‘Going at pace’ – Entain commits to winning in Australia and focuses on new game plan for growth

Andrew Vouris, recently appointed chief executive of Entain’s Australasian arm, says the wagering giant remains committed to Australia and New Zealand and is determined to “win”, albeit with a different playbook.

*Andrew Vouris, the chief executive of Entain’s Australasian operation. (Photo: Entain)*

Andrew Vouris doesn’t hide the fact that he is different from the man who previously sat in his seat as Entain’s Australia and New Zealand chief executive.

Dean Shannon, who departed the wagering business in June after six years, is an entrepreneur and marketer who successfully rode the wagering boom in Australia to become one of the most significant figures in corporate bookmaking.

When Vouris came into the role, initially on an interim basis and then permanently from late August, he was viewed in the broader industry as the compliance guy at a company facing a major regulatory challenge.

He had steered Tabcorp amid a similar storm to the one Entain faces with AUSTRAC and has built a reputation as a steady hand.

But while he is a different personality from Shannon, to characterise Vouris as being someone who would only ensure Entain dots its i’s and crosses its t’s would be unfair. He has parlayed a successful career in accountancy into a 10-year spell at the heart of Tabcorp, then into a key operational role with a gaming and esports startup unikrn.

Vouris has the commercial chops and the ambition to continue to steer Entain, which at last count holds around 17 per cent of Australia’s digital wagering market, back to growth.

“We’re focused on winning back Australian market share and capitalising on the New Zealand asset, and we’re going to run at it with pace,” Vouris tells The Straight when asked about Entain’s current ambition.

“The group are committed to the Australian and New Zealand market. Their commitment’s been pretty clear to me. They want us to win in Australia, and they want us to really maximise the opportunity in New Zealand.

“I think my appointment, given I am an executive that’s been in this space in Australia for almost 17 years, cements that position.”

Entain’s decision to appoint an Australian in the key role, rather than sending someone from the UK head office, is seen as a sign internally of its continued ambition.

Externally, the jungle drums are beating that Entain wants out of Australia, and it was recently linked with acquisition plays by both betr and Tabcorp. For Vouris and his renewed executive team, they are determined to press on and ignore that noise.

Balancing the desire to “win” with compliance responsibilities is nothing new for Entain, a global company with a market capitalisation of £5.6 billion ($A11.5 billion).

Globally, it has had its own headaches balancing growth and regulatory challenges. Breaches in its former Turkey business under its previous GVC moniker last decade saw it pay a £585 million ($A1.2 billion) fine in the UK, while a string of former executives were charged over this issue only last week.

What awaits it in Australia is not yet known, with the AUSTRAC case ongoing. A resolution is expected by the end of this year and Entain has made a provision for a fine of around $100 million in its global budgets but says that is an accounting measure and not a guide of its expectation.

So while “winning” may be still front and centre, Vouris wants to do it a different way. And he is adamant not just a convenient message to push out while the Australian arm goes through a much-publicised enforcement action.

Written above his office door is the phrase: “Win, but not at all costs”.

It is a slogan that the Entain boss says the company is living in the new reality. Vouris points to the comprehensive overhaul of compliance undertaken during his short tenure in the hot seat.

The Australian operation has expanded its responsible gambling and AML/CTF teams to 40, while a new executive team has been tasked with implementing a different growth strategy.

“What’s pleasing is that in the business, we’ve still got a lot of expertise in the business, which I’m really proud of because I know how hard it is for these businesses to work without that expertise in the business,” he said.

“I think what is important for us is that we get back to the basics.

“I think in the hyper-competitive market of Australia, we’ve moved away from being what I would consider an innovator into a first follower. And we need to really shift the gears back and aggressively attack being an innovator again in that space.

“So, for us, it’s about making sure that our efforts and energy are directed towards product innovation in the Australian marketplace. And that stuff flows back into New Zealand.”

