Ralph Topping gained a lot of experience in the gambling industry as CEO of William Hill. He\u2019s since left that role, but the wisdom hasn\u2019t left him. Right on the heels of William Hill\u2019s buyout offer from Caesars Entertainment, we bring you an in-depth interview of the industry veteran, as he\u2019s Becky Liggero Fontana\u2019s guest this week on\u00a0The Long Con.<\/p>\n
The two began by discussing how Topping got into the industry, and it may never have happened if his father didn\u2019t have a pastime of choice. \u201cWell I\u2019ve never showed any interest in the gambling industry, although my father, when I look back on it, he liked what they call a little punt,\u201d Topping shared. \u201cHe liked a bet, he kept disappearing every now and again when we were kids, and he used to say, as he was off to the post office, but he was really going to the bookies, we found that after a while. When I was at university, my parents very kindly bought me a car, but also said that I would have to fund it myself. So I would have to put the petrol in it, or gas as they say in your country, and be responsible for the repairs and whatever else. They bought the car and then he found me the job. He found me a job with a company called, City Bookmakers they were called.\u201d<\/p>\n
Topping was with William Hill at the very early days of online gambling, and he played a key role in getting them online. \u201cWilliam Hill actually went online in 98 for the World Cup,\u201d he said. \u201cThe company had been going through a slow burn in terms of growth and whatever else, but had established itself is one of the leaders in that nascent market. When I took over as CEO, I\u2019d already worked in online and retail and I liked the online business. But as a CEO, you\u2019re in the job for five years on average, so you never know when somebody\u2019s going to come and tap you on the shoulder.\u201d<\/p>\n
Playtech played an important role in getting William Hill online, and Topping still has some good friends from the deal. \u201cMet two guys there, Avigur Zamora and Mor Weizer, Avigur was the chief executive, got on with them like a house and fire,\u201d Topping said. \u201cThey were looking for business. I said you\u2019re not going to get business unless you help me grow as a as a company online and that means more than just supplying me with software; I want people I want to grow my business, I can\u2019t go slowly in this market. And lo and behold we did the Playtech deal, and the guy I would pay tribute to there was Avigur Zamora, who remains a friend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now with\u00a0Caesars Entertainment\u00a0looking to capitalize on that online platform to grow their sports betting presence in the U.S., those deals of yesteryear could make a huge impact in the industry. Although the interview was conducted before this blockbuster news broke, Topping was kind enough to share some thoughts on how the region will progress:<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve still got an industry which is going to be extremely valuable, is growing rapidly, expanding rapidly, and once you start on that change route then you\u2019re going to keep on seeing change. The iGaming when it comes in and when it becomes accepted, then a whole host of states will be significant value in America, as is proving the case now with mobile betting. So will it continue to expand, yeah. We\u2019re waiting on the big population states coming into the market, so California will be boon, New York, although it\u2019s there at the moment, once it expands in New York, then that will be a boon for the industry. I\u2019m sure as things develop, you will see it doesn\u2019t have what you have in the U.K. At the moment you have a market which is the whole population, I don\u2019t think you\u2019re going to see that in the states for a long, long time, but it will be an extremely significant and lucrative market.\u201d<\/p>\n
William Hill will still have to manage its U.K. presence though, and\u00a0regulation\u00a0is the biggest hurdle to further success there. Topping suggested patience is the virtue they need most right now. \u201cBookmakers have done extremely well of changes in law and changes in regulation if you take a longer time frame than the last two or three years,\u201d he said. \u201cI think the pendulum, I believe will always swing back to the middle. It\u2019s a tough time to be a CEO in this environment, but looking back at history, things change, they tend to change regularly, and I think you may see a swing right to the middle at some point, but not for the foreseeable future.\u201d<\/p>\n
The full interview covers so many more important topics of our time, including Topping\u2019s predictions about the post-Covid gambling industry, his tips on managing retail operations, and the businesses he\u2019s helping push forward now.<\/p>\n