Austria – Casinos Austria’s General Director Bettina Glatz-Kremsner to step down

Casinos Austria will have a year to find a new General Director. Following the announcement that present General Director Bettina Glatz-Kremsner will not be renewing her contract, which expires in April 2022, 

“After deep evaluation, Ms. Glatz-Kremsner told the Supervisory Board that she would not be available for contract renewal in the coming year. It was due to personal reasons,” the Austrian operator said. The Supervisory Board has a whole year to settle the succession because of the early details. Glatz-Kremsner would, of course, go to great lengths to ensure a smooth transition for the good of the company.”

“In the coming year, the group of companies will lose Bettina Glatz-Kremsner, the leader of the last few years and decades,” said Chairman of the Supervisory Board Wolfgang Hesoun. That is, of course, a terrible loss for the group. Thank you so much for Bettina Glatz- Kremsner’s excellent performance at the top of the group and for her honesty about her plans. Glatz-Kremsner takes this responsible action to ensure that your replacement is optimal and for the good of the company.”

“For many years as a board member of Casinos Austria, Bettina Glatz-Kremsner has formed the business with tireless determination, great expertise, and a lot of enthusiasm for the cause. As a BAG board member, I have always seen her as a knowledgeable and empathetic contact person. She had foreseen the future and is pushing the realignment of Casinos Austria AG,” said BAG board member Thomas Schmid.

“The Supervisory Board of Casinos Austria has taken notice of the fact that Bettina Glatz-Kremsner is not ready for a contract extension,” said Robert Chvatal, CEO of the SAZKA Group and Vice President of the Supervisory Board of Casinos Austria. On behalf of the Sazka Group, the company’s majority shareholder, I would like to thank Bettina for her longstanding commitment. And especially her top management position during difficult times.

Robert added, “Bettina and I have known each other since I lived in Austria, even before our professional paths crossed. I have always appreciated her loyalty to the business she has worked for, for the past 30 years. And also her constant efforts to fulfill the needs of Engage staff, stakeholders, and customers. We thank Bettina for providing us with this early notice. As a result, the supervisory board can be active in its search for a successor with extensive business experience, so that he or she can assume management responsibilities as soon as possible during these tough times. We put a high emphasis on the skilled handover process.”

At its Supervisory Board meeting, the operator stated that the pandemic left “heavy marks” on the financial statements of both Casinos Austria and Austrian Lotteries Group in the previous fiscal year. Due to Corona, all 12 domestic casinos and 21 WINWIN sites were closed for 135 days. And also 26 foreign companies have had multiple closed days. Consolidated gross gaming revenue (group turnover) was €1.134 billion, down from €1.359 billion the previous year. The consolidated figure was EUR 0.95m, down from €112m in 2019.

Additional pressures included restructuring costs of approximately €55 million incurred during the ReFIT restructuring program, as well as impairments of about €21 million.

According to the firm, “the black zero at the community level was saved by one-time impact.” On the one hand, the number of multiple jackpots in lotteries in the “6 out of 45” lottery increased last year. However, it has been possible to successfully guide casino visitors to the online gaming platform’s digital offer win2day.at. With €594 million in taxes and contributions in Austria, companies’ association remains one of the country’s biggest taxpayers.

Mr. Chvatal went on to say, “The previous fiscal year was the most difficult in the company’s entire history.” It was extremely difficult for the entire group of companies to remain on track economically due to the challenging structure conditions. Besides, we went through a large-scale restructuring program that impacted all organization areas. It set the foundations for the group’s future success.

He added, “Consequently, the previous year was a remarkable show of power, showing great unity on all levels. The founders, the supervisory board, management, employee representatives, and all employees have worked together to meet these challenges. I’d like to thank you very much for this, and I’m very proud that we were able to achieve it.”