Author: Andrew Fletcher

SBC Summit will run from 29 September to 1 October 2026, bringing together 40,000 industry professionals at the Feira Internacional de Lisboa and MEO Arena. The three-day event will combine networking, exhibition, and an expanded education programme designed to give delegates meaningful, practical takeaways. This year’s Education+ offering introduces specialist Masterclasses as part of an optional upgrade available to both SBC Summit and Affiliate Leaders Summit attendees. Three expert-led Masterclasses will cover Sportsbook Trading, Electronic Gaming, and Responsible Gaming Marketing, targeting professionals who want operational depth. These sessions are structured to move delegates beyond high-level discussion and into practical, skills-focused…

BoaBet, a casino-first operator, achieved a 150% rake increase by adding a managed poker vertical without hiring a single additional employee. The story was revealed in a conversation involving Dmitry Starostenkov, CEO of EvenBet Gaming, Gasper Janezic, CEO of WePlay Network, and Antonio La Vigna, Head of Poker at BoaBet. La Vigna admitted he was the biggest internal skeptic when the idea of launching a poker product was first raised at BoaBet. His team had deep expertise in slots, sports betting, and casino retention, but poker felt, in his own words, like a completely different universe. La Vigna’s central concern…

ICONIC21 has launched HiLo, a new card title built around one of the oldest and most familiar decisions in gambling history. The iGaming content provider has stripped the concept back to its purest form, asking players a single question at every step of each round. Higher or lower is the only call required, and crucially, the probability and multiplier for each option are displayed upfront before any choice is made. A correct prediction multiplies the player’s stake on the first step, with the potential win amount then multiplied across every subsequent decision that follows. Players are never locked into continuing,…

IG Group has agreed to acquire prediction markets and daily fantasy sports operator Underdog in a deal valued at $1.1bn, equivalent to approximately £810m. The acquisition represents a major strategic pivot for the London-listed fintech firm, broadening its focus well beyond traditional leveraged trading and investing into a far wider range of markets. Underdog’s platform covers predictions spanning sports, politics, crypto, finance, and cultural events, giving IG Group a broad and diversified foothold in the fast-growing sector. The deal structure includes up to $200m in earnout payments tied to 2026 financial performance, alongside a management incentive plan worth as much…

The first half of the year has closed with operators tallying results from the World Cup, prompting SOFTSWISS to release its comprehensive iGaming Trends 2027 report. The report examines some of Europe’s largest but most complex regulated markets, with the UK and Netherlands drawing particular attention from analysts and operators alike. Across Europe, from the UK and France in the west to the Nordics and Balkan nations, regulators have been busