World Series of Poker sold by Caesars but staying in Las Vegas

The World Series of Poker is being sold but staying in Las Vegas.

Caesars Entertainment on Thursday announced an agreement to sell the World Series of Poker brand to NSUS Group, an investment firm in the iGaming space that plans to expand WSOP worldwide.

Caesars will continue to host the World Series Poker (WSOP) flagship summer series tournaments at its Las Vegas casinos for the next 20 years, according to the release announcing the deal, and maintain the rights to use the WSOP brand at its brick-and-mortar casinos and online poker platforms. Caesars offers online poker in Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

The transaction is valued at $500 million and, pending regulatory approvals, is expected to close by the end of the year, according to the release.

"This transaction is an exciting step for Caesars as a company and the WSOP brand as it continues to evolve," Eric Hession, President of Caesars Digital, said in the release.

The NSUS Group operates online poker room GGPoker, which is billed as the "World's Biggest Poker Room," among other iGaming platforms.

"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," Michael Kim, Chief Executive Officer of NSUS Group Inc., said in the release. "Under the new leadership, NSUS intends to expand WSOP worldwide, positioning it at the forefront of poker's growth."

The WSOP is poker's longest-running tournament, dating back to 1970. It attracted a record 229,553 entrants this summer and awarded more than $438 million in prize money.