William Hill

William Hill plc (LSE: WMH) is one of the largest bookmakers in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are in the north London suburb of Wood Green and in Leeds, West Yorkshire. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.

History

The Company was founded by William Hill in 1934. It changed hands many times being acquired by Sears Holdings in 1971, then by Grand Metropolitan in 1988, then by Brent Walker in 1989, then by Nomura in 1997 and Cinven and CVC Capital Partners in 1999.[2] It was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2002.

It acquired Sunderland Greyhound Stadium in 2002 and Brough Park Greyhound Stadium in 2003.

In 2005 William Hill bought 624 betting offices in the UK, Republic of Ireland, Isle of Man and Jersey from Stanley Leisure for £504 million: the acquisition took the company past Ladbrokes into first position in the UK betting market.

In 2008 Ralph Topping was appointed Chief Executive: he took a Saturday job at a William Hill betting shop near Hampden Park, Glasgow, in 1973 and worked his way up through the ranks.

In November 2008 William Hill announced a joint venture partnership with Playtech to enhance its online operations.