BoyleSports CEO: Global expansion, branding and more

I began as an entrepreneur. I ran my own IT business and then fate took me to the UK where I got into the world of data. Data, at that time, wasn’t anything exciting or sexy to talk about. It’s not like these days where everything runs on data. But it was very interesting in terms of allowing me to understand the fundamentals of different businesses, and gain perspective on the fundamentals of KPIs and other metrics that allow you to judge the health [of an] organisation. Because data tends to be found all across the business, there is always a need to bring it together and, as you’re bringing it together, you have an opportunity to understand how different parts of the business connect with one another. They contribute to the overall success of the organisation, whether that’s operationally or customer-facing, and I think that combination led me to have a mindset that allows for holistic thinking; and a bit of a landscape mapping where I can have a look at the organisation and how the different parts contribute to each other. 

I’ve also been working on a number of transformation journeys and, after having spent a number of years at Betsson I can ask the question: what’s important for the customers and how does the business need to react to that? My journey later took me to William Hill, which was this very well-established heritage business. At the time, it was very strong in retail but falling behind in digital and that journey at William Hill was transformational in terms of rebuilding the capabilities; building towards a much stronger digital proposition and being able to succeed in a very, very competitive market.  

Many people, when they enter iGaming and gaming, never leave.  

You joined BoyleSports a year or so ago. It’s not the longest amount of time to change every aspect of a business under your leadership, by any stretch, but what has changed and what are you looking to do long term? 

My biggest focus is not to break things that work well and to create scalable capabilities that would allow us to grow in a meaningful way. That’s probably one of the biggest challenges out there. We’re not talking about massive investments where you see big players putting in enormous budgets to be able to win in just one market – and they are doing that across multiple markets. For us, it’s a journey that needs to be meaningful for the business we have and where we are in our own internal capability. There is much to be improved.  

We’re working tirelessly on getting more brand and marketing alignments, and to preserve what is good and viable and strong about it, but also to reflect the 21st century. We’re still working on that. It’s a long-term project and one that requires care and attention. It’s not something you can do on a whim and be done with it. It requires testing and a deep understanding of who we are fundamentally, and who our customers are now and will be in the future so that we are relevant to them. We must also be true to ourselves, the products and technology in general. 

This is such a fast-moving and changing environment but, at the same time, to be able to change the technology and to deliver something tangible is a long journey. I’ve seen that at William Hill. It takes many years; it’s not a six-month job. We’re probably talking two to three years where you need to be extremely focused and well articulated on what you want to do, what it looks like and what’s needed in order to achieve it. Then it’s about making sure we’re qualifying our opportunities and creating the structures and abilities to realise them, whether that’s our expansion in the UK, growth in South Africa or in Peru.  

You mention South Africa and quite a few brands are looking at that market, including yourselves, MeridianBet and, of late, Betfred too. What is so appealing about it? And how much of it has to do with it being an English-speaking market? 

South Africa is a fascinating country; it’s not just the English-speaking aspect either, as English is one of the languages that you can use everywhere, it’s universal. There is a strong connection to the UK in terms of socio-economics, as well as sports affinity and, from the customer perspective, it’s a very interesting market.  

I was reading research a few months ago, it was done by a local South African business when they were looking at comparing South African gambling markets to the UK markets, especially the offers. They were saying there are a lot of similarities in terms of the South African customers enjoying an odd gamble. They enjoy the element of betting on sports, it’s probably part of their culture, and the size of the market is very similar, if not bigger than the UK – and we know the UK is one of the most developed and well-regulated markets in the world. So from that perspective, I think there is definitely big potential in that country.  

Unlocking it, as with many things, is going to be the tricky part. Although, this is where the competition and changing economic and social conditions can also come into play. Whether one is successful or not in terms of that digital and retail split, I think many businesses found that digital is driving revenue generation, even before Covid. You have to consider customer engagement from that perspective and our business is no exception to saying that digital is really on a growth trajectory. I have a feeling and believe retail still has a lot of potential. Again, we are continuing to invest in retail stores and this is probably the only gambling business that still is opening or acquiring retail stores, because we have to run retail well in Ireland. I think that’s one of the strengths sports has, in seeing what incredible value to the customer a good retail environment or digital experience can bring. We want to continue on that journey, as long as it makes sense for us. My sincere hope is that retail will still see a very long life ahead.  

