Bookies William Hill has agreed to acquire Brandywine Bookmaking in a deal worth $14.25 million (£8.56 million), as part of its move to enter the ‘strategically important’ US market of sports betting.

Bookies William Hill has agreed to acquire Brandywine Bookmaking in a deal worth $14.25 million (£8.56 million), as part of its move to enter the ‘strategically important’ US market of sports betting.

The deal follows William Hill’s announcement in April that it was to enter the land-based US betting market with the binding agreements to purchase two Nevada sports betting businesses, American Wagering and the Club Cal Neva Satellite Race and Sportsbook Division, for a combined total of up to $39 million.

Nevada-based Brandywine operates 16 sportsbooks in Nevada and Delaware and one in St Kitts in the Caribbean. The deal, along with the purchases in April, will complete following the successful acquisition of a non-restricted gaming license from the Nevada Gaming Commission.

Ralph Topping, chief executive of William Hill, comments: ‘Brandywine is a good strategic fit for AWI’s and Cal Neva’s sportsbook operations and will give William Hill a leading position in the US land-based sports betting market.

‘This acquisition offers […] an exclusive land-based sports betting relationship with the Delaware State government.’

Topping adds that the business-to-government model could prove beneficial in other states.

London-headquartered William Hill operates 2,350 betting shops in the UK and Ireland alongside its internet-based, casino, poker and bingo services.