Chief Executive Officer – Sports Betting Operations

Location: Botswana
Employment Type: Permanent
Remuneration: Market-related
Relocation: Required – successful candidate must relocate to Botswana
Work Permit: Company assistance provided for eligible expatriate candidates, including South African candidates
Industry: Sports Betting / Gaming / Technology

About the Role

An exciting executive leadership opportunity is available for an accomplished sports betting and gaming professional to lead the establishment, launch and long-term growth of a new sports betting operation in Botswana.

This is a permanent, Botswana-based appointment and the successful candidate will be required to relocate to Botswana. Suitably experienced South African candidates are encouraged to apply, and the company will assist with the necessary work-permit process.

The Chief Executive Officer will assume full executive accountability for taking the business from establishment and market entry through operational launch and into sustainable commercial growth.

This is not a purely strategic or corporate CEO appointment. The successful candidate must be capable of building and launching an operating sports betting business, establishing the retail and digital channels, overseeing the sportsbook and platform ecosystem, building the local organisation, engaging with regulators and partners, and ultimately carrying full P&L accountability.

The position requires a commercially driven executive who understands the complexities of operating within a regulated betting environment and can successfully balance growth, customer acquisition, technology, retail operations, trading and risk, regulatory compliance and profitability.

Job Purpose

To lead the end-to-end establishment, launch and scaling of a sports betting business in Botswana, with full executive accountability for:

• Market entry and business establishment
• Operational readiness and successful go-live
• Commercial strategy and revenue growth
• Full P&L performance
• Retail and digital channel development
• Sportsbook trading and risk oversight
• Platform and technology partner performance
• Regulatory and licensing relationships
• Customer acquisition, retention and player value
• Governance, compliance and responsible gaming
• Organisational design and people leadership
• Long-term profitability and sustainable growth

The CEO will serve as the principal business leader in Botswana and will work closely with Group leadership while retaining significant accountability for local strategy, execution and performance.

Key Responsibilities

Business Strategy & Market Entry

• Define and execute the strategic direction of the Botswana sports betting operation.
• Lead the business through establishment, pre-launch preparation, market entry, go-live and subsequent scaling.
• Develop the market-entry and expansion strategy, ensuring commercial objectives, financial targets and execution priorities remain aligned.
• Assess the Botswana betting environment, competitive landscape, customer behaviour and market opportunities.
• Determine the optimal channel strategy across retail and digital.
• Establish the appropriate market positioning, product offering and customer proposition.
• Make strategic decisions relating to market-entry sequencing, product mix, partnerships and alliances.
• Continuously evaluate market, regulatory and competitive developments and adapt strategy accordingly.

Business Setup & Operational Launch

• Lead the end-to-end build of the new operation.
• Establish the organisational structure, operating model, processes and governance required for launch.
• Ensure all operational areas are fully prepared for go-live.
• Oversee the rollout of the retail network.
• Oversee platform deployment and operational readiness.
• Establish operational controls and procedures across betting operations, customer management, retail operations and cash handling.
• Manage the transition from project/setup phase into stable live operations.
• Identify and resolve operational risks or dependencies that could compromise launch or subsequent business performance.

Commercial Strategy & Revenue Growth

• Take ownership of the overall commercial strategy.
• Build and drive the end-to-end revenue engine.
• Develop customer acquisition strategies across both retail and digital channels.
• Drive customer retention, engagement and player-value optimisation.
• Develop promotional strategies aligned with customer betting behaviour and sustainable profitability.
• Identify opportunities to increase market penetration, revenue and market share.
• Use customer and commercial data to continuously optimise business performance.
• Ensure growth initiatives are commercially sustainable rather than driven solely by customer acquisition.

Retail & Digital / Omnichannel Strategy

The business intends to operate an integrated model in which retail serves as an important acquisition and trust channel, while digital provides scale and retention opportunities.

The CEO will:

• Build and oversee a high-performing retail betting network.
• Ensure appropriate operational standards and customer experience across the retail footprint.
• Drive retail productivity and commercial performance.
• Develop the digital business alongside the physical network.
• Establish an integrated omnichannel operating model.
• Ensure customers can engage effectively with the brand across the relevant channels.
• Drive digital adoption, engagement and retention as the business develops.

Sportsbook, Trading & Risk Management

• Maintain executive oversight of sportsbook operations.
• Oversee sportsbook trading and associated risk management.
• Ensure the betting proposition remains competitive within the market.
• Ensure appropriate management of betting exposure.
• Work effectively with trading and technology partners.
• Balance commercial competitiveness with controlled risk and sustainable profitability.
• Monitor betting patterns and performance trends and use these insights to support business decisions.

P&L & Financial Performance

The CEO will carry full accountability for the P&L of the Botswana operation.

Responsibilities will include:

• Revenue growth and profitability.
• Budgeting and financial planning.
• Cost optimisation and financial discipline.
• Resource and capital allocation.
• Monitoring business performance against agreed financial objectives.
• Reviewing financial and operational information to identify opportunities and risks.
• Overseeing cash management and financial controls.
• Ensuring appropriate controls around cash-intensive betting and retail operations.
• Presenting strategic and financial plans and performance to Group/Board-level stakeholders.