My biggest focus is not to break things that work well and to create scalable capabilities that would allow us to grow in a meaningful way

It’s a fair point, because the world is increasingly digitalised. Paddy Power said in its recent report that retail actually showed growth. At the SiGMA Asia Summit recently, there was also a lot of talk about player trust. If they’re playing a slot machine in a casino, they know what’s going on. They can trust the physical maths behind it, whereas an online slot doesn’t have the same feeling. Overall, retail might not be the biggest out there, but it certainly still has potential for growth…  

It’s never going to go away. There’s a big social element, too. It doesn’t need to be about gambling or betting. Sometimes it’s great to give people opportunities to come together, watch games and enjoy that, and with the services we provide and amenities we provide in our retail environments, we’re definitely enabling those opportunities. 

You mentioned branding. I’d like to ask about your sponsorship and ambassador strategies. When there’s a new ambassador or sponsorship, what kind of planning and thought goes behind it? How do you resonate with the player? 

It’s a million-dollar question. We have a methodology that we’re refining internally, there’s nothing revolutionary or groundbreaking about it. It’s very much common sense and it’s very much in the spirit of joining multiple channels together to maximise impact. If we’re talking and thinking about brand, the brand is probably the slowest-moving piece that you can’t necessarily measure immediately. So, it’s something you need to, as I said, spend time to get right, then take a leap of faith and believe this is the right thing; and that it has time to come to fruition.  

I think sponsorships need to reflect the brand. So while we’re looking at that, we’re also thinking in terms of, ‘Where is the right place for this?’ For us, to play horseracing is natural. We’re sponsoring a lot of different horse courses in Ireland and also greyhounds. But, for the other jurisdictions, it’s something we’re working behind the scenes on, to understand where the right place for us to advertise is. Not only that, but who are the right people we want to be working with?  

I’m a big believer that the right combination of sponsorship, whether that’s football clubs or something else, combined with well-known names, can deliver a good outcome. But we also need to make sure we activate that so we take it to its full potential. It’s not just about getting a face and getting them to sport a polo shirt with both logos on. There’s a lot of work that needs to go into activation. My simple goal is to take these great ideas and figure out what we are going to be do with them over the next year and beyond, but also decide if we have everything we need in order to make the most out of it.  

I like the candid nature of the first part of your answer, that it’s nothing revolutionary. It’s refreshing to hear, because as you say sometimes common sense is what’s most important.  

Sometimes you can have an algorithm, but when it comes to sponsorships and ambassadors to work with, that’s an area where there is less data. A lot of people talk about how the future is influencers and other bits and pieces. Sure, but if you look at our competitors in areas like Latin America particularly, they are all doing that.  

So it’s an area you feel is over-saturated?  

Yes. I mean, maybe a few years ago it was the thing to do. Now, ito win in that space, you have to be a little bit creative. What does that actually mean? That’s the big question.  

In terms of where you see the biggest growth, both industry-wide and for BoyleSports, is there a particular vertical or geographical area? Or is it simply, as you said earlier, about streamlining internal processes, the use of data, etc? 

For us, it’s definitely getting that internal machinery sorted and, once that is in a better place, it can unlock external opportunities. Whether that’s any particular sports or casino, I still think our gaming vertical can offer more growth for us and we have some plans in the background that we’re working on. There are some very hot markets out here, but the competition is rife in those and I’m not sure whether it’s going to be the best product, the biggest budget, or the strongest brand that is going to win there. We are not trying to compete with that. It’s not our path. 

We’re looking at the niche that we can comfortably occupy and use as a launch pad to build a bond. For us, it’s not about grabbing market share, then trying to make sense of it and rationalise it into some revenue; it’s about finding that niche and making sure we are geared and successful in realising the opportunity. 

It sounds like US markets are perhaps something you’re not looking into? 

We had plans, or considerations to go into Canada, for example, but we decided against that.  

In terms of the future for yourself and the company, do you have any personal goals that you’re aiming towards for the rest of this year and 2025? If, let’s say, in 20 years someone looks back and thinks about Vlad’s legacy at BoyleSports… What would you like that to be?  

It’s a long way away, giving away our strategy there, Tim! But I will tell you I’d love for our product to be more intuitive, flexible and in tune with our customers. We are working to make it relevant and engaging for customers. I think we have great market coverage. We were first with some products or betbuilder offerings, and we want to continue building on that and deliver a great experience to our customers, so that’s in the works.  

For me, a successful legacy would look like this… When the time is right and I leave the business, it’s in excellent shape and it continues to be very profitable. It has multiple engines that deliver value and a positive experience to customers across the globe and we have very happy, not just customers, but also employees working for us. I think that’s very important.