategy.
Aftermath
The move preceded the group’s eventual withdrawal from New Jersey and the wider U.S. consumer market.
2013
Enter the regulated New Jersey online-gambling marketStrategyBackground
New Jersey created a legal framework for online gambling and required market participants to work through approved arrangements.
Action taken
888casino signed an agreement connected with Caesars Entertainment and the All American Poker Network to offer branded online gambling products in New Jersey.
Aftermath
The arrangement gave 888casino a route into one of the earliest regulated U.S. online-gambling markets.
2010
Rebrand from Casino-on-Net to 888casinoStrategyBackground
The casino brand operated alongside other 888-branded gambling products, creating a rationale for a unified brand architecture.
Action taken
The company changed the Casino-on-Net name to 888casino and aligned the product’s look and feel with the wider 888 portfolio.
Aftermath
The 888casino name became the principal consumer identity for the group’s online casino offering.
Recent events
Pariplay expands Romanian partnership with 888casino[3]
Pariplay and 888casino expanded their partnership in Romania, making Pariplay casino games available through 888casino; the initial selection included Mystic Manor and Dragons of the North, with 13 more titles planned shortly thereafter.
Sources4 sources
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