Virgin Bet is gearing up to increase its market presence in South Africa as it launches its operations there, with Kathryn Odgers now serving as the general manager of the brand. Odgers, who joined Virgin Bet in July 2025 after significant marketing roles with Sportpesa, Sportingbet, and Greatodds, is set to lead the brand's initiatives in Africa's largest market, following the brand’s introduction by Livescore Group in March this year.
Bringing her marketing expertise to the role, Odgers emphasized the importance of effective marketing in the competitive iGaming sector. "Our business has largely become a marketing business," she stated, underscoring how critical marketing strategies are to the success of an operator. She believes that having a background in marketing is essential for anyone looking to make a significant impact in this field, particularly with a brand as recognized as Virgin Bet.
Odgers acknowledged that while strong marketing efforts have already begun to yield positive results in South Africa, sustaining that momentum will require a quality product. She explained, "At some point, obviously, your product has to be good enough to retain customers… the brand is something that’s going to attract South Africans to us."
Her past experience across various operators has equipped her with not just marketing insights, but also compliance, finance, and customer satisfaction acumen. She aims to blend these skills to drive Virgin Bet's success amid a highly saturated market where established brands have long enjoyed consumer trust.
Odgers reflected on her initial concerns about launching a relatively new brand in South Africa. "I was relatively conservative in our target setting for our first quarter of being operational," she said. However, she has found that South African consumers are open to trying new offerings from trusted brands like Virgin, which makes the venture promising despite the competitive landscape.
Discussing her goals for Virgin Bet over the next year, Odgers highlighted the importance of gaining market share but did not specify targets. "We would love to get to a place where I can fundamentally say we’re in the top percentage of the tier-two operators," she remarked, emphasizing the need for a solid retention strategy as a measure of success. Odgers believes that maintaining a healthy retention rate is crucial to confirming that their product is resonating with customers.
The ongoing World Cup has sparked discussions about marketing budgets in the gaming industry. Odgers expressed caution regarding the approach of dedicating substantial resources solely to short-term events. "I don’t really believe in a four-week tournament defining your whole marketing strategy for that year," she said, advocating for a balanced allocation of marketing resources across the year.
She pointed out that relying too heavily on the World Cup can lead to ad fatigue among consumers, ultimately diminishing the impact of marketing campaigns. To avoid this, she suggested an increase in acquisition spending to align with event-driven opportunities, rather than basing the entire marketing plan around significant tournaments like the World Cup.
