William Hill plots fresh push Down Under with online betting rival

Bookmaker William Hill had its eye on a new foray into Australia on Friday after confirming talks over merging its business there with online rival CrownBet.

CrownBet is 62% owned by Crown Resorts, the casinos and entertainment empire controlled by the billionaire James Packer, and run by Australian online gambling pioneer Matt Tripp, who set up the company in 2014.

Tripp, a multi-millionaire and joint owner of the Melbourne Storm rugby league team (pictured in purple and navy shirts), has already sold one betting company to a London-listed firm — his Sportsbet operation to Paddy Power in 2011.

William Hill said it was in “very preliminary” discussions over a merger which would add CrownBet to its roster of Australian businesses, Centrebet, Sportingbet and Tom Waterhouse, putting it at number two in the market with a 21% share.

That would give it a fillip in a market Hills calls “challenging” after a recent ban on credit betting, which analysts estimate account for around a quarter of its profits from Australia.

But sources said the firm might face a challenge for the CrownBet business from Paddy Power, which is also thought to be in talks. Paddy Power declined to comment. Hills’ shares fell 3.4p to 280.4p.