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How to play Wildies
Bet365 noted the impact of the UK government’s near doubling of the remote gaming duty, which increased from 21% to 40% on 1 April this year.
Additionally, a new remote betting duty is set to come in from April 2027, which will raise the effective tax rate on all sports betting products except horse racing from 15% to 25%.
Several other operators have responded to the UK tax hikes by announcing shop closures.
What is Wildies?
Closing of the transaction is targeted for the first quarter of 2027.
Following closing, Merkur intends to file the mandatory tender offer with the AMF in the first half of 2027, with the offer launch contingent on the regulator’s clearance.
The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals.
How to play Wildies
The first audience eruption during our visit came from a pair of Paris Hilton night-vision goggles. When he looked through them, everything turned grainy green as he struck the stiff, awkward posture recognizable from her leaked sex tape. No explanation. No setup. Just the goggles and the pose. The joke was perfectly timed to the cultural moment—the exact kind of gag Letterman would have killed for.
He also showcased a “Tom Cruise Scientology Starter Kit,” featuring a tiny spring-loaded couch so he could reenact the famous Oprah moment.
Throughout the performance, he skewered himself. With the confidence of a headliner who understood his public perception and chose to weaponize it, he held up a Wendy’s sign with a hole cut through the center, poked his face through, and announced: “This is what I look like when I’m trying to get recognized.”
