Zsófia Bánhegyi - Winner of the European Marketer of the Year 2025
Zsófia Bánhegyi crowned European Marketer of the Year 2025 during the MII Award Ceremony in Dublin.
Zsófia Bánhegyi crowned European Marketer of the Year 2025 during the MII Award Ceremony in Dublin.
Zsófia Bánhegyi Zsófia Bánhegyi is a leading figure in Hungary’s marketing landscape. With 24 years of experience in marketing and communications at top multinational and Hungarian corporations, she has been a senior executive for 15 years. Currently, she serves as Chief Commercial Officer at Szerencsejáték Zrt., overseeing the country’s largest retail network and a customer base of five million.
Among the Top 50 most successful marketing leaders, Zsófia was also awarded the Hungarian CMO of the Year title this year, based on the votes of a 22-member jury. Zsófia is the first person in Hungary to receive this recognition as the marketing leader of two different large corporations from different sectors, Deutche Telekom affiliate, Magyar Telekom, and Szerencsejáték Zrt., the Hungarian National Lottery Company.
Recognizable Contribution in the Marketing Field
As the Vice President of the Hungarian Marketing Association, Zsófia took the initiative and leadership to create the first Marketing Trendbook 2023/2024 publication in Hungary, available for free download. Its aim is to provide insights into the workings of the local industry, global marketing trends, and to highlight the economic added value of marketing. This 300-page publication and website is a milestone in which 150 marketing professionals contributed with their writings pro bono, over nearly 10 months.
Champion of Leadership in Business
Recognized as one of the “Brand Heavies” by SBC Magazine, Zsófia is a driving force in the leadership of the business industry. One of her major achievements is establishing the T-Systems Hungary brand, an affiliate of Deutsche Telekom, in 2012. In addition to creating the most valuable Hungarian ICT company brand, by introducing B2B key tools such as the T-Systems Symposium, a regional conference with around 2,000 participants. Recognized by Gartner as the most significant ICT conference in the CEE region.
Another significant business contribution is the complete modernization of the national lottery company, Szerencsejáték Zrt. The company's rebrand strategy led to 98% brand awareness, making use of a modern, player-insight driven marketing strategy instead of the monopolistic, old-fashioned approach. Zsófia and her team launched the Optimus Program, a four-year marketing technology development initiative aimed at increasing the identified player base through personalized, data-driven services and the use of predictive AI models. The program was recognized at the European Lotteries’ Innovation Competition in 2024.
Building Awareness and Fomenting Inclusion
Zsófia has been deeply engaged with issues related to people with disabilities for more than 15 years. She has the opportunity to highlight this topic on an international level within the European Lotteries Association, in which she is involved, to create a positive social impact in their work and brand-building efforts.
At her current workplace, she has the opportunity to drive initiatives that positively impact the Hungarian disabled community affected by integration problems. A reality she experiences at her workplace, in which every fifth of her front office colleagues (almost 200) have a disability. Zsófia and her team’s impact on a broader society approach is:
As a result of a focused approach, a representative survey conducted in 2022 revealed that 43% of the Hungarian population considers the National Lottery company to be the leading corporation doing the most for people with disabilities.
An Influential and Inspirational Leader
Zsófia is an inspirational leader who fosters responsible approaches within the marketing industry. Specifically, in the gambling industry, she feels a prioritization must be implemented where strict responsible gambling guidelines are a top subject over profit. This year, she broke traditional views and introduced Hungary’s strictest 40-page advertising ethics code in marketing.
Furthermore, Szerencsejáték Zrt is the only company that voluntarily subjects all its materials to pre-approval and verification by a self-regulatory advertising body. As a result of a strategic partnership to ensure the organization’s compliance code was ensured.
Zsófia’s journey exemplifies strategic business acumen and ethical leadership, continuing to shape the marketing landscape, drive business success, and foster a more inclusive and equal society.