Platform & Technology Partner Governance

• Take executive ownership of the performance of the sportsbook/platform ecosystem.
• Ensure platform readiness ahead of go-live.
• Monitor platform and service-provider SLAs.
• Ensure technology supports the commercial and operational requirements of the business.
• Manage significant service-performance issues and escalations.
• Maintain effective relationships with platform, trading and other strategic technology partners.
• Drive continuous enhancement of systems and platform capabilities as the business grows.

Regulatory, Licensing & Stakeholder Management

The CEO will act as the principal external representative of the business in Botswana.

Responsibilities include:

• Develop and maintain strong relationships with regulators and licensing authorities.
• Ensure ongoing compliance with applicable licensing and regulatory requirements.
• Manage relationships with strategic partners and other key external stakeholders.
• Represent the organisation professionally within the Botswana market.
• Establish the operation as a credible and responsible betting operator.
• Protect the company's brand integrity and market reputation.
• Maintain alignment between local operations and Group strategy and governance.

Compliance, AML/KYC & Responsible Gaming

• Ensure full compliance with applicable regulatory, licensing and tax requirements.
• Oversee robust AML and KYC frameworks.
• Ensure appropriate customer verification and age-verification controls.
• Maintain responsible gambling standards throughout the operation.
• Ensure appropriate controls are implemented to mitigate financial and operational risk.
• Safeguard the integrity of betting and cash-management operations.
• Ensure regulatory and compliance considerations are incorporated into strategic and commercial decision-making.

Governance & Executive Leadership

• Establish clear organisational objectives.
• Translate corporate strategy and performance targets into measurable functional and business-unit objectives.
• Establish robust governance and management frameworks.
• Ensure disciplined and accountable decision-making.
• Approve and prioritise major business initiatives.
• Allocate resources appropriately across the organisation.
• Regularly review strategy and performance.
• Provide structured recommendations to Group leadership regarding risks, opportunities and business performance.
• Maintain alignment with Group leadership on strategic, investment and regulatory matters.

Organisational Development & People Leadership

• Design and establish the organisational structure required to operate and grow the business.
• Recruit and build a high-performance local leadership and operational team.
• Attract, develop and retain the talent required to achieve strategic objectives.
• Provide clear leadership and direction across all functions.
• Establish a culture of accountability, collaboration and execution excellence.
• Implement effective performance-management practices.
• Ensure teams understand business objectives and individual accountability.
• Build an organisation capable of scaling as the operation grows.

Candidate Profile

We are seeking a senior executive from the sports betting, gaming or closely related regulated gambling sector who combines strategic leadership with strong operational and commercial capability.

This opportunity will particularly suit someone who has previously held a role such as:

• Chief Executive Officer
• Managing Director
• Country Manager
• General Manager
• Chief Operating Officer
• Senior Director / Executive within a sports betting operation

The strongest candidate will have experience beyond simply managing an established operation. Business launch, market entry, significant expansion or operational build experience will be particularly important given the nature of this appointment.

Critical Experience

Candidates should be able to demonstrate strong experience across the majority of the following:

• Sports betting / sportsbook operations
• Senior executive leadership
• P&L ownership
• Commercial strategy and revenue growth
• Retail betting operations
• Digital betting channels
• Omnichannel operations
• Customer acquisition and retention
• Sportsbook trading and risk
• Gaming technology/platform environments
• Third-party platform and service-provider management
• Regulated gaming environments
• Licensing and regulator engagement
• AML/KYC and responsible gaming
• Cash and financial controls
• Business establishment, launch or market expansion
• Organisational design and team building
• Board/Group-level stakeholder management

Personal Attributes

The successful executive should demonstrate:

• Strong commercial judgement and financial acumen
• Entrepreneurial and growth-oriented thinking
• Executive presence and credibility
• Strong decision-making capability
• Ability to operate effectively in a developing/new operation
• Hands-on leadership combined with strategic thinking
• High levels of accountability and ownership
• Strong stakeholder-management and negotiation skills
• Comfort working within highly regulated environments
• Strong analytical and performance-management capability
• Ability to build organisations, teams and processes from the ground up
• Cultural adaptability and willingness to establish themselves permanently in Botswana

Location & Relocation – Important

This position is based in Botswana and is not a remote position.

The successful candidate must be willing and able to relocate to Botswana on a permanent basis for the role.

Experienced South African candidates may be considered for the appointment. The employer will provide assistance with the required Botswana work-permit process for the successful expatriate candidate.

Candidates should therefore only apply if they are genuinely open to relocating and establishing themselves in Botswana.

Remuneration

Market-related executive package.

No predetermined salary range has been provided. Remuneration will be considered according to the successful candidate's experience, seniority and suitability for this executive appointment.

Confidentiality

This is a confidential executive search assignment. Further information regarding the organisation and opportunity will be shared with suitably qualified candidates during the recruitment process.