Come out to play: Juergen Reutter on ComeOn Group going 'glocal' 

We shot our poor dogs and invested in our shining stars,” ComeOn Group CEO Juergen Reutter tells EGR Intel as he reflects on two-and-a-half years as the boss of the multi-brand, online sports betting and casino operator. It is an evocative metaphor referring to a brand portfolio readjustment but one that sums up the German’s ruthlessness and determination that he has implemented since being drafted in to replace Lahcene Merzoug in September 2020. The former Addison Global (MoPlay) CEO and William Hill stalwart spent the majority of his career in telecoms before linking up with Hills in August 2012 to oversee the explosive growth of mobile betting, finally becoming chief experience officer of its online division.

“I’ve been excited ever since I entered the industry. The two companies were different experiences completely. William Hill has decades of history and when I joined it was all about digital and the mobile transformation of a retail powerhouse,” the 48-year-old recalls. “At Addison Global, it was about building an online challenger from scratch. They were very different experiences but, at the end of the day, you are the sum of those experiences, and you grow from those challenges.”

Reutter is now overseeing ComeOn Group through a critical growth period for the online casino-centric, Malta-based business. The privately owned operator recently celebrated its 13th anniversary of launching its first online brand, ComeOn! in Sweden, after being established in 2008. The group quickly gained a strong position in the Nordics before spreading its wings into continental Europe and Latam.

ComeOn Group currently boasts 15 brands running on its proprietary tech stack, details which caught Reutter’s eye after initially being approached to lead the company by ComeOn chairman Itai Frieberger, formerly 888’s CEO. With big shoes to fill after Merzoug left to pursue other projects, the group moved quickly for Reutter, who says that when a company like ComeOn Group approaches, “you obviously listen”.

He continues: “If you’re from the industry, you know ComeOn Group and some of the brands that are market leaders in the Nordics. You want to understand more, and I became very attracted to the idea. To be part of growing the company to its next stage and help define the evolution of it was exciting.

“When I did my own assessment of ComeOn Group after meeting the senior people around the business, I was impressed by the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit in the organisation and its people. I felt the desire at that moment to take on the challenge,” he adds.

Reutter also recalls the merger between Cherry AB and ComeOn Group back in 2018, which saw the former fully acquire ComeOn Group after initially taking a 49% share in 2016. It was this combination, and the subsequent strategic jostling, that piqued Reutter’s interest above all.

Cherry pick

At the time of the merger, the combined company described itself as the third largest operator in the Nordics and, by mid-2021, with Reutter firmly settled in the hot seat, ComeOn Group successfully merged its own technology stack with that of Cherry’s in a move that the CEO hails as “the significant milestone” of his tenure so far.

He continues: “We’re running all of our brands and jurisdictions on our one proprietary platform, so all the systems are connected into one stack – that created a lot of synergies. With that scale we were able to focus on product development, build out [casino streaming platform] WeSpin and deliver strongly on customer experience via personalisation. It makes us responsive to ever-changing market conditions. WeSpin would not have been possible on a third-party stack. A lot of our approach is driven by the fact that we own the tech stack and own the output.”

WeSpin, which scooped the in-house innovation accolade at this year’s EGR Nordics Awards, sees ComeOn customers buy in to streamers’ pots to become part of the online casino experience. The platform features a chat function where users can interact with one another and the streamers. Streamers on WeSpin’s roster include Konna (16,000 Twitch followers), Jerqutus (8,000 Twitch followers) and Eileksi (6,600 Twitch followers). The product is live in Denmark, with the company looking to obtain local licences in its key markets moving forward. Reutter views the platform as a “new, modern live casino” that will play a core role in the company’s portfolio in the future.

The CEO adds: “It is a new element of entertainment in our industry, but I believe it will be a standard product category and should not been seen as something external.”

However, the transition didn’t come without trepidation. Although Reutter says it wasn’t a case of “fighting for his corner”, there were “unpopular conversations” which led to some employees being affected. It is a case of rain before rainbows, which we are seeing most recently with 888’s £1.95bn acquisition of William Hill International, with the combined company running on 888’s tech stack and the subsequent shedding of duplicate staff roles.

Reutter reveals: “It was a decision the business had to take, and this transformational migration was needed, although it wasn’t always easy. But the organisation took it well and we are benefitting from those synergies and scale since then.”

Difficult decisions have been commonplace during the German’s time as CEO. He praises his strong relationship with his senior team and the group’s chairman with providing him the backing and footing from which to deliver on his vision. Harking back to his opening line about investing in shining stars, Reutter says the constant assessment, driven by data and the company’s ‘glocal’ approach, has necessitated his actions.

“If you’re a very mature operator, [assessing the portfolio] is key to lifting synergies,” he explains. “We closed markets and brands, and it was needed to make sure our portfolio is optimised. That’s an ongoing effort and you have to make sure you stay on top. As a leader, together with your team, it is very important that you make the decision necessary to progress the business.

“Part of our DNA is being a multi-brand operator and having a reliable tech stack to run it on a high scale. It is important there’s a fine mix between having brand management that gives local relevance while having a strong central powerhouse with divisions such as marketing and product development. Our product is 80% central with a 20% local touch. It’s a mixture we call ‘glocal’ between global excellence and localisation because that is what the customer wants,” he adds.

