Playtech to call former DAZN exec Gleasure as subsequent chairman

A former govt at DAZN, the sports activities streaming platform, is to be appointed this week as the following chairman of Playtech, the London-listed playing expertise group.

Sky Information has learnt that Playtech will announce on Wednesday that John Gleasure, who was additionally a co-founder of the digital sports activities media group Carry out, is to succeed Brian Mattingley within the function.

In accepting the Playtech chairmanship, Mr Gleasure will inherit a place which has repeatedly been on the centre of fractious company governance challenges.

Mr Mattingley, who has held the function since 2021, has overseen a frenetic interval of company exercise whereas additionally discovering himself within the eye of a collection of storms with shareholders over boardroom pay.

Shareholders give Mr Mattingley credit score, nevertheless, for serving to to navigate the corporate via a difficult interval within the playing business, particularly his function final yr in securing the sale of Snaitech, its Italian shopper playing arm, for €2.3bn.

That deal, which obtained regulatory approval final week, represented a near-threefold return on Playtech’s preliminary funding and can set off a particular dividend value as much as €1.8bn (£1.5bn), to be paid in June.

The sale of Snaitech will rework Playtech right into a pure-play business-to-business operation.

Many analysts imagine the remaining firm will quickly turn out to be a takeover goal.

A supply near Playtech identified that shares within the firm had risen almost 60% throughout Mr Mattingley’s tenure.

Mr Gleasure, who will succeed Mr Mattingley as chairman after Playtech’s annual assembly subsequent month, has additionally held roles at Sky Sports activities, which shares a dad or mum firm with Sky Information, Hutchison 3G and Sony Photos.

He continues to sit down on the board of DAZN Group and is govt chairman of The Sporting Information, a digital writer by which Playtech acquired a minority curiosity in 2023.

Egon Zehnder Worldwide, the boardroom headhunter, has been overseeing the seek for Mr Mattingley’s successor.

A Playtech spokesperson declined to touch upon Tuesday.