Kristof Fahy promises "passion" as he begins Ladbrokes life

Kristof Fahy says he plans to “showcase the passion Ladbrokes brings to sport” as the former William Hill marketing chief this morning kicks-off his new role as CMO at the Magic Sign.

Fahy, who was appointed by Ladbrokes in October, has been brought in to help CEO Jim Mullen achieve his stated goal of significantly expanding the operator’s recreational customer base.

“Ladbrokes has an extremely strong brand and I’m looking forward to building upon that strength with our marketing, advertising and sponsorship activity,” Fahy said.

“We want to deploy our considerable expertise, skills and brand strength in those places where our customers are most active.

“We already have forged some outstanding opportunities with our SPFL partnership in Scottish football and our Challenge Cup sponsorship in rugby league and we have an appetite for more,” he added.

Ladbrokes is currently spending approximately 30% of net revenues on marketing activity, however, future investments could well be directed away from British horseracing with Fahy appearing to take a thinly-veiled swipe at the sports’ controversial Authorised Betting Partner scheme.

“We want to work with sports who appreciate what we can deliver and who understand the value we provide,” he said.

Fahy is also expected to take on the CMO role at an enlarged Ladbrokes Coral business, although this is unlikely to be confirmed until after the Competition and Markets Authority rubber-stamp the combination.

Mullen, who worked alongside Fahy during his time at William Hill, described his new CMO as a “high quality addition” during what is a “crucial time” for the business.

“Our products are now better than or at least on a par with the best in the market and we need to get more recreational customers on board,” Mullen said.

“Kristof has an excellent track record in this area and he has the expertise and the fire-power to get the Ladbrokes brand seen in more places more often,” he added.