Outside the United Kingdom
In March 2009, William Hill closed 14 of its shops in the Republic of Ireland with the loss of 53 jobs.[55] In February 2010 it announced that the remaining 36 Irish shops were "under review"[56] pending the possible introduction of controversial gaming machines to Irish shops.[46] In 2011, William Hill sold its remaining betting shops in Ireland to BoyleSports because of what a William Hill employee described as "the restrictive nature" of the laws governing retail betting in Ireland.[57]
William Hill had pulled out of Italy in 2008 after just two years, a failure which cost the company £1m in wasted investment.[58] The company's joint venture in Spain ended in January 2010 with partners Codere buying William Hill's 50% stakeholding for €1,[59] after both parties had invested an initial €10 million in April 2008.[60] William Hill lost £11.6m in 2008 and £9.3m in 2009 on the venture.[61]
In June 2012, William Hill expanded to Nevada, the only U.S. state that then allowed full-fledged sports wagering,[62] buying three chains of sportsbooks: Lucky's, Leroy's, and the satellite operations of Club Cal Neva, for a total of $53 million.[63] The deals at the time gave the company control of 55 per cent of the state's sportsbook locations, and 11 per cent of statewide book revenue.[62] All three chains were to be rebranded under the William Hill name.[63]
In 2013, three Australian brands, Sportingbet, Centrebet and Tom Waterhouse, were purchased by the company[64] and later rebranded as William Hill Australia in 2015. Both Sportingbet and Centrebet were acquired in March of the year for $660m and $132m, respectively, while tomwaterhouse.com was brought in during August 2013, for an initial $34m.[65] Tom Waterhouse was appointed chief executive officer of William Hill Australia in July 2014.[66]
In March 2018, William Hill sanctioned the sale of its Australian business to CrownBet holdings for an estimated value of AU $300 million. The sale ended the company's time in Australia after entering the market in 2012.[67] In preparation for Brexit, in June 2018, William Hill announced that it is opening a new satellite office in Malta.[54]
Following the decision of the US Supreme Court regarding the case of Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association in June 2018, the state of New Jersey effectively legalised gambling on athletic events due to a previously successful state ballot initiative. William Hill entered arrangements to provide bookmaking services to both Monmouth Park Racetrack and Ocean Resort Casino in the state of New Jersey.[68]
On 3 August 2020, the bookmaker opened the first full-service betting operation housing professional sports teams in the U.S. at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.[69]
In January 2021, a joint venture between William Hill and Argenbingo received a licence to offer online gambling services in the Argentinean province of Buenos Aires.[70] On 5 May 2021, William Hill launched in Colombia following the acquisition of a majority stake in Alfabet.[71]
