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Racecourse Media Group Chairman Roger Lewis extends term until October 2023
Racecourse Media Group (RMG) has announced that its Chairman, Roger Lewis, has extended his post until October 2023 in order to assist RMG transition to a new Chair.
Roger Lewis has been on the RMG Board for over 10 years during which time RMG has increased its licence fees and dividend payments to its racecourses from £45m to over £110m .
He joined the RMG Board in 2012 and was appointed Non-Executive Independent Chairman on January 1, 2019. He was due to step down in 2022 but has been asked by the Board to extend his tenure. A new Chair will be appointed in 2023.
Lewis, said: “RMG is in great shape, and it is an honour to be asked to continue to Chair the company. We have a strong board and an outstanding team of executives, led by CEO, Martin Stevenson, who together have delivered in spectacular fashion for our racecourses and indeed for the sport of racing.
“We are on track to exceed our record results of last year and we pay tribute to everyone in racing, and give thanks to our racecourses, for allowing RMG to manage their media and data rights across the world.”
Under Roger Lewis’s leadership RMG paid £110m to its racecourse shareholders in 2021. Those payments, earned through racecourses’ media and data rights, exceeded pre-Covid levels.
In the same year, RMG agreed British racecourse licence extensions for audio-visual and data rights for a new five-year term until December 31, 2028.
RMG has also been entrusted with significant broadcast rights of Irish racing since 2019, when Racing UK relaunched as Racing TV, with the strapline of “The best of British and Irish racing.”
RMG is 100% owned by its racecourse shareholders and pays 100% of operating profit back to racecourses, which, in turn, benefits the sport. This collective and collaborative approach has enabled RMG’s businesses to become the biggest single funder of British horseracing.
On the back of that approach and with long-term certainty and confidence in the business, media rights and data revenues are, this year, tracking to exceed 2021’s payments to shareholders.
Nevin Truesdale, CEO of Jockey Club Racecourses, chief shareholder in RMG, said: “I would like to pay tribute to Roger Lewis for a very effective and successful stewardship of RMG, a business which is of fundamental importance to the financial performance of racecourses and therefore to the whole sport of horseracing.
“Under Roger’s leadership, we have faced a number of challenges, in particular during the Covid pandemic, where the robustness of the RMG model was critical to maintaining racecourse financial stability in the absence of other revenue streams for a sustained period. Roger’s influence in establishing long-term deals with key commercial betting and broadcast partners during his tenure has also been hugely positive. On behalf of everyone at the Jockey Club, I would like to thank Roger for all he has done for the business.”
Martin Stevenson, CEO of RMG, added: “We are delighted Roger Lewis has agreed to stay on for almost another year. Roger has been instrumental in the development and success of RMG over the last decade and I very much look forward to continuing to work closely with Roger and the Board as we continue to invest and develop our media assets and new products. Innovations, such as enhancements on the channel – headlined by the virtual ‘green screen’ studio – the Watch & Bet product, ultra-low latency pictures, the investment in on-screen timing data graphics, and capturing the in-play opportunities are all key to the business’s continued success.
“These workstreams, allied to growing our social media audience, securing increased ITV coverage and enhancing international exposure and revenues, will contribute to directing more eyeballs on to our racing and therefore will drive betting turnover, subscriptions, and sponsorship opportunities for the sport. RMG is one the most successful sporting and media rights companies in Britain and Ireland and I look forward to working with Roger in 2023 to take RMG to even greater heights.”
Roger Lewis has held senior positions at the BBC, ITV, Classic FM, EMI and Decca and was GCEO of the Welsh Rugby Union and the Millennium Stadium for nine years. He has held and holds a number of senior positions in the cultural sector for the UK and Welsh Governments.
Carlo Santarelli
Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. Names Carlo Santarelli Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy and Investor Relations

Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. announced that Carlo Santarelli has been appointed Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy and Investor Relations, a new position at the Company. Mr. Santarelli will begin his new position on August 18, 2025 and will report to GLPI President and Chief Operating Officer, Brandon Moore.
Mr. Santarelli brings over 25 years of Wall Street experience in Equity Research and Investment Banking to his new role and joins the Company from Deutsche Bank where he was Managing Director of Gaming & Lodging Equity Research. Prior to Deutsche Bank, Mr. Santarelli held similar positions at Bear Stearns, JP Morgan and Wells Fargo. He consistently ranked highly in Institutional Investor and other sell-side analyst research polls as a thought leader in the space, providing unique perspectives on industry events and trends with his data-driven approach and stock picking talent. Carlo Santarelli graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a B.A. in Economics in 2000.
Peter Carlino, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GLPI, said: “We’ve known and respected Carlo’s research work on the gaming, lodging and gaming REIT sectors for many years. Carlo brings to GLPI an in-depth knowledge of the industry and its participants, having experienced GLPI’s original formation of the gaming triple-net-REIT structure from a research analyst and capital markets perspective. We value his deep network of contacts among institutional investors, sell-side analysts and a wide range of gaming industry operators and we look forward to the value of his contributions.”
In his new role, Mr. Santarelli will work with Mr. Carlino and GLPI’s senior management to develop and evaluate growth opportunities and strategic relationships, and will oversee investor relations interactions.
The post Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. Names Carlo Santarelli Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy and Investor Relations appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Industry News
VIP Play Announces Departure of Chief Financial Officer

VIP Play, a technology-driven leader in interactive consumer engagement, announced that Jim Mackey, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer, will step down from his role, effective August 8, 2025.
The Company has initiated a transition process and is in the process of identifying a successor. Mackey will assist in an orderly transition over the coming weeks.
“We thank Jim for his contributions to the Company, particularly during a transformative period for our business. We remain focused on executing our strategic priorities, including financial visibility, operating efficiency, and delivering value to our stakeholders,” said Les Ottolenghi, CEO of VIP Play.
The post VIP Play Announces Departure of Chief Financial Officer appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
eSports
Esports Charts Becomes Official Viewership Analytics Partner of StarLadder Budapest Major 2025

Esports Charts, the leading esports viewership analytics provider, has partnered with StarLadder, a pioneering tournament organiser. The Budapest Major 2025 marks a highly anticipated comeback for StarLadder, as it is their first Counter-Strike Major since 2019 and a significant return to the top-tier esports arena.
As the official analytics partner of the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, Esports Charts will provide comprehensive, real-time audience data and insights throughout the event. This will empower organisers, teams, sponsors and fans with unparalleled transparency and a deeper understanding of the tournament’s global reach.
Artyom Odintsov, Co-founder and CEO of Esports Charts, said: “We are thrilled and proud to provide viewership analytics for StarLadder for the Budapest Major 2025. Since both Esports Charts and StarLadder are Ukraine-born companies, we share similar values and deal with similar challenges, which brings us even closer.
“It’s genuinely exciting to follow how viewership will develop at this Major. But knowing the expertise, drive, and passion that the organizers are bringing, I have no doubt we’ll witness some incredible things happen in Budapest.
“Esports Charts has always been driven by a mission to provide the esports community with accurate, actionable data, and we look forward to showcasing the impact and audience engagement of this world-class event.”
StarLadder has been a driving force in global esports for almost 15 years now, since hosting its first tournaments in 2011. Renowned for its innovation and reliability, the company has organised some of the industry’s most iconic events. These include the StarLadder Berlin Major 2019, which accumulated over 44 million hours watched and remains in the top 10 CS events by this metric, and the legendary StarSeries tournaments which started back in 2012.
Viacheslav Shcherbakov, Sales and Partnerships at StarLadder, said: “We’ve been working with Esports Charts since their founding and have always valued their professionalism and integrity. In a market where reliable data is essential, Esports Charts provides honest, transparent numbers, exactly the kind of insights sponsors and stakeholders rely on when assessing the potential reach of a World Championship event.
“We’re confident that this partnership will result in a high-quality analysis of our tournament’s performance and the audience data we’ll report to our partners. It’s a collaboration built on trust, shared values, and a deep understanding of what it takes to elevate esports to the next level.”
The Starladder Budapest Major 2025 will be held from November 24 to December 14 in Budapest, Hungary. The event will bring together the world’s top 32 Counter-Strike 2 teams to compete for a $1.25 million prize pool and one of the most prestigious titles in esports.
The post Esports Charts Becomes Official Viewership Analytics Partner of StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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