FANDUEL ADDS FORMER ROGERS EXECUTIVE TO RUN CANADA OPERATION

Dave Schwab Sports Betting Expert

3 minute read

Earlier in October, FanDuel announced that Dale Hooper would assume the role of general manager for the company’s Canada operation. He was a former executive with Rogers Communication so market knowledge is a major plus.

Hooper’s primary role in his new position is to focus on long-term goals for legal sports betting in Canada. The overall potential is strong due to recent changes in the laws.

Previously, the only form of legal sports betting in Canada was on multi-team parlays. Changes to the law that went into effect at the end of August paved the way for legal betting on single games.

FanDuel Group CEO Amy Howe commented on the recent appointment as follows in a recent company release:

"Dale has a proven track record running high growth enterprises along with strong relationships that will be invaluable to our success in Canada.
He is a respected leader known for his ability to scale business units effectively, a critical skill set, as we aim to bring the excitement of our sportsbook and iGaming products to Canadian citizens. It’s with great excitement that I welcome him to our team."

Howe assumed the permanent role of FanDuel CEO on Oct. 4. She will be Hooper’s direct report for the Canadian division.

One of his other executive roles during his career was the CEO of Cannabis Compliance Inc. This was a consultancy for the highly regulated cannabis industry in Canada. Deloitte acquired that company in December of 2019.

According to local media sources in Toronto, Hooper was drawn to Canada’s sports betting industry. This was a direct result of Deloitte’s analysis of the current market situation.

His statements on his new position included:

"It is an incredible time to be a part of the growing sports gaming industry, and I look forward to joining Amy and the team as we bring the No. 1 sportsbook to Canada. I am proud to be joining the industry leader at such a momentous time."

Before filling the role as CEO at Cannabis Compliance, Hooper was the chief brand officer at Rogers Communication. One of his biggest accomplishments was marketing the NHL as part of a $5.2 billion media partnership. That agreement was signed in 2014.

FanDuel is not the only US-based legal sportsbook operator expanding into Canada. PointsBet just named Scott Vanderwel as CEO of PointsBet Canada. He is another former executive at Rogers.

PointsBet just made headlines in that country through a strategic partnership with Curling Canada as a major sports entity.

NorthStar Gaming appointed former Panasonic North America CEO Michael Moskowitz as CEO and founding partner. This company is working on its own commercial sportsbook and iGaming product.

The main focus of any US book or new Canadian-based operator will be the province of Ontario. This is the only Canadian province with plans to open a commercial sports betting market. This is also home to more than 35% of the country’s population with 15 million residents.

Written by Dave Schwab, our US sports betting industry expert. You can learn more about our author's expertise here.

Dave Schwab

Dave Schwab has been covering the sports betting industry for the past 12 years as the main focus of his specialty marketing company for online content. This endeavor followed a previous career in the field of sales and marketing in the wholesaling sector.Most of his weekly pieces focus on the rapidly expanding legal US sports betting industry. However, he still does extensive work covering betting angles that can provide a competitive edge to avid players. Dave believes that it is always a challenge to take past results and current form to try and correctly determine a future result. Sports brings out the unpredictability in what should be a fairly predictable outcome based on the stats, facts and recent trends in a particular matchup. More from Dave Schwab