Adam Ruffett, Head of Casino at online gambling operator Unibet Group plc, has reportedly left his post and has joined Australian gaming company Tabcorp Holdings Ltd. Mr. Ruffett will be in charge of the latter operator’s latest casino offering, the result from its collaboration with News UK.
The executive stepped down as Unibet’s Head of Casino late last month and assumed his new role as Head of Casino for Tabcorp’s newest UK online gambling product earlier in February. Currently, the Australian operator is preparing the launch and the addition of the Sun Bets brand to The Sun online casino.
In December 2015, Tabcorp stroke a ten-year partnership deal with News UK, known to be the publisher of the popular tabloid. Under the agreement’s terms, the Australian gambling company would power The Sun-branded sportsbook product.
Back then, Tabcorp said that it would be a busy time for it as it would have to build its UK-based team in the weeks to come. Most recently, the company announced the appointment of David Blackman as the new brand’s Head of Operations. Mr. Blackman had previously worked as Managing Director of Betfair Malta.
As for Mr. Ruffett, prior to joining Tabcorp, he had worked at Unibet for almost five years, joining the Stockholm-listed gambling operator in December 2011. He had first been Head of Casino operations for three and a half years and had then been appointed as Head of Casino. Mr. Ruffett had previously taken a number of important roles at other major gambling companies, with Eurobet, Gala Coral, and Sportingbet being among those.
The Sun Bets brand is set to be launched later in 2016. It will be providing News UK customers with a number of betting options. Tabcorp has revealed that the product will be mainly focused around horse racing and the online sports betting market. News UK will be responsible for the brand’s promotion and will be paid a portion of the annual revenue generated by Sun Bets in exchange.
Earlier this month, Tabcorp reported its financial results for the six months ended December 31, 2015. Revenue for the first half of the fiscal year increased 1.8% to reach A$1.1 billion. EBITDA amounted to A$266 million, up 1.8% as compared to the figures posted for the prior corresponding period.
