Following a long partnership between the two, Caesars Entertainment announced today that it is selling its iconic WSOP brand to NSUS Group Inc., the operator of GGPoker, the world’s biggest online poker site.
The press release issued by Caesars Entertainment quotes a total acquisition price of $500 million, of which $250 million will be paid in cash and $250 million in the form of a promissory note, which will be due within 5 years of closing the deal.
In the simplest of terms, Caesars Entertainment is selling the intellectual rights to the WSOP brand to GGPoker and will receive $500 million in return, a tenfold return on the initial $50 million investment it made in purchasing WSOP from Harrah’s back in 2004.
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Caesars Entertainment and NSUS Remain Partners
While the acquisition of the WSOP brand from Caesars Entertainment is now underway and expected to close by end of year, NSUS will not be looking to take the Series away from its operator.
In fact, the deal guarantees that the flagship WSOP festival will continue to be played at Caesars properties in Las Vegas for at least 20 years and that Caesars properties will be allowed to feature WSOP branding for the foreseeable future.
As things stand, it appears the strong cooperation that has existed between GGPoker and WSOP will only expand, with GGPoker’s investors in NSUS being more involved than ever.
Caesars Digital President Eric Hession commented: “We’ve enjoyed a longstanding and successful partnership with GGPoker that has helped spur the growth of the WSOP brand.”
“We can’t wait to see what NSUS has in store for growing the WSOP’s legacy in poker, and we look forward to continuing to deliver an unmatched and familiar experience to poker players going forward.”
Looking from the player’s perspective, this move will likely bring even more exciting WSOP events and even more opportunities to qualify for such events online, with very few relevant changes.
The WSOP and WSOPC events currently on the schedule are likely to keep recurring each year, while GGPoker looks set to introduce new events and expand the brand even further over the coming decade.
GGPoker Hopes to Push WSOP to New Heights
WSOP has just had the two most successful years in its history, and the $500 million price the brand is being sold for certainly seems like a reasonable number in the grand scheme of things.
The Series has demonstrated that the interest in live poker has never been greater, and GGPoker will be looking to build on that momentum and capitalize on the brand power of WSOP even further.
The CEO of NSUS Group Inc, Michael Kim, said: “We will leverage GGPoker’s cutting-edge technology and industry expertise to create an exciting future for WSOP, ensuring players have an increasingly improved, safe, and seamless poker experience.
“Under the new leadership, NSUS intends to expand WSOP worldwide, positioning it at the forefront of poker’s growth.”
These words are quite telling of what we may see in the future of WSOP, as they seem to indicate GGPoker wants to take WSOP beyond its current Las Vegas, Europe, and Paradise stops and create even more international events under the brand.
It is difficult to speculate on what exactly this could mean, but it is not unreasonable to see WSOP hosting entire poker festivals in South America or Asia, both of which are big markets for the operator itself.
With a massive base of online poker players who would no doubt be interested in competing online for seats in such events, the sky seems to be the only limit for the world’s most influential online poker operator.
What to Expect from WSOP in 2025
The WSOP has already announced the WSOPE and WSOP Paradise festivals, as well as a number of WSOPC events yet to play out for the remainder of 2024.
However, the plans for 2025 remain entirely open, and the fact WSOP now has new owners could mean quite a few changes for next year.
Of course, GGPoker will not be looking to dismantle the Series altogether or change what’s already working, but it will also be looking to make the brand its own in some way.
The operator has recently been looking strongly into game security and integrity in the online streets and is likely to make WSOP rules better in this area as well.
Furthermore, with the two brands now completely integrated under single ownership, the number of online satellites and players who travel out to Las Vegas as a result should only continue growing.
Finally, GGPoker may look to start its international growth of the WSOP brand as early as next year, and there is plenty of potential for new festivals and events in 2025.
Stay tuned for more news on the merger between two of the biggest names in the world of poker and any other changes that might be coming to the WSOP in the near future.
