6 of the Best – Unibet’s Anthony Cousins

BetITBest‘s Nico Jansen is interested in discovering the best in people. This week it’s Anthony Cousins. 

Anthony Cousins has worked for Unibet for almost 15 years, and has seen first hand the company transform itself from a handful of staff into a huge business. Anthony started as an odds compiler in July 2001, and has been Head of Sportsbook (Commercial Relations) since October 2009.

Best Holiday

Getting engaged in Jamaica and experiencing the Blue Lagoon in Iceland were both holiday highlights. My last two holidays to Greece and Kos were pretty amazing. It is hard to go wrong with an all-inclusive bar, 35 degree sunshine and a private pool!

Best Album

Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp A Butterfly” and “good kid, m.A.A.d city” are incredible pieces of music and two of the best albums of the last decade, he is on another level to most artists right now. My Spotify account would tell you my favourite album is Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream”, but this is a lie, it is simply as my young daughter uses my account. Honest!

Best Film

I studied film at University and am a self-confessed film buff or film snob depending on how you want to view it! “Goodfellas”, “Fight Club” and Chan-wook Park’s version of “Old Boy” are three of my favourites, although I know nearly every word to “Back To The Future”. And “Frozen” (again not necessarily by choice!).

Best Sporting Experience

Being behind the goal at Euro ’96 at Wembley when Gazza scored versus Scotland and then performed the infamous dentist chair just metres away was pretty special. Wimbledon in the sun (or rain!) and with Pimms is one of my yearly highlights but being at the Alexandra Palace for the PDC Darts World Championships when defending champion John Part lost on opening night to Bill Davis was one of the most atmospheric sporting events I’ve experienced.

Best Book

I have just finished Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” which took almost 2 years to complete so I don’t get through too many books! Bret Easton Ellis’s “American Psycho” is one of my favourites, but I also couldn’t put down Ben Mezrich’s “Bringing Down The House” and Luke Reinehart’s “The Dice Man”, both of which are great read’s which have themes of odds and chance.

Best Bet

Any that win! A long time ago when I was at University, before the birth of internet betting, myself and a friend went to a betting shop to place a few bets one Saturday afternoon. It was in the days when you either had to pay 9% tax on top of the bet stake or defer the tax, meaning 9% would be taken out of the winnings.

When my inexperienced betting friend went to the cashier to place his bets she asked “Do you want to pay tax on that” meaning do you want to pay the 90p tax on your £10 stake. He innocently replied  “No, I don’t pay tax, I’m a student!”.

After the cashiers picked themselves off the floor laughing, we placed 3 horse racing bets all that romped home and thankfully had the last laugh. The stakes were small and the winnings not huge but as students it paid for a big night out and gave us a memorable story for the night!