Entain cements Americas ambition as shareholders overwhelmingly approve rebrand
Group formerly known as GVC wins Colombian licence and pledges to launch in five new US states by January
Entain has pledged to double the US footprint of its BetMGM brand over the next three months as part of a concerted push across the Americas.
Between October and January, the BetMGM brand will expand into five new states, bringing its potential US audience up to 75 million players across 12 US states.
Entain – formerly known as GVC Holdings – has reiterated its intention to be live in 20 US states by the end of 2021.
South of the border, the operator revealed it had received a licence for online gambling and sports betting in Colombia from local regulator Coljuegos, becoming the first international firm to do so.
Entain will also apply for a licence to operate in Canada, following the Canadian government’s November decision to allow local provinces to decriminalise and regulate single-event sports betting.
“At the heart of our growth strategy is a determination to bring the best player experiences and protections to our industry as technology moves sport and interactive entertainment into a new era,” Entain CEO Shay Segev said.
“We are firmly on track to take further leadership in the US market, as well as in many other newly regulated markets that are now opening around the world.
“In the US, we invested in creating the right building blocks for the BetMGM platform to grow and become a long-term leader in the US, with superior technology and capabilities, and this is now paying off,” Segev added.
GVC shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of proposals to change the firm’s name to Entain at an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders in Gibraltar on 9 December.
A total of 451,863,223 votes were cast at the meeting, representing 77.2% of GVC’s total issued share capital, with a further 16,334 votes withheld.
The rebrand officially took effect from 10 December, with the operator unveiling a new-look corporate website.
As part of the rebrand, Entain clarified some of its future sustainability goals.
Building on its prior ‘Pitching In’ campaign to support grassroots football, Entain donated £150,000 to establish the launch of the Trident Community Foundation, which issues grants to community-based football projects across non-league clubs.
The Entain Foundation has also partnered with Relationships Australia, a community-based not for profit organisation which provides a range of counselling and support services to problem gamblers and their families.
Under the new initiative, Entain funding will be used in a new social media campaign to increase awareness of gambling addiction.
Elsewhere, leading German academic Dr Michael Auer will join Entain to provide advice on its advanced responsibility and care (ARC) programme. Auer, who specialises in behavioural psychology and addiction, joins Professor Mark Griffiths, who was hired in November.