Evoke (LSE:EVOK) reported group revenue of £406m for the third quarter of 2026, down 7% - or 2% like-for-like, once roughly 270 fewer retail shops are stripped out.
The London-listed betting and gaming operator, which owns William Hill, 888 and Mr Green, also noted that customer-friendly sports results at the start of the football season weighed on year-on-year revenue growth by an estimated 1 to 2 percentage points.
It comes as Evoke's recommended all-share acquisition by Bally's Intralot moves toward completion, with shareholders of both companies having passed the required resolutions and the majority of regulatory approvals now secured.
Evoke said completion remains on track for late in the fourth quarter of 2026 or early in the first quarter of 2027, in line with previous guidance; the £243.1m deal offers Evoke shareholders 0.537 New Intralot shares per share, with an optional cash alternative of 52p per share capped at £117.1m.
"On an underlying basis the business continues to show resilience and reflects our continued emphasis on profitability and cash generation following the substantial increases in gaming duties, particularly in the UK," said chief executive Per Widerström.
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The Evoke boss added that the closure of 270 shops over the past year "shows the real impact on jobs and livelihoods from higher industry taxation" and urging the government to weigh any further rises carefully ahead of its Autumn Budget.
Evoke's half-year results, reported in August, showed revenue of £887.5m and adjusted EBITDA down 9.5% to £150.2m, hit by a £46m year-on-year rise in gaming duties; net leverage had climbed to 5.6 times from 5.2 times at the last year-end.