Caesars Germany: A Market William Hill Walked Away From

Caesars is not legal in Germany, and the timeline here is unusual — William Hill, the company Caesars Entertainment had just finished buying, pulled its German sportsbook out of the market in 2021 before the Caesars name was even painted on. This page covers that withdrawal, what happened to the rest of the German business afterward, and why no Caesars-branded product has ever existed there.

Legal status in Germany

Germany legalized online sports betting nationwide under the Glücksspielstaatsvertrag 2021 (GlüStV 2021), effective July 1, 2021, with licensing authority now centralized at the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL) in Halle since January 1, 2023. William Hill's German-facing sportsbook, run through its Mr Green & Company AB subsidiary, shut down around that same July 2021 deadline rather than apply for a license under the new regime — reporting at the time pointed to objections over the treaty's 5% turnover tax and arguments that it conflicted with EU law. That withdrawal happened a few months after Caesars Entertainment completed its roughly $4 billion acquisition of William Hill in April 2021, and months before Caesars put its own name on the US sportsbook that August. Caesars then agreed in September 2021 to sell William Hill's entire non-US business — UK, Germany, and the rest — to 888 Holdings, a deal that closed in July 2022. Mr Green (the same corporate sibling, a different brand) returned to the German market in 2023 under 888's own license, by which point the business had nothing to do with Caesars. No Caesars-branded sportsbook, casino, or poker product has ever operated in Germany, and none does today.

State gambling authority: Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), Halle, under the Glücksspielstaatsvertrag 2021. Caesars holds no license and never has; the William Hill sportsbook exited Germany in 2021, and the business that once housed it now belongs to 888 Holdings (evoke plc), not Caesars.

Caesars is not legal in Germany, and the reason has an odd shape to it once you line up the dates. William Hill — the company Caesars Entertainment had just spent roughly $4 billion to acquire — pulled its German sportsbook out of the market in 2021, months before Caesars ever put its own name on anything. There has never been a Caesars-branded product in Germany, not because Caesars chose to skip the market, but because its predecessor had already left before the rebrand happened.

Is Caesars Legal in Germany? The Withdrawal Came First

Germany's Glücksspielstaatsvertrag 2021 (GlüStV 2021) took effect July 1, 2021, legalizing online sports betting nationwide under a new licensing regime — now run by the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL) in Halle since January 1, 2023. William Hill's German-facing sportsbook, operated through its Mr Green & Company AB subsidiary, shut down around that same deadline rather than apply. Reporting at the time cited objections to the treaty's 5% tax on every stake placed, with William Hill arguing the structure clashed with EU law. That exit landed only a few months after Caesars Entertainment completed its purchase of William Hill in April 2021 — the German market was already gone before Caesars renamed the business that August.

Timeline, not strategy: William Hill left Germany around July 2021. Caesars finished buying William Hill in April 2021 and didn't rename the US sportsbook Caesars until August. The withdrawal happened inside that four-month gap — Germany was never a market Caesars itself evaluated and declined.

What Happened to the Rest of the German Business

William Hill's casino product kept running for existing German customers for a time after the sportsbook closed, but none of it stayed Caesars-adjacent for long. In September 2021, Caesars agreed to sell William Hill's entire non-US business — UK shops, the online brand, and whatever remained in continental Europe — to 888 Holdings, a deal that closed in July 2022. Mr Green, the same corporate sibling that had operated the German sportsbook pre-2021, returned to the German market in 2023 under its own fresh license. By then the entity holding it was 888 (renamed evoke plc in 2023), with no remaining tie to Caesars Entertainment.

Is Caesars Legit in Germany?

There is no German product to check legitimacy against. Caesars Entertainment itself is real and Nasdaq-listed, with a genuine regulatory track record across its licensed US states, but that corporate standing doesn't extend a license into a country where Caesars has never held one — and where its one predecessor product left before the brand even existed.

Is It Safe to Use a Site Claiming to Be Caesars in Germany?

No. Treat it as unlicensed by default. The GGL's roster has no Caesars entry, which means a site marketing itself that way to German users sits outside the OASIS self-exclusion database and outside LUGAS, the cross-operator deposit-tracking system every licensed German sportsbook, slots, and poker operator has to report into.

Who It Fits

No one, as a Caesars product — there has never been one to sign up for in Germany, and the ownership history explains why without needing a brand-recognition story the way BetMGM (bwin) or FanDuel (PokerStars) have. A German reader has a real GGL-licensed market to use instead; betting there, as anywhere, should stay entertainment spending, never a plan for income.

Caesars Sportsbook Germany — Frequently Asked Questions

Is Caesars legal in Germany?

No. There has never been a Caesars-branded sportsbook, casino, or poker room licensed in Germany. The closest thing — William Hill's German sportsbook — shut down in 2021, in the same stretch when Caesars Entertainment had just finished buying William Hill but before it renamed the US business Caesars Sportsbook.

Did Caesars ever operate in Germany?

Not under the Caesars name. William Hill ran a German-facing sportsbook through its Mr Green & Company AB subsidiary, but pulled it from the market around July 2021 rather than seek a license under Germany's new GlüStV 2021 rules — a decision made within months of Caesars completing its acquisition of William Hill, and before Caesars had rebranded anything.

Why did William Hill leave Germany right after Caesars bought it?

Reporting from 2021 ties the exit to the terms of Germany's new national betting treaty, which took effect July 1, 2021 and imposed a 5% tax on every stake rather than on revenue — William Hill argued publicly that the structure was incompatible with EU law. The casino side of the business kept running for existing German customers for a time; the sportsbook did not reapply.

Is Caesars legit?

As a company, yes — Caesars Entertainment trades on Nasdaq as CZR and runs a real, licensed sportsbook across roughly two dozen US states. None of that reaches Germany, though; legitimacy in the US doesn't create a license in a market Caesars has never held one in.

Who runs William Hill's old German business now?

Nobody tied to Caesars. Caesars sold William Hill's entire non-US operation — the UK shops, and whatever remained of its European footprint including Germany — to 888 Holdings in a deal announced September 2021 and closed July 2022. Mr Green, the sibling brand that had run the German sportsbook before the 2021 exit, came back to Germany in 2023 under a fresh license, but by then the business belonged to 888 (renamed evoke plc in 2023), not Caesars.

Is it safe to use a site claiming to be Caesars in Germany?

No — treat it as unlicensed. Caesars has never held a GGL license, so any site using the Caesars name to target German bettors sits outside the GGL's oversight, outside the OASIS self-exclusion system, and outside the LUGAS cross-operator deposit tracking that licensed German operators must use.

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