While internal challenges will keep him busy, Vouris also wants to be on the front foot about the broader issues of an Australian wagering industry whose margins are under increasing pressure from rising fees and taxation.

Entain last month reported a 7 per cent drop in net gaming revenue in its Australian business in the first six months of 2025.

The Australian arm has paid $183 million in point of consumption taxes (POCT) and another $150 million in racing product fees and vision costs in the past 12 months, with further tax increases slated in the Northern Territory, where it is licensed.

Vouris points out that around 57 per cent of Entain’s Australian revenue is now paid in product fees and other taxes and says that not only does it reduce margins, but returns to customers.

“I think the thing that holds everyone back is just the tax regime. That’s really where if there were changes in that space, I think it would be wrong to expect that we would just absorb that for profit. We would actually give that back to customers,” he said.

The knock-on impact of the current situation on the racing industry is twofold.

Firstly, Vouris points out the higher costs of fielding on racing make it difficult for Ladbrokes or Neds to incentivise punters.

“The economics of businesses like ours is that it’s more beneficial for us and we’re able to give more back to the customer on non-racing Australian products,” he says.

Reduced wagering means lower returns to the racing industry through POCT and product fee agreements, but it also raises the prospect of what support Entain can offer clubs and principal racing authorities through sponsorship and advertising.

“It’s going to be harder than it has been before because the margins are skinnier. Something’s got to give. So, I think it’s going to be a challenge,” Vouris said when asked if Entain would continue to maintain its sponsorship and other commercial relationships in racing.

“I didn’t make the rules, I didn’t make the taxation, but that’s just the economics of it.”

What would move the dial, according to Vouris, would be a change of heart of POCT.

“That’s going to be an important litmus test. If Queensland moved downward, which would probably be one of the first to do so, it would be interesting to see how the market reacts to that,” he said.

“I think someone’s got to be brave enough to move first and then I think the results of them moving first will hopefully be shared.

“I don’t think they’re going to believe it until they see it.”

As well as taxation, Vouris sees the other challenge in Australia being the growth of the unregulated wagering market, which Entain estimates is worth around $1.1 billion in revenue annually.

“We’ve got regulators like AUSTRAC that are appropriately managing the risk of money laundering and so on and so forth,” he said.

“But we’ve got a black market there that’s bidding in crypto and untaxed and that really has got every risk that you could imagine around it.”

New Zealand is a different opportunity, given Entain’s 25-year partnership agreement to operate TAB NZ which started in 2023.

Its presence with the Betcha brand, and the recent legislative net which enshrines it with a virtual monopoly in the country.

Vouris said the introduction of that legislative net has seen sports betting grow significantly, as punters who previously bet with overseas-based providers, especially those licensed in Australia, have been forced to switch.

The impact on racing has been less pronounced, albeit during a traditionally quiet time of year.

“We’re focused on winning back Australian market share and capitalising on the New Zealand asset, and we’re going to run at it with pace” – Entain’s Andrew Vouris

To maximise the impact of the TAB NZ agreement, Entain is relying on changes to be made within the New Zealand racing industry. While some progress has been slow, Vouris is happy that changes are being made.

“I think they’re moving in the right direction. What is good is that we’re talking about the right things that matter,” he said of New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing’s role.

“There’s short-term change, there’s medium-term and there’s longer-term initiatives, right? On the short-term stuff, I think that the codes and TAB New Zealand and us, which are the ones that are sort of driving this, they’re moving quickly. It’s good because we’re all in this together.

“We all understand what moves the needle and there’s no ambiguity about that.”

He said the alignment of the goals between the racing industry and its wagering partner is the most crucial aspect.

“I’m concentrating on the selling of bets and I’m expecting the administrators of the codes to work on that. But at the same time, every conversation that I’m having with those guys, we’re talking about the right things,” he said.

‘Going at pace’ – Entain commits to winning in Australia and focuses on new game plan for growth

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