Operator News

Gillon McLachlan appointed Tabcorp MD & CEO

By Phil - 17 June 2024

Tabcorp Holdings has announced the appointment of Gillon McLachlan as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Tabcorp.

Mr McLachlan will join Tabcorp on 5 August 2024, and will assume the role of Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer upon receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals. In the interim, he will act in
an observer capacity with Bruce Akhurst continuing to act as Executive Chairman.

Mr McLachlan joins Tabcorp after a decade as CEO of Australia’s biggest sporting code, the Australian Football League (AFL), where he led significant change and transformation. Mr McLachlan has a proven record of growth, more than doubling AFL revenues from $502 million in 2013 to $1,063 million in 2023, including securing the largest sports broadcasting rights deal in Australian history. He oversaw the expansion of the AFL competition to 18 teams and the launch of the AFLW competition. In addition, Mr McLachlan has proven success in managing complex stakeholder environments and working
productively with all levels of government. He also has extensive racing knowledge as a thoroughbred owner and breeder.

Mr Akhurst said Mr McLachlan has the right attributes to accelerate growth at Tabcorp with a proven track record and deep knowledge and understanding of wagering, sport and racing.

“Gill needs no introduction – he is recognised as one of Australia’s leading CEOs and securing Gill is a great vote of confidence for Tabcorp’s future. We’ve laid strong foundations and Gill brings a growth mindset and the capability to capitalise on the opportunities ahead of us,’’ he said.

“Gill has a deep understanding of sport, racing and wagering, combined with signficant commercial acumen which was highlighted in the substantial growth of AFL revenues under his leadership. Importantly for us, Gill brings an added dimension of having been responsible for some of the most significant media rights deals in Australian sports history and we’re excited about the potential growth opportunities for our wagering and media business under his leadership.”

Mr McLachlan said he was focussed on accelerating the growth of Tabcorp.

“Tabcorp is a wagering, broadcast and integrity services business and the challenges of growing it are appealing. It’s about creating entertainment for our customers in a safe way and providing a unique
customer omni-channel entertainment offering across digital, retail and the media business,’’ he said.

“Tabcorp is a proudly Australian company that contributed $1.1 billion to the racing industry last year and continues to be one of the racing industry’s biggest partners, as well as the wagering licensee in all states, except for WA. This is a really important component of my decision. There are enormous opportunities ahead and I’m looking forward to driving the sport category among other things. Tabcorp is part way through its transformation journey and I’m looking forward to working with the leadership team to accelerate and deliver on the growth oportunities.”

Mr Akhurst said Tabcorp is well placed to enter this next phase of transformation and growth. “In the two years since demerger we have signficantly improved our customer offering and delivered key structural reforms in Queensland and Victoria. The transformation of Tabcorp is not complete and I am delighted that Gill is joining us to continue to drive change and growth,’’ he said. “We’re pleased that Gill will commence shortly, and until then, along with the executive team, we’re focussed on executing on our key strategic goals and adding value for our shareholders.”

Image By Tigerman2612 – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=55840916