Each week, CasinoBeats breaks down the numbers behind some of the industry’s most interesting stories. In this edition we take a look at a further UKGC penalty package, increased football sponsorship manoeuvres and “a deceitful campaign”.
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Crown Resorts has issued a lengthy notice on behalf of its board of directors slamming media allegations, as the organisation takes out full length newspaper advertisements in its home country.
Fresh off the back of a Nine Network campaign that alleged links to drug traffickers through junket operators, as well as the fast tracking of visas for Chinese gamblers, the board of the Australian firm has issued a letter titled “setting the record straight in the face of a deceitful campaign against Crown”.
Christian Porter, attorney-general of Australia, referred the allegations to the country’s integrity watchdog this week, with the organisation divulging concern “for our staff, shareholders and other stakeholders, as much of this unbalanced and sensationalised reporting is based on unsubstantiated allegations, exaggerations, unsupported connections and outright falsehoods”.
Eleven signatories signed off the correspondence, amongst which are John Alexander Crown executive chairman, former finance department head Jane Halton, Helen Coonan, former communications minister and Geoff Dixon, the ex-chief executive of Qantas Airways.
5.9
The Gambling Commission has found ‘systemic failings’ at the Ladbrokes Coral Group, leading to the imposition of a penalty package consisting of a £5.9m payment and a series of improvement measures that must be implemented by new owner GVC.
The regulator has also revealed that more sanctions may be coming down the line as further investigations into the actions of personal management licence holders continue.
An investigation by the Gambling Commission found that between November 2014 and October 2017 Ladbrokes and Coral failed to put in place effective safeguards to prevent consumers suffering gambling harm and against money laundering, with this failing continuing after their merger as the Ladbrokes Coral Group.
55
Caesars Entertainment has lauded a “decade of positive impact” after the firm released its tenth annual corporate social responsibility report titled ‘People Planet Play’.
Hailing “many achievements in corporate social responsibility,” including a 30-year commitment to responsible gaming and employee volunteer time equivalent to in excess of $55m, the new report covers six key areas where the firm believes progress has been made throughout 2018/19.
These look into leadership in responsible business, diversity, equality and inclusion, workplace excellence, protecting the planet, inspired exceptional guest experience and company governance.
Furthermore, Caesars also address “ten years of cumulative progress” in more detail, with 2,214,685 volunteer hours recorded, equalling more than a thousand full-time workers for a year, and over $743m donated in charitable contributions.
42
GVC Holdings is to donate its football sponsorship assets across England and Scotland to GambleAware, in support of the independent charity’s ‘Bet Regret’ campaign.
In total 42 clubs are to see the removal of sponsorship assets relating to the gaming and betting group, with the news coming ahead of the Scottish Professional Football League and English Football League campaigns that get underway this weekend.
The SPFL will see the Ladbrokes logo removed across all clubs represented, including interview backdrops as well as static and LED boards, will the Bet Regret campaign logo set to be evident instead.
The move is an attempt to encourage football fans to moderate their betting behaviour, with a statement stressing it’s striving to “avoid the sinking feeling bettors often get when they make an impulsive bet, particularly when bored, chasing losses or drunk”.
A number of English clubs who have GVC companies as commercial partners are to also replace gambling promotion with Bet Regret messaging, including Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion, Burnley, Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield United.
