Entain has begun an executive search for a new chief marketing officer for its UK business after the departure of Charlotte Emery, who leaves after two years running marketing across the gambling group’s main British brands. The company said Emery left on mutually agreed terms and that recruitment for a successor has already started.
The incoming CMO will take charge of marketing strategy and media investment behind Ladbrokes, Coral, Gala and Foxy Bingo, and will lead brand development while Entain reviews its position in the UK market. The company has not said whether the next marketing chief will keep the current agency structure or set a timetable for filling the role.
Emery joined Entain in June 2024, when the company created the CMO position. She led a marketing operation of around 230 staff and managed a budget of roughly £250 million across UK brands that also included Party. She sat on Entain’s UK Executive Committee, worked on the strategy behind five consecutive quarters of growth, expanded the use of artificial intelligence in the marketing department, and oversaw the relaunches of Ladbrokes and Gala.
Entain UK and Ireland managing director Bejay Patel acknowledged Emery’s contribution after her exit was confirmed.
Charlotte has played a significant role in the continued growth and development of our UK brands, Ladbrokes, Coral, Gala and Foxy. Charlotte led the marketing function with passion and energy over the last two years. We would like to thank her for her contribution and wish her every success in the future.
What the role could pay
Entain has not disclosed the salary attached to the vacant post. The CMO is not a board position and is not named in the group’s 2026 Directors’ Remuneration Policy, which is being put to an advisory shareholder vote at the 2026 AGM. That policy does set the reference points for the group’s most senior executives: a base salary of £905,000 for chief executive Stella David and £593,780 for the chief financial officer and deputy CFO. Measured against those neighbouring bands, a senior marketing chief at the group would sit in an indicative base range of roughly £600,000 to £900,000, before pension, bonus and any long-term incentives. The policy sets a pension worth 6% of salary in the UK, and reserves annual bonus and long-term incentive plan awards for board directors rather than the wider executive team.
Agency reviews reshaped Entain’s marketing setup
Several agency decisions took place under Emery. In June 2025, Ladbrokes appointed Atomic London as its lead creative agency after a competitive review she oversaw. Later that year, Entain completed a review of its UK and Ireland media account, estimated at £90 million, and appointed PHD, part of Omnicom Media Group, to handle work previously run by the7stars. The new arrangement covered Ladbrokes, Coral, Gala and Foxy Bingo.
Outside Entain’s internal operation, Emery took part in Betting and Gaming Council committees on advertising and advertising technology. Before joining the group she worked as an independent strategy adviser and consultant, and earlier spent more than four years in senior roles at William Hill, including global brand chief officer and global brand marketing director. Her earlier career included brand roles at British American Tobacco, Twinings, Bacardi Global Brands and Homepride Foods.
In 2025 she also rode as an amateur jockey in the Markel Magnolia Cup at Glorious Goodwood. A fundraising campaign backed by Coral UK raised more than £56,000 for The King’s Trust International, directed at education and training for young women in some of the world’s poorest communities.
Departure comes during wider efficiency review
The change comes while Entain runs a broader cost and efficiency programme under chief executive Stella David. The group recently confirmed plans to remove around 500 roles globally, an initiative led in part by new chief financial officer Michael Snape. The cuts affect people, finance, governance, and product and technology functions, though the company has not given figures for individual departments.
Entain described the programme as focused on “operational efficiency and agility” and has said the reductions are not a response to recent UK gambling tax increases. It has announced no redundancies in its UK marketing division, and there is no indication that Emery’s exit is connected to the wider job cuts. Entain reported UK and Ireland leading its group in recent quarters, part of the run of growth Emery worked on. The company’s brand-by-brand performance shows how central Ladbrokes and Coral remain to the UK business.
New CMO to join during UK strategy review
The incoming marketing chief will start as Entain reassesses its UK strategy and the funding allocated to key brands in its 2026 business review. Ladbrokes and Coral remain central to those plans, with the company aiming to improve their competitive position and strengthen market share from 2027 as the UK market changes.
A major factor is the new 40% Remote Gambling Duty regime, which Entain is weighing as it reviews how it supports its largest domestic brands. The next CMO inherits a marketing structure that changed substantially under Emery, including established agency relationships and major brand investment, while the group continues to assess costs and priorities across the business. Entain has confirmed the search is underway but has not said when it expects to name a successor.
Source: Entain
