OPAP Chief Executive Damian Cope recently announced the 2020 strategy of the firm, which currently offers sports betting and lotteries through a network of more than 5,750 outlets in Greece and Cyprus, making it Greece’s largest and Europe’s third largest betting company. In an analyst’s call, Cope said OPAP would enhance its sports betting and launch other games, such as European jackpots, to increase business in the struggling Greek economy.
“My intention is to use the best and most relevant elements of successful sports betting offers in other markets and introduce them to the Greek market as soon as I can. In the next 12 to 18 months we will have a far superior offering than we currently have today,” Cope said.
To date, OPAP’s shares have increased 4.5 percent; in comparison, the Athens stock exchange has lost 7 percent of its value. OPAP’s revenues have been affected as Athens was forced to implement tough austerity measures in return for three international bailouts since 2010. The company also has experienced more competition from unlicensed online operators.
Cope said OPAP is following through on its legal claims against the Greek government, which passed tougher betting rules and essentially froze the launch of OPAP’s video lottery terminal business last summer. OPAP
has paid $562 million for the VLT licenses. Cope said once the stringent regulations are amended, OPAP will reschedule the launch. The company also has plans to enhance its efforts against illegal gambling, which generates an estimated $6.75 billion in revenue annually.