This ‘glocalisation’ is helped with exclusive games for specific brands, along with a brand-driven narrative for each, allowing them to live within silos and not be tarred with a blanket corporate approach. Brands such as Snabbare (meaning faster in English), centred around a maximum 15-minute wait for withdrawals, and Casinostugan, which sets players in a relaxed environment based on the Swedish countryside, are just two examples of creating a USP and story around the stable to ensure differentiation and ComeOn Group’s ability to target different demographics in its markets.

Winning formula

With Reutter firmly in situ, the portfolio adjustment ongoing and the tech combination bearing fruit, he turned his attention to talent. The scramble for top-tier industry professionals is fierce, with a significant amount of brain drain, namely to the US or falling out of the sector altogether.

ComeOn Group put an asterisk against this trend with a 19-month senior recruitment drive to bolster its leadership team. Starting in July 2021, former Kindred Group head of gaming Cristiano Blanco was named chief product officer, followed by Mikael Ångman’s promotion to chief information officer. Three further external hires followed with former William Hill veteran Efi Peleg joining as chief marketing officer in February 2022 and then the dual appointment of ex-Mr Green man Aaron Lowe as director of casino and former Casumo exec Jonathan West as director of sportsbook. Reutter finalised his top team with the promotion of former Hills head Sherwin Jarvand to become the group’s chief data officer from January of this year.

The CEO heaps praise on his executive colleagues and said the ability to attract leading talent came down to them “looking for a great mission”. With eyes cast to growth opportunities across the globe, Europe can be perceived as a bit sterile, yet it is to Reutter and ComeOn Group’s testament that it was able to attract the team it has now assembled.

“All of them are subject matter experts and probably the best in the industry in their own respective areas,” the CEO explains. “They are humble, hands on and roll up their sleeves, and they have joined in on following this vision and strategy. It’s an exciting place to be when everybody’s pulling in the same direction.”

However, a major upheaval at the top of any business, let alone one with an entrenched legacy, could cause discontent among the workforce. That is always the risk when stamping one’s authority by making changes within the organisation, as Reutter is well aware. Instead, the boss lays out his direction with a sporting analogy.

“At some point within an organisation, the existing team and the new team buy in together for the new season to win the Champions League. As a CEO, you have to bring them together to make them excited. We have the formation of a new leadership team that has come together on new values but when you have hyper-growth, you need to ensure the DNA of the company is protected. We have to stay innovative and entrepreneurial, and we do this by having new people joining to complement the existing team.”

Away from the C-suite, there are more than 560 ComeOn Group employees at the coalface across seven offices worldwide. Reutter champions the group’s efforts around acquisition and retention of staff, including implementing a hybrid-working model back in October 2021, upgrading office spaces and his data-led HR department which is “managing the pulse” of the organisation.

Reutter mentions the company is able to track employee attitudes and approaches to ensure that they are aligned with the strategic vision. He points to the firm’s 91% approval rating on company review website Glassdoor which, when compared to industry giants such as Entain (63%) and bet365 (62%), has ComeOn Group streets ahead.

Reutter notes: “This goes above general benefits. People want to like to come to work, people want to collaborate, and they want to have a joint mission. They want to have approachable leadership, and this is key for us to keep talent in the business and be attractive to outside talent. We want to bring them in, and the efforts have been put in place to do so.”

Harsh headwinds

With the right talent in place, ComeOn Group needs to show that it doesn’t just look good on paper. Two of ComeOn Group’s key European markets, Germany and the Netherlands, have faced regulatory upheaval in recent years.

The Netherlands regulated its online market with a go-live date of 1 October 2021, but the regulator and government have been on a retcon mission with new restrictions placed on marketing and advertising. ComeOn Group secured its Dutch licence in September 2022 and went live two months later, meaning some other operators had a 13-month head start.

Major operators such as Betsson remain in the licensing process to join the likes of Kindred Group, bet365 and local brands in the race for market share. Entain-owned BetCity is the current top dog while Kindred is looking to regain Unibet’s crown from the country’s grey-market era. For Reutter, it is still “early days” for ComeOn Group despite joining the party a little later than many rivals.

“We’re very happy with our launch in the Netherlands. It is a very mature market, and it is very well regulated. We are there with the ComeOn! brand and we are continuously expanding our proposition,” he notes. “It is early days, but it is going really well for us. In our portfolio, it is one of our core markets. We also know there are quite a few operators that are not licensed yet, but we can only be happy with our performance and assess that on an ongoing basis.”

Hopping over the border to Germany, where regulations have drawn the ire of the industry and seen certain operators relinquish licences or not apply in the first place, Reutter is confident in the Malta-headquartered operator’s position. This is despite rules including a €1,000-a-month deposit limit and a €1 stake cap per spin on online slots. These slots have a crippling 5.3% turnover tax, forcing the industry to reduce RTP rates.

