A preliminary date has been set for the trial of Kenny Alexander, ex-CEO of GVC Holdings, and former associates who stand against charges of fraud, bribery, and perverting the course of justice.

Alexander has been scheduled to appear alongside Lee Feldman, the former Chairman of GVC Holdings, and five other defendants at London’s Southwark Crown Court on 14 February 2028.

As stands the date issued by the Crown Court are provisional, as legal observers expect that convoluted proceedings could see the trial and its judgement last until 2030.

The schedule sets out the first of three trials of former members of GVC leadership and associates, stemming from allegations surrounding Headlong Ltd, a Turkey-facing subsidiary owned by GVC active between 2011-2017.

The trial of Alexander and Feldman is expected to take around four months to complete, and will be followed by an October 2028 trial of Alexander MacAngus, Richard Raubitscheck-Smith, and Raymond Smart.

The third and final trial has been set for 5 March 2029 and will involve Robert Hoskin, who was Chief Governance Officer at the LSE listed from 2020-2023 including during its transition from GVC to Entain.

GVC’s Midnight Run

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) authorised the prosecution of Alexander, Feldman and Richard Cooper, the latter the former CFO of the company, in August 2025, alongside eight other individuals.

As noted above, the charges relate to GVC’s former activity in Turkey, where the group operated Headlong Ltd for six years until it sold the business to Ropso Malta Limited in late 2017. Proceeds from the sale were used to finance the £4bn takeover of Ladbrokes Coral in 2018, with these now being Entain’s two core UK betting brands.

A subsequent HMRC investigation into GVC and Headlong began in 2019. The investigation centred on whether GVC had continued to benefit financially from Headlong’s activity post-acquisition, and whether breaches of Section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010.

This long-running investigation culminated in a settlement with HMRC in December 2023. Entain paid the tax office £585m, consisting of a financial penalty and disgorgement of profits, while the company also paid £10m towards HMRC and CPS costs and donated £20m to charity.

Potential instances of misconduct have also been acknowledged by the company’s leadership under the Entain era.

Barry Gibson, who took over as Chair following Feldman’s departure from the company in 2019 and the rebrand from GVC to Entain in 2020, has previously disclosed that incidents involving former employees and suppliers had occurred, though no individuals or companies have been

The allegations have also carried professional consequences for Alexander and Feldman, who in 2023 were denied regulatory approval for an investment proposal to become active shareholders in 888 Holdings, as plan to transform the operator following its acquisition of William Hill.

Shadows on Entain

As the defendants involved in the case are no longer employed by or otherwise involved with Entain, the trial is unlikely to lead to any serious regulatory repercussions for the company – this has also been offset by the aforementioned HMRC settlement.

However, the trial could open up old wounds for the company in a PR sense, coming at a particularly sensitive time for the UK betting industry with MPs calling for another regulatory review of the sector and a tax hike likely incoming.

The HMRC settlement back in 2023 dealt a hefty blow to Entain’s finances that year, with the costs associated with it driving up annual losses for the firm to £900m for FY2023 and £450m for 2024. This also came just a year after it paid a then-record penalty of £17.2m to the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).

Shade cast over Entain’s reputation as a result of the trials could be further enlarged by an investigation in Australia. AUSTRAC, the country’s financial regulator, is investigating the company for allegations of serious breaches of money laundering standards.

These factors could all dampen what has otherwise been a positive year for Entain, at least financially. Q3 trading saw group-wide revenue up 6% with improvements in the UK, Italy and the US, among other markets.

Since the HMRC headwinds, Entain underscores that its revenues are 100% generated in regulated gambling markets, with leadership prioritising long-term sustainable growth.