Lord Jon Mendelsohn will be stepping down as Chair and Non-Executive Director of evoke’s board of directors, effective immediately.
Mendelsohn has been part of the operator’s board since September 2020, before becoming interim Executive Chair between January 2023 and October 2023.
Commenting on his departure, Mendelsohn said: “It has been a privilege to serve as the Chair of evoke. It has been a fantastic experience from shepherding the acquisition of William Hill International through to my tenure as interim Executive Chair and, more recently, working closely with the board and executive team to develop and articulate evoke’s long-term growth strategy.
“Having overseen the transformation of the business into one of the world’s leading betting and gaming companies, now is the right time to hand over to Mark to steward evoke through its next important phase of growth and stability.
“I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved at the company over the past five years and would like to thank my fellow board members, the executive team, and the wider organisation for their utmost and unwavering commitment.”
Per Widerström, Chief Executive Officer of evoke, added: “I would like to thank Jon for his exceptional leadership of the board and for his support during my transition into the business. He has helped to guide the company through a period of significant growth and transformation and his insight and collaboration will be missed.”
evoke’s board changes come as the operator prepares to report a trading update for the third quarter of 2025, scheduled to be released on 28 October.
However, evoke could be subject to financial burdens in the near future, as the operator recently warned that it could close up to 200 William Hill betting shops, with around 1,500 jobs at risk.
Board changes
Replacing Mendelsohn as Non-Executive Chair with immediate effect will be Mark Summerfield, who has been part of the board since September 2019, serving as a Non-Executive Director, Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee and Gaming Compliance Committee, as well as an ESG Committee member.
Summerfield will step down from his Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee role, with Limor Ganot replacing him on an interim basis.
Anne de Kerckhove, who has been part of evoke’s board since November 2017, will become permanent Deputy Chair of the board with immediate effect, but will continue to serve as a Senior Independent Director, in addition to Chair of the Nominations Committee and ESG Committee, as well as serving on the Remuneration Committee.
Widerström noted: “I am looking forward to working with Mark and Anne in their new roles. Mark has such strong and deep institutional knowledge of the company, the industry and our strategic priorities, and is ideally positioned to lead the board and the company through the next period of growth and development.”
Summerfield added: “It has been one of the highlights of my professional career to have partnered with Jon over the past few years and I will miss his dedication and insight. I look forward to working closely with my fellow board members, including Anne as Deputy Chair, and the executive team to ensure the successful delivery of our strategy and create significant shareholder value.”
