If you reside in the United Kingdom, William Hill is probably a name already familiar to you. If you’ve had the opportunity to venture down the streets of Britain, you’ll agree that it’s quite difficult not to know the name, as William Hill is advertised everywhere you go. I was always under the impression that the company was basically just another popular sports betting site along with an online casino. It wasn’t long before I started showing interest, and wanted to find out what else they had on offer.

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting to find a Live Casino section on their site and I was even more surprised when I realised they offered two Live Casinos in one destination. What was even more impressive was the fact that both Live Casinos were operated by world-class software providers including, Evolution Gaming and Playtech. I’ll provide an in-depth review of both software providers and the games each offers, but first, I would like to tell you more about the history of William Hill and how it expanded into the world-renowned company it is today.

The History of William Hill

As a fully licensed gambling business, widely known for its transparent financial transactions, security, and reliability, it might surprise you to learn that the company initially started out as an illegal operation in 1934. William Hill, the founder of the company, established the business to provide a telephone and postal betting service. Customers would phone into place their bets and send their checks well in advance for the sporting events they wished to wager on. The gambling industry at the time was neither regulated nor legal in the UK. There was no governing body or legal requirement to even pay out winnings to customers, offering a marvellous opportunity for William Hill to offer an honest betting shop. The company started establishing a reputation amongst bettors and became extremely reliable for many years until betting shops were eventually declared legal.

In 1961, betting shops were made legal, but it wasn’t until 1966 that William Hill entered the retail bookmaking market. Betting shops didn’t have a great reputation and the company was still small. Sports betting became a popular pastime activity with the arrival of television, having a significant impact on betting shops as customers would spend more time watching football games and racing. In 1971, the company was taken over by Sears Holdings and was sold in 1988 to Grand Metropolitan, a company that also owned Mecca Bookmakers. The two companies merged into one under the William Hill name and was sold a year later to Brent Walker. In 1997, a Japanese investment bank, known as Nomura, bought the company for close to £700 million.

In 1999, the business was sold once again, this time to Cinven and CVC Capital Partners. However, prior to its sale, William Hill made history by introducing an online sportsbook in 1998. In 2000, William Hill launched an online casino and the company continued to enjoy great success. In 2008, the company entered two new partnerships consisting of an agreement with Orbis to utilise their software for their new sportsbook and another agreement with Playtech that assisted them in forming William Hill Online. Since then, the company obtained three land-based betting operations in the U.S and acquired their gaming license from the Nevada Gaming Commission. They also acquired Sportingbet, an Australian gambling site and continue to strive as a trusted and well-known brand in the online gambling world.

Live Casino Software Providers and Games

As mentioned above, the Live Casinos featured at William Hill are powered by two leading software providers, including Playtech and Evolution Gaming.

The Playtech Live casino section is located under the casino tab and hosts a total of four different games, including Live Casino Hold’em, Live Blackjack, Live Baccarat, and Live Roulette with La Partage. All four games are streamed directly from Playtech’s studios situated in Europe. The company only features the generic games from Playtech with low stake limits and unfortunately no dedicated William Hill tables. If you would much rather prefer Playtech casinos offering dedicated tables with Asian dealers, then you will be better off playing at Bet365 Live Casino or even Paddy Power Live Casino.

When I browsed through the Evolution Live casino section, presented with its own Live Casino tab located on the homepage, I was quite amazed. The selection of games alone is far more significant and players can look forward to games like Dreamcatcher, Live Ultimate Texas Hold’em, Live Caribbean Stud Poker, Live Baccarat, Live Casino Hold’em, Live Blackjack, Live Baccarat Squeeze, Live Three Card Poker, and Live Roulette.

There is a plethora of dedicated tables that have been split between a variety of themed rooms, including Mayfair Casino, Macau, and Vegas. There’s also a fantastic range of stake limits for both novice and high rollers, along with a range of roulette tables offering La Partage and multi-language dealers. As you might have guessed, the Evolution Gaming software performs exceptionally smooth and is also available for mobile gaming. There is a well-established VIP program much like the one offered at Bet Victor.

