Emma Floyd named as DCMS Sport and Gambling Director

The UK’s Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has a new Director of Sport and Gambling.

Emma Floyd took to LinkedIn earlier today, 8 June, announcing that she has been selected to take over the role after her predecessor Ben Dean moved to a new Cabinet role in early 2026.

It is unclear at this time what exactly Floyd’s remit as Director of Sport and Gambling will be, though it’s fair to say there are a number of policy and regulatory topics affecting both sides of this job role right now.

SBC News has reached out to DCMS for a comment on the responsibilities of Floyd’s new directorship.

On her appointment, Floyd commented: “I’m really pleased to be joining DCMS today as Director of Sport and Gambling.

“I’m looking forward to getting under the skin of the issues, working with colleagues across DCMS and wider government, and building strong relationships with the organisations and bodies that are central to how the sector operates – and across the sector more broadly to deliver in practice.”

Public records show that Floyd does not have any previous experience working within or with the gambling industry, which could raise some stakeholder eyebrows. Her career primarily revolves around energy, having been a public servant under various capacities since 2003.

Nevertheless, she remained enthusiastic about her new career path, promising to bring a much-needed balance to the UK gambling sector, which has recently been nothing but turbulent to put it mildly.

Floyd continued: “It’s a new sector for me, but one I’m excited to get stuck into. Sport and gambling sit right at the intersection of growth, regulation and public trust – and they matter a lot to people, communities and everyday life across the country. There’s a real opportunity to get that balance right.

“A big thank you to colleagues at DESNZ and across the energy world for the past 10 years – I’ve learned a huge amount from working with you.

“Looking forward to getting going and working with others across the sector.”

May Floyd weather the regulatory storm?

As a newcomer to gambling, Floyd arrives at perhaps the most politically hostile environment that the sector has seen in recent years.

She will undoubtedly be caught in the crossfire between the industry and reform proponents, with both sides currently at each other’s throats over the state of gambling marketing in the UK.

Research done by the University of Sheffield and the University of Bristol on the prominence of gambling marketing has more than once called for more advertising restrictions, which some MPs have happily taken to heart.

On the other hand, licensed operators are fed up with what they perceive as an unfair discrimination against them given how comfortable the black market seems to have nested within the UK, especially in sports.

A recent development saw Entain slam Premier League bosses over the sponsorship some teams currently have with operators that do not have a UK licence, and demanded an immediate stop to this.

The UK government has begun consulting on whether to end such deals across the entirety of British sports, led by DCMS and its newly created Illegal Gambling Taskforce.

Therefore, if she wants to ease the boiling tensions, Floyd will need to think on her feet and adapt fast to this volatile environment.

She can of course rely for help on Gambling Minister Baroness Twycross and her colleagues at the Gambling Commission. But with the Commission also currently in search for a new boss after Andrew Rhodes’ recent departure, patience is needed on both sides of the argument.

However, with the sharp increase in online gambling taxes late last year, and the unpopular affordability checks being rolled out despite a pushback from the industry, just how much patience is left remains to be seen.