Ladbrokes considering bid for Victoria wagering license

Ladbrokes this week sent two of its executives, Kevin Hopgood and Steve Maxwell, on a tour of key industry players to assess the situation in Victoria. "Australia has many attractions for us. From a sporting perspective there is a lot of similarities to the UK - horse racing, greyhounds, cricket, rugby, tennis," Ladbrokes Managing Director of International Development, Kevin Hopgood, told the Herald Sun newspaper.

"The sports and the culture are very, very similar and the betting interest very similar. We see it as a market we could deliver in and deliver a very good proposition to the Australian punter."

"The Victorian license is a fairly unique opportunity. We would build a good Australian business making full use of our experience back in the UK and elsewhere in the world," Hopgood added.

Ladbrokes would be able to offer a bigger service than Tabcorp’s offering, with Victorian customers benefiting from Ladbrokes’ cutting edge technology. On visiting some TAB agencies in the state, Hopgood registered surprise at the technology in use, noting that Ladbrokes’ screen technology was about 15 years ahead of what was currently on offer.

Hopgood said that Ladbrokes would bring in better technology, which in turn would bring in better presentation with more products, particularly in the sports betting side. "The British love their sport, their racing, as do Australians, but I think the propensity to bet is higher here," he said.

Steve Maxwell, Ladbrokes’ Chief Information Officer said: "We have excellent technology to present the product. The Ladbroke system is multi-channel - it’s retail, it’s Internet, it’s telephone, it’s TV, it’s mobile phone. It’s all touch points with the customer who can use all those avenues with the one Ladbrokes account."

Other bookmakers said to be interested in the Victorian wagering and gaming license including Australia’s Tattersall’s, incumbent Tabcorp, Hong Kong Jockey Club and Betfair.