Redtooth Poker and The Nuts Poker League have joined forces to form a league that is ten times bigger than any other in the country.
Redtooth has more than 950 weekly leagues around the country, while The Nuts has around 330.
Existing branding of both parties will continue, but Redtooth Poker will take overall ownership and and ensure a variety of link-ups between the two leagues.
This includes the five national Nuts Poker winners joining Redtooth Poker’s Vegas 100, where the 100 best players in the season win a week-long trip to Las Vegas.
The Nuts Poker League has 16 franchisees, across Scotland, England and Wales. All the franchisees will continue to provide The Nuts Poker leagues, but each will become part of the Redtooth team.
Meeting pubs' needs
Martin Green, managing director of Barlborough-based Redtooth, said: “By joining forces, we will be able to offer a variety of poker models to meet the needs of pubs.
“We are also interested to hear from any existing Redtooth Poker players who may wish to set-up their own franchise under The Nuts Poker League. We will be able to provide all the Casino-standard equipment they need to get established in their region.
“Bringing the existing 16 franchisees under Redtooth will expand our team significantly as well as open up channels to offer additional services to its existing pubs, such as our darts league and quizzes.”
Founder of the Wrexham-based The Nuts Poker League, Steve Bellis, is known for securing £65,000-worth of investment on the BBC’s Dragons’ Den from Theo Paphitis and Deborah Meaden – becoming the first person to leave the den with more money than he went in for.
Bellis will continue to provide a support role to Redtooth and attend all five of The Nuts Poker League yearly finals.
'Great deal'
He said: “This is a great deal for The Nuts Poker League. We are joining the biggest pub poker league in the country in Redtooth, which has an excellent reputation amongst players in the UK.
“Importantly, The Nuts Poker League name will remain and continue to provide players with an opportunity to play in their local pub, as well as progress to the national finals. And by joining with Redtooth, even more exciting opportunities will open up to those players.”
Pubs pay a flat fee of £20 a week to host the Redtooth Poker season, which runs in four quarters during a 12-month period and culminates in two national finals and the Las Vegas trip.