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Europe
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Andrew Rhodes has been confirmed as the chief executive of the UK Gambling Commission, having occupied the position in a temporary capacity since June 2021. In a press release the regulator said Rhodes would “continue his stakeholder engagement programme with consumers, industry, parliamentarians and those with lived experience”.
Swedish trade group SPER has added Eva Sjöberg as a senior advisor. Her past experience includes work at the Ministry of Finance on gambling regulation and the group says she will focus on broadening the industry association’s membership offer and developing its work on social responsibility.
State-owned Holland Casino will have a new CEO from September 1, following the appointment of Petra de Ruiter. She joins from airline Transavia and succeeds Erwin van Lambaart. De Ruiter will also join the board of directors at the land-based and online casino operator.
Sports streaming service and soon-to-be sports betting operator Dazn has selected Gemma Burge as its new head of safer gambling. She joins from William Hill, where she led the company’s responsible gambling work. Dazn plans to launch its operation, based out of Gibraltar, in time of the 22/23 football season.
After less than a year in the role, Sportech chief executive Andrew Lindley has departed the supplier. He was promoted last September from the role of chief operating officer to replace Richard McGuire, who moved to become non-executive chairman, but who will now return to become executive chairman with immediate effect.
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North America
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Gambling treatment firm Kindbridge has named Brianne Doura-Schawohl, Eric Kussin and Seth Young to its board of directors. Doura-Schawohl is CEO of Doura-Schawohl Consulting LLC, a government relations and gaming consultancy firm, Kussin spent 20 years as an executive with the NBA and NHL before launching the Global Mental Health Alliance and Young is chief strategy officer at Fifth Street Gaming Digital and managing partner at The Strategy Organization.
The Washington State Gambling Commission has voted unanimously to elect commissioner Alicia Levy as commission chair. The position of chair is voted on yearly, and Levy replaces Bud Sizemore. Sizemore will remain on the commission until his appointment expires in 2025.
Aruze Gaming American has named Gabrielle Houston as its senior vice president of finance and accounting. Houston has 30 years of experience in the gaming industry, with prior stops at Galaxy Gaming, Aristocrat and MGM Resorts International. In her new role, Houston will oversee the Las Vegas-based company’s global accounting and finance operations.
Republican Governor Ron DeSantis has appointed John MacIver and John D’Aquila to the Florida Gaming Control Commission. DeSantis also reappointed Julie Imanuel Brown, Michael Yamorsky and Charles Drago to the commission. MacIver will serve as chairman of the commission, while Yamorsky will serve as vice chair of the commission. These appointments are subject to confirmation by the Florida Senate.
FanDuel Group has hired Andrew Sheh as its chief technology officer. Sheh will be responsible for oversight of FanDuel’s customer facing engineering and platform development teams, as well as all information technology architecture and personnel. Sheh joins FanDuel from Compass, a real estate technology brokerage firm.
FanDuel also has appointed David Jennings as the company’s chief financial officer. Jennings will be responsible for oversight of all FanDuel’s finance functions. He joins FanDuel from parent company Flutter Plc, where he served as group director of investor relations and financial planning and analysis.
The International Center for Responsible Gaming (ICRG) has elected three new members to its governing board. Sheila Morago, executive director of the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association, Stephen Martino, senior vice president and chief compliance officer with MGM Resorts International and Q Casino CEO Alex Dixon are the ICRG’s new board members.
A member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians has been named as a new compliance officer for the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) for the Washington, D.C. region. Ericka Panther began her career 11 years ago as a gaming host at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, rising to the position of surveillance officer prior to moving on to the NIGC.
Gaming Laboratories International has promoted two leaders in its engineering and client solutions departments. Malvina Mikaelian has been promoted to director of engineering, and Kelly Myers has been promoted to manager of client solutions. Mikaelian has spent more than 20 years with GLI, starting with the company when it opened its lab in South Africa. Myers joined GLI in 2021 after serving as compliance and licensing manager for the Cherokee Nation Gaming Commission.
Stephen Richardson, chief administrative and compliance officer with Scientific Games, has been appointed to the National Technology Security Coalition’s board of directors. Prior to joining Scientific Games, Richardson spent 22 years at the FBI, including as the assistant director for the agency’s Criminal Investigative Division in Washington, D.C.
Bill Zender, a member of Galaxy Gaming’s board of directors since 2015, will resign his position effective July 1. The company did not give a reason for Zender’s decision to step down, but has entered into a cooperation agreement with Tice Brown, who as of March 23 owned 5.9 percent of Galaxy, to form a hiring committee to find Zender’s replacement.
Stacie Stern, chair of the Fantasy Sports and Gaming Association, has joined Underdog Sports as the vice president of government affairs and partnerships. Stern brings over 20 years of industry experience, most recently at FanDuel, to Underdog Sports where she will be a key executive in growing the company’s soon to be released sports betting product.
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Asia/Pacific
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Philippine integrated resort Okada Manila announced the death of chairperson Manuel “Lolong” Lazaro, 87, on May 19. Lazaro was a retired justice and former government corporate counsel and the first legal affairs adviser to late President Ferdinand Marcos. Lazaro’s death came just days before a physical, coercive takeover of the property by associates of former owner Kazuo Okada and security personnel, with police, gambling regulator and local court officials observing.
Australian gaming giant Tabcorp Holdings has executed the demerger of its lottery and keno business, with new listco The Lottery Corporation (TLC) inheriting several executives as part of the staffing shift. Tabcorp confirmed in a May 31 bourse filing that chairman and non-executive director Steven Gregg moved to the corresponding posts at TLC, replaced by Bruce Akhurst, while Tabcorp managing director and CEO David Attenborough retired, replaced by Adam Rytenskild. Tabcorp directors Harry Boon and Anne Brennan retired and took up non-executive board seats at TLC. Other management changes include Adam Newman, who is now the CFO at TLC and replaced by Daniel Renshaw, and chief legal and risk officer and co-company secretary Patrick McGlinchey, who takes up these posts at TLC. Fellow co-company secretary Chris Murphy retains his Tabcorp post. The filing said incoming Tabcorp non-executive directors Brett Chenoweth, Raelene Murphy and Karen Stocks are awaiting regulatory approvals.
Sports data aggregator Sportradar announced on May 31 the promotion of risk intelligence and investigations managing director Oscar Brodkin to Singapore-based managing director of Asia Pacific operations. Brodkin has specialised in Asian markets for some nine years, the company said in a statement.
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Latin America
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Esmeralda Britton will continue her role as head of Costa Rica’s Social Protection Board for another 4 years, which oversees gambling and casinos. She is the only official from the previous administration to retain her position.
At the annual Association of Lottery and Casinos (ALEA) meeting in Argentina, elections for the board were held. Position changes were: Dr. Ida López of Mendoza as 1st vice president, Dr. Gretel Cali Velasco of San Luis as 2nd vice president, César Gabriel Lemos of Chaco as secretary and Rodolfo Cattaneo of Santa Fe as treasurer.
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Rhodes confirmed as UK commission top dog, US treatment firm adds new directors, Okada Manila chair dies days before raid and Costa Rica renews regulators mandate.
