Betfair appoints Brooker to new COO role

Betfair has promoted its former head of sports betting Mark Brooker to the newly created role of chief operating officer (COO), eGaming Review can reveal.

Brooker took up his new position earlier this month after working as managing director of the company’s sportsbook division for more than a year and previously corporate development director for almost three years.

Betfair confirmed Brooker will now be responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of the operator’s portfolio of exchange, sportsbook and gaming products.

However, Betfair was unable to confirm whether it would be appointing a direct replacement to Brooker’s sportsbook role.

Prior to joining Betfair in 2010, Brooker worked in the investment banking sector including long-term stints at Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch where he held corporate broking roles as managing director and director respectively.

Brooker’s appointment as COO follows the launch of the operator’s online betting exchange product in Italy as it looks to increase its regulated market approach having recently halted its marketing presence in Russia.

Last month also saw the departure of Betfair’s head of public affairs Susannah Gill who left to join racecourse owners Arena Racing after five years at the firm. Gill was replaced by the operator’s public affairs manager Tom Tuxworth.

The news comes after the operator reported a 28% increase in underlying EBITDA for the three month period ended 31 January 2014 after a strong sportsbook and mobile performance.