Australia: Entain and Momento Hospitality partner on Ladbrokes lounge at new The Star Hotel

Momento Hospitality Group’s new hotel The Star in Seven Hills, which is due to open in early 2023, will be the first licensed venue to partner with sports betting and online gaming group Entain and will feature an in-hotel Ladbrokes lounge.

An agreement between Entain and the Australian Hotels Association NSW (AHA NSW) was first announced in October, providing an opportunity for Entain Australia to promote its digital wagering brands, Ladbrokes and Neds, in the state’s pubs through a new advertising and sponsorship arrangement. 

As reported by The Shout, Mark Sturdy, Entain’s GM of Retail, said the company is “excited to announce” its first AHA NSW venue partner, “and we are even more thrilled that it is Momento.” 

“The Colosimo family are legends of the hotel game. They are proven innovators in the space, and we are excited about the opportunity to bring to life our first Ladbrokes Lounge in NSW in their new venue The Star Hotel,” he added. 

Ladbrokes gets to advertise Entain to customers in the venue, which is "a game changer," according to Sturdy, and is expected to be "the first of many partnerships we do in this space.”

Leon Colosimo, owner of Momento, said he was pleased to be the first organization to formally sign-on with Entain. “The Ladbrokes Lounge will be a fantastic addition to our new site The Star Hotel & Stadium. We are aspiring to a new level of sports interaction and customer experience,” he said. “We look forward to bringing this to life with the Entain team and activating the first Ladbrokes Lounge in Sydney."

AHA NSW CEO John Whelan also commented: “Over the past 10 weeks more than 800 of the 1,050 NSW hotels with wagering sought competition and choice by reaching out to Entain. Momento Hospitality is respected as one of Australia’s leading and most innovative hotel groups. This is a significant first step in the new hotel wagering environment."

Back when the deal was announced, Entain Australia CEO Dean Shannon said the agreement could work in tandem with PubTABs in attracting customers who have already evolved in the way they like to place bets. “We applaud AHA NSW for their vision in agreeing to work with us to bring this partnership to life," Shannon said.

“While there is still value in more traditional cash retail wagering, there is a highly engaged audience of punters who like to go down to their local for a bet with their mates, and how they do that has evolved,” he explained. 

John Whelan, AHA NSW CEO (left) and Dean Shannon, Entain Australia CEO

For Shannon, the partnership "recognizes that evolution and is about offering choice" for the benefit of AGA NSW members and their patrons. "There is no reason why traditional cash wagering can’t co-exist in a hotel, alongside an advertising sponsorship agreement with Entain that promotes the digital offering of one of our leading brands,” he added.

This deal comes as Entain holds a legal fight with rival Tabcorp over advertising promotions in pubs, as the latter has a monopoly over the activity in NSW and across the country.

The company launched legal action against Entain and the AHA on the grounds of their alleged failure to disclose 'sufficient' information about their advertising deal. It should be noted the state’s pubs and clubs are exclusively allowed to operate Tabcorp’s retail wagering in their venues thanks to a long-standing state license the group extended in 2013 to 2033.