In January, the country’s new regulator, Gemeinsamen Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), came into effect after the federal states transferred supervision of the market to the centralised body. The GGL has already promised to revoke licences for serious failings and dished out its first-ever fine to an unnamed operator for marketing shortcomings. The conditions have seen Betsson choose to run with just one licence while igaming-led 888 shifted its focus to sports betting amid the heavy restrictions on online casino. Despite wider concerns, Reutter has concrete belief in the future of the German market and the role the GGL will play as he insists that Europe’s largest economy is “the place you want to be in the future”.

He says: “We have brands in the market that have strong heritage and we believe in the German market and its local regulation; we have done from the start. There are elements of very demanding technical compliance and high taxation, but we also see the barrier of entry is very high. It is demanding for operators to be in the market, but we feel now that the GGL is in place it will follow up on enforcement and drive channelisation. This is the expectation of the regulated operators in the market.”

Across the pond

Cast your mind back 12 months and the excitement that enveloped the industry as Ontario went live as a fully regulated market with commercial operators on 4 April 2022. There was much talk that Canada’s most-populous province was going to emerge as one of the premier igaming markets in the world and so dozens of operators applied for licences with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.

ComeOn Group was one such operator. It launched, similarly to its Dutch operations, with the ComeOn! flagship brand. The 12 months since has seen fierce competition among brands with around C$1.4bn in total gaming revenue from online sports betting and igaming achieved, as well as more than 1.6 million active player accounts. But this competition has had knock-on effects. GAN recently pulled its B2C brand, Coolbet, from Ontario, citing the “highly competitive and promotional nature” of the market. This is also something Reutter has encountered, but his plan to lead with online casino rather than sports betting is what he hopes will set the brand apart.

The CEO confirms that more than 80% of the group-wide revenue is driven by the casino side of the business and Reutter hopes the “world-class, cutting-edge offering” is what will allow it to carve out market share in the Great White North, before hinting at the concerns raised by GAN as a strategy decider for the near future.

“We’re at a very early stage and we’ve chosen to start with casino only. We’ve chosen our battle and we decided to play to our strengths. Since then, we’ve been gaining market share on profitable growth,” he says. “We see sportsbook in Ontario as a ‘nice to have’ for now. We believe focus delivers, and the casino proposition for us is providing a very strong customer experience. Until our casino mission is matured and fulfilled, and we see sportsbook operators calm down their excessive marketing budgets [then we will look at sportsbook].”

Reutter’s hopes for Canadian gains begs the question as to the group’s overall North American strategy. The US has cemented itself as the darling in the industry’s eye, and with FanDuel and BetMGM expecting positive EBITDA returns by the end of 2023 after five years of cash burn, the market is set to enter its next phase.

The tidal wave of states legalising online sports betting appears to have plateaued for now, with California, Texas and Florida still a way off joining the existing 24 states that have online sports betting. Industry chatter is turning to igaming launches, but the slate for 2023 looks bare and the six existing online casino markets set to remain an exclusive club for now. This relative statis, coupled with the fact the US is dominated by the aforementioned operators, along with DraftKings and Caesars, makes  market penetration both a costly and potentially fruitless exercise.

However, ComeOn Group’s boss is taking an alternative approach to the US. While in the early days, following the fall of PASPA, local and international operators flooded the market, the CEO is sitting back and observing, contemplating the right time to strike. Reutter even goes as far as to label it a “late-mover advantage”. A brave decision perhaps, especially given the likes of bet365, Kindred Group and Tipico have failed to make significant cut-through despite their strong European and global heritage. Reutter confirms if and when ComeOn Group moves into the US on a B2C basis it will be with a casino-first approach, as it has practised in Ontario.

He asserts: “We are constantly reviewing a market entry in the US but, at the moment, we see a lot of scale in our existing markets. A US market entry wouldn’t fit in right now. But we are seeing a mass education on gambling thanks to the existing operators, so it might not be a bad thing to enter at a later stage when things have calmed down. There are still huge states with huge GGR available, so I think you will see more market entries happening at a later stage, which will still be a valid approach.”

Fluorescent adolescent

As ComeOn Group enters it teenage years, Reutter leans back on the shared vision and journey he and his leadership team have implemented and plan to use as the crux of the business looking ahead. A debut in the 2022 EGR Power 50 rankings in 24th place was a “testament” to this vision, according to the CEO, and he is readying to continue his charge up the rankings and expand the business where he can.

A core component for the future will be the group’s reliance on its in-house tech stack, as well as revenue diversification as ComeOn Group looks to double its sports betting revenue over the next two years. The segment currently returns just under a fifth of total group revenue, but Reutter feels this figure has the potential to be far higher.

“We believe that our sports betting fair share should be between 35% and 40% of group revenue. Sportsbook is a key growth driver for us and there has been a lot of investment in product and people. This is at the front of our mind as an organisation,” he notes.

Reutter also champions the importance of localisation and personalisation among ComeOn Group’s brands, coupled with the drive to bring exclusive casino content to customers across the globe.

“This is not a one-off project. It’s an ongoing journey,” he adds. “And you will see us as a frequent company in the Power 50.” It is strong fighting talk, but with the talent and tech in Reutter’s arsenal, the operator may well deliver the Champions League.