Meet Entain senior woman in leadership, COO Dafne Guisard

Many talented women use their experience and perspectives to help forge Entain's success.

Meet Entain's Chief Operations Officer (COO), Dafne Guisard.

"From proud beginnings in Brazil to leading business transformation at some of the most recognisable brands around the world, Dafne’s journey to Entain is nothing short of inspirational," says Entain.

Dafne drives growth, innovation, and operational excellence at Entain, leading global strategic planning, the customer service organisation, and M&A integration. An asset to Entain, Dafne brings to her role a wealth of experience in driving strategic growth and delivering transformation on a global scale. Dafne is helping place Entain at the leading edge of innovation, as well as strengthening the executive management team during a period of revenue growth and key market expansion.

"Known for her talent in navigating complex strategies and driving growth, Dafne Guisard has established herself as a force in global business strategy and transformation – moving through some of the world’s largest corporations before ultimately landing her current position as Chief Operations Officer at Entain," says Gambling Insider.

Here, Dafne discusses her life, passions, and career with Entain.

Pursuing her engineering dream

Dafne grew up in Brazil when her mother, a single mum of three, decided to move to Miami.

"It completely changed the lives of everybody. With the family growing up there, it was very difficult for us as immigrants in a country to have access to education. So I made the decision to go to college in Brazil," explains Dafne.

 “I studied really hard and I got to pursue my dream of becoming a computer engineering. I’m very much a geek and a nerd at heart. By studying at this university, I was one of the few females to actually ever enter that institution, and that was when my life completely changed," adds Dafne.

Working at a tech-driven company

Dafne chose to continue her career at Entain because the company has everything she really loves.

"It was the combination of being in a growing industry in entertainment; being a technology-driven company, a space that is a passion of mine; and having the ability to build products that people touch and interact with. It was a fantastic combination of all three things, and it’s not easy to find elsewhere," comments Dafne.

Growing up watching soccer

Dafne's favourite sport to watch is soccer.

"Being a Brazilian person, there is no way that soccer is not my favourite sport, something that I grew up with. I would see it on the streets every single day and it’s something that really makes my heart beat," says Dafne.

Dafne's favorite sporting memory took place at an important soccer game in Brazil.

“It was 1994. My family was still down in Brazil, and it was the World Cup Finals. The moment that Baggio lost that penalty kick. I screamed at the top of my lungs. I remember my mother, she had this old Beetle car, but she put all three kids in the back seat. We pulled the windows down and she was like, ‘Let’s go to the city center and party with everybody,'" explains Dafne.

Enjoying the science of iGaming

When asked what she likes about iGaming, Dafne says: “I am a player, but a little bit of a different player. My experience is not a traditional experience of a player just playing games. I like the behind-the-scenes, the science behind iGaming programming and really thinking through all the possibilities that we can have.”

Working in a welcoming company

Dafne also shares her positive impression of Entain.

“It is fascinating how candid, how transparent, and how welcoming everybody here is. It is not everyday that we find people that really want to change the game and are also open to share their ideas with you and frankly are genuinely interested in building a connection. I’m really enjoying it. I’ve loved meeting everybody so far, and our partners, and I look forward to our journey ahead," adds Dafne.

Forging a successful leadership career

Dafne joined Entain from The Kraft Heinz Company, where, as Chief Strategy, Transformation & Digital Officer, she spearheaded the global ten-year growth strategy, developed new operational models, and drove digital transformation across all areas of the company.

Prior to her time at Kraft Heinz, Dafne spent nine years at Anheuser-Busch InBev in various leadership positions, driving long-term company goals, creating a focused portfolio strategy, elevating brand building, and delivering an ambitious innovation agenda. Her initiatives led to the highest innovation share in the industry. Before AB InBev, Dafne spent eight years in management consulting and equities, and co-founded a machine learning tech start-up.

Dafne is a passionate advocate for the transformative power of technology. Her work in AI at Kraft Heinz placed her among AdAge's Top 13 AI Marketing Leaders to Watch, and the agile innovation under her leadership was recognised as one of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2023.

Dafne holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering from the Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.