Genius Sports has added a sports and business powerbroker to its Business Advisory Council. Sir Hugh Robertson, a former member of Parliament and UK Minister for Sport during the London Olympics, joins the council immediately.
“For over 20 years, he has worked tirelessly for British sport and brings extensive commercial and stakeholder expertise to help drive the health and future growth of our company,” Mark Locke, CEO of Genius Sports, said in a release.
In its most recent earnings statement, Genius beat expectations, cashing in on the spread of legalized betting. “Our business model is obviously very different to a lot of the operators. When new states come online, that gives us a huge opportunity to get more spend through our media business but that also applies to our sports betting side as well,” Locke said on a conference call with analysts, although the recent bear market has led to a fall off in the stock price.
Robertson will help the newly formed council “identify strategic development opportunities” and “strengthen governance and reinforce the company’s mission to become the most trusted and respected sports data and technology partner in the world,” according to the release.
After a stint in the military and a position at the investment firm Schroder’s, Robertson joined Parliament in 2001. He became the Minister of Sport and the Olympics in 2010 and held that position until taking over as minister of state in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, responsible for Middle East, North Africa and counter terrorism in 2013. In 2014 he was knighted for his work on the Olympics and in the Middle East.
Since leaving politics in 2015, Robertson has worked for Falcon Associates and currently chairs Camelot, the operator of the National Lottery and the British Olympic Association. “I am delighted to be taking on this new role,” he said. “I hope that my independence, global experience and commercial expertise will help Genius Sports make the most of this exciting new opportunity.”
