SG confirms Haddrill departure

Scientific Games Executive Vice Chairman Richard Haddrill has exited the New York-listed gaming and lottery supplier after serving in the role since 2014.

Having previously served as the Chief Executive of Bally Technologies on two occasions, from 2004 to 2012 and from May 2014, Haddrill was originally tasked with assisting in the integration of Bally following its purchase by Scientific Games for $5.1bn in 2014.

In addition to his CE roles, Haddrill has also served on Bally’s board of directors since 2003, as well as having undertaken the role of Chairman from 2012 to 2014.

The resignation, which came into effect on July 24, follows on from the publishing of Scientific Games’ Q2 trading statement which revealed a net operating loss of $198m. 

Underlining the impact of COVID-19 on all core business channels including lotteries, the Nasdaq technology group stated that pandemic disruptions ‘affected comparability to previous trading periods’, as group Q2 revenues dropped from $845m in Q2 2019 to $539m.

More encouragingly, the group has recorded a 20% increase in lottery ticket sales for instant game retail sales in the most recent four-week period compared to the same period last year.

At the time, Barry Cottle, President and Chief Executive Officer of Scientific Games, stated: “I am very proud of how we are navigating the current environment, as evidenced by our strong cost containment and cash management, which allowed us to deliver better than expected cash flow for the quarter.

“This is a testament to our team’s ability to effectively manage our business in the short term and maintain our strong customer relationships so we are set up for success as the economy begins to reopen. The diversity of our businesses and our position on the forefront of digital gaming were critical to allow us to successfully navigate the worst of this environment.

“We have the right team coupled with the best products across both land-based and mobile gaming to position us for future growth.”