Nicklas Zajdel

MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS

Zajdel has successfully navigated various leadership roles throughout his career, driving innovation across multiple organisations. His career has spanned numerous sectors, including digital operations, marketing and business development – with a particular focus on leveraging technology to boost customer experiences and operational efficiency. 

Following on from his success in high-profile roles for companies such as Fortuna Entertainment Group, Playtech and Ladbrokes Coral, Zajdel was ultimately appointed as the CEO of Winner in October 2023. 

EMPLOYMENT

Zajdel's career in the gambling industry began in December 2007 when he joined Partygaming (now part of bwin) as an Affiliate Manager. After 18 months in this role, he progressed to the position of Programme Manager – a role that he held for just shy of a year from May 2009 to March 2010. 

In September 2010 Zajdel moved to Playtech. Here, he started out as a Key Account Manager and was responsible for managing the William Hill Online account across various products. His performance ultimately led to him being promoted to the role of VP of Business Operations PTTS in February 2012 – a position he held for nearly two years before moving on in November 2013.  

Zajdel's next move saw him joining Ladbrokes Coral. Over the course of five years, he held several high-profile positions within the company. He started out as Director of Commercial Operations in November 2013, then progressed to Managing Director of Digital in October 2015. Finally, in December 2016 he was appointed as Omni-channel Director, a role he held until January 2019. 

Following his tenure at Ladbrokes Coral, Zajdel had a brief stint as Chief Digital Officer at Intralot from February to August 2019.  

Next, In October 2019, Zajdel joined Fortuna Entertainment Group as Group COO. For nearly three years he led the group's marketing, brand, business intelligence, product, bookmaking and customer care functions – contributing to the company's growth throughout this time. 

Since January 2023, Zajdel has been a Partner at Sport Buff, a company that powers live, on-demand and archive sports video experiences.  

Most recently, Zajdel was appointed as the CEO of Winner in October 2023 – a role that sees him leading the company’s strategic direction and overseeing its operations.  

In August 2024, it was announced that Evoke had acquired Winner, an acquisition that entailed Evoke injecting the business with a cash consideration of €10m ($11.12m) for a 51% share in the Romanian company. This move brought 888.ro and Winner together to form a new combined business. 

Commenting on the recent acquisition, Zajdel stated:

“This is an incredibly exciting transaction. Romania is a high-growth market, and this combination sets us on the path to a sustainable, profitable, market-leading position. “Winner has a strong leadership team and we are building on our success in the market through our highly localised approach and competitive advantages such as our product platform, our enhanced personalisation and our wide network of deposit points. "I look forward to working with the team at Evoke to further deploy these competitive advantages across the enlarged business, driving significant benefits to our customers with enhanced personalisation, and ultimately driving our success in the market and value creation.” Nicklas Zajdel