Bodog Head Calvin Ayre Retires - 04-23-08 |
April 23 - The gambling world was genuinely surprised yesterday to read a
statement on the official Bodog site that the company's flamboyant and
controversial founder, Calvin Ayre, has decided to resign.
The statement read: "You've likely heard the rumblings and the rumors... and
for once ... it's true... I'm packing it in! Well, who am I kidding. If you're
reading this now you know that for the past few years I've been pretty focused
on jetting around the world to exotic places and filming crazy shit for this
blog. I was really more of a brand ambassador for Bodog the past while anyway -
but it was fun while it lasted."
The Canadian Calvin Ayre became involved in the gambling industry in the
1990's and founded Bodog in 2000. Since then the company has become one of the
hottest names in the world and offers players an experience that combines
gambling and entertainment in some of the top brands in the market.
By 2006, Bodog had become the seventh largest gambling company in the world
and was generating $7 billion in wagers.
When the US government stepped up its war on online gambling, they made it
clear that Calvin Ayre was on their radar screens. As such, Ayre has not set
foot on US soil for several years now in fear of being arrested.
Ayre further surprised the industry by stating that ownership for Bodog had
already been transferred to the Morris Mohawk Gaming Group last year. Although
he had announced then that the company's North American operations had been
handed over to the group, he had made no indication that this involved full
ownership of the company.
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