When comparing the two live casinos at William Hill, Evolution Gaming is certainly my top choice every single time. It provides more live casino games, provides better side bets on blackjack, offers dedicated tables and a multi-table option allowing you to play up to 4 different games simulations. Furthermore, the promotions are mainly promoted through the Evolution Gaming live casino, especially on their dedicated tables. I’ve noticed that there’s always some kind of promotion available that’s worth checking out.

Banking at William Hill

When it comes to funding your account or withdrawing your winnings, players can look forward to a wide variety of payment methods and a wide selection of currencies. The currencies supported at William Hill include Australian Dollar, US Dollar, Canadian Dollar, Swiss Franc, Euro, Danish Krone, British Pound, Hong Kong Dollar, Japanese Yen, Swedish Krona, and Singapore Dollar.

Funding your William Hill account is extremely simple, easy, and convenient and you’ll have a list of popular payment methods to choose from, including all major debit and credit cards such as Visa, Visa Electron, Mastercard, and Maestro. You can also fund your account through Skrill, Entropay, Webmoney, Neteller, Paysafecard, Western Union, Direct Bank Transfer, PayPal, Trustly, iDEAL, and Instadebit. Most of the deposit methods will also be available when you wish to withdraw your winnings and payments are normally processed within 24 hours when using e-wallets and up to 2 days through debit or credit cards.

Security at William Hill

As a long-standing and reputable company, William Hill takes security and player protection extremely serious. It holds a license from the UK Gambling Commission, allowing the company the provide its services to players residing in the UK, and holds another license from the government of Gibraltar, adding an additional layer of protection for players.

The company also utilises a Random Number Generator, producing genuine fairness and randomness on all games, and the RNG also undergoes rigorous testing from third-party audit companies on a regular basis. Furthermore, the company uses the latest SSL encryption technology, ensuring the highest level of security for all financial and personal player details submitted online.

Customer Support at William Hill

Another key ingredient to the success of William Hill is their impressive customer support centre. I emailed their support team and received a response within 8 hours, whereas other leading online establishments normally take up to 24 hours. Their live chat facility also boasts with friendly, experienced, and professional staff.

The same can be said for their telephone support, answering calls within seconds and helping you with anything you might need. Apart from their representatives, you can also use their FAQ section, available on their site, to answer almost every question you might ask yourself that relates to your account without the need to contact them directly.

Bonuses, Promotions, and Loyalty

Live Casino enthusiasts can look forward to two sets of promotions at William Hill. When you decide to play at the casino (Playtech Live Casino), newly registered players will qualify for a 100% welcome bonus up to £150, and if you consider yourself to be a high-roller, you will get an additional £300 when you deposit a £1,000 or more. The play-through requirements on the welcome offer is 20 times your bonus plus deposit before a withdrawal request will be accepted. You will also need to complete the wagering requirements within 30 days before the welcome bonus expires. It’s also worth mentioning that while playing Live Casino games, the wagering contribution will be reduced. Baccarat and Blackjack will count 20%, while Roulette and Casino Hold’em will only contribute 25%.

For the Evolution Gaming Live Casino section, if you purchase more than £25 and manage to meet the playthrough requirements of 8 times, you can claim a £25 cash back bonus that will be credited to your account. There are also promotions running every Tuesday and Wednesday where you can claim your money back if you deposit more than £20 and lose it.

Summary

William Hill boasts with two live casinos and that alone pretty much tells you that they got things covered. They also have one of the most extensive sets of dedicated tables I have ever come across. The betting limits perfectly cater to both inexperienced and high rollers alike, allowing stakes for every pocket size. I would say that there’s better Playtech live casinos out there, but the Evolution live casino truly impressed me.