Sky Betting & Gaming names ITV head as new managing director

Sky Betting & Gaming (SBG) has named former ITV director Dan Colton as its new managing director, bolstering the operator’s senior leadership team. Colton takes his first steps into the gambling industry with his move to the Leeds-based firm, where he will support chief commercial officer Steve Birch in leading the division. Colton joins SBG after a four-year spell with ITV where he worked across a series of strategy roles. He joined the company in July 2018 as a strategy implementation director before being named group strategy and transformation direction in July 2020. Colton joined the ITV management board in February 2021 and was then appointed MD of digital ventures. Prior to joining ITV, he spent more than five years with Deloitte and before that worked for three-and-a-half years at the Boston Consulting Group. Colton joins SBG at an interesting time for the operator, with parent company Flutter Entertainment announcing up to 200 voluntary staff redundancies across its UK & Ireland business may take place. As part of this reorganisation, the London-listed firm is altering its management structure, shifting UK&I brand CEOs to become chief commercial officers (CCOs) with full ownership of each brand. Colton will bring his leadership experience to support SBG CCO Birch, as the pair look to take SBG forward. A series of senior figures have departed SBG in recent months, including the operator’s director of technology and sports MD.