Author: Andrew Fletcher

A striking disparity in problem gambling rates sits at the heart of new UK Gambling Commission research into the country’s illegal betting market. Of 179 individuals whose transactions with suspected unlicensed operators were identified, 146 had assessable Problem Gambling Severity Index scores. Fully 45% of those scored eight or higher on the PGSI, a threshold that indicates problem gambling, compared to just 6% among consumers using licensed operators in the same dataset. The regulator was careful to note the data is not nationally representative and cannot provide a definitive picture of the scale or shape of illegal gambling in Britain.…

A sharp drop in earnings overshadowed MGM Resorts International’s third-quarter trading, even as its online and China operations pushed against the tide. Consolidated adjusted EBITDA slumped 20% to $403m for the three months ending 30 September, marking one of the group’s more difficult quarterly earnings pictures in recent memory. Total revenue came in at $4.21bn, a 1% year-on-year decline from the $4.25bn recorded during the same period in 2025, with the shortfall driven largely by weakness across US land-based properties. Lower costs did provide some cushion, narrowing the group’s net loss to $17m and preventing the earnings decline from feeding…

Online slot games have come a long way from the traditional fruit machines found in pubs and amusement arcades. What began as a simple format built around spinning reels and familiar symbols has developed into a varied digital gaming category, featuring themed graphics, interactive bonus rounds and different ways to form winning combinations. Today, players can explore everything from traditional three-reel formats to feature-rich video slots. Platforms offering online slots like BetWright provide an example of how casino gaming has moved into the digital space, bringing different game styles together in one place. But while the presentation and mechanics have…

For decades, casino games asked players to press a button and wait. A new game from Joy Studios and Cloudbet asks them to walk into a haunted house instead. The first thing you notice in Fearshot: Phantom Mansion is that nothing is spinning. There are no reels and no ball dropping through pegs. There is a grand foyer, dimly lit, and the ghost of a drowned servant girl drifting near the stairs. You raise the Phantom Blaster, pick a target and pull the trigger. Every ghost carries a number. Hit it, and that number is your multiplier. Miss, and your…

Evolution’s hopes of returning to Brazil dimmed further after President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva secured re-election on 25 October with 51.76% of valid votes. Lula defeated Flávio Bolsonaro in the presidential run-off and has publicly pledged to maintain the online gambling ban his administration introduced last month. The ban stems from Provisional Measure MP 1.394/2026, which Lula signed on 25 September, prohibiting both online sports betting and casino operations across the country. Evolution had already shuttered its live casino studio in Brazil by that point, with the closure taking effect on 5 October, just days after the measure came…

During the busiest periods of the football calendar, Fabrizio Romano publishes more than 100 posts a day across X, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube combined. That relentless output is just one of the topics he unpacks in a Lisbon-set conversation for the Season 5 premiere of Bet It Drives, the iGaming industry’s rolling talk show. The episode pairs Romano with Yevhen Krazhan, Chief Strategy Officer at GR8_TECH and the show’s host, for a candid ride through the Portuguese capital. Despite fielding repeated approaches to monetise his breaking transfer reports, Romano has held firm on one principle that sets him apart from…

Buenos Aires Province is caught between mounting pressure to restrict online gambling and the financial consequences that a sweeping ban could bring. Legal expert Tomás García Botta, a partner at Argentine firm MF Estudio Abogados, raised the contradiction plainly, asking: “At the provincial level, these types of measures could indeed be introduced, and they could pass. But what sense does that make in a context where the province needs tax revenue? I find it difficult to understand.” The debate intensified after Brazil moved to ban regulated online betting last month, triggering calls for comparable action across the border in Argentina.…

More than 3,500 workers lost their jobs after Brazil’s government moved to dismantle one of the world’s most anticipated newly regulated gambling markets. A further 4,167 employees were placed on collective leave, according to industry association ANJL, as the provisional measure signed on 25 September took hold across the country. The measure bans the operation, offering, intermediation, and advertising of fixed-odds betting in Brazil, covering both sports wagering and online casino products. What makes the reversal particularly striking is that President Lula himself sanctioned the underlying framework, Law 14,790, back in December 2023, before approving the so-called Bets Law in…

The Netherlands Gambling Authority (Ksa) has fined EOD Code SRL €37 million, the biggest penalty it has ever imposed for illegal gambling. The regulator announced the decision on 22 October. According to the Ksa, the company ran twelve online casino brands that targeted Dutch players without holding a licence. The investigation began with the Instantcasino site and widened to take in eleven more, including Skyhills, Slotmonster, Betiro, Betblast, Fastslots, Golden Panda and Samba Slots. The regulator also pointed out that EOD Code told visitors it was registered and regulated in Costa Rica, an authorisation that carries no weight in the…

DELULU Gaming is set to make a major impression at SiGMA World, arriving at Fiera Roma from 2 to 5 November 2026 with an ambitious and expansive presence. The studio will occupy Stand #H6-6055, with its C-level and commercial team on-site throughout the entirety of the event. Rome represents another significant industry milestone for DELULU, following the studio’s first own booth appearance at SBC Summit Lisbon in September. Since entering the market in July 2026, the studio has grown at a rapid pace, with all seven of its games now available through 500 operators worldwide. The number of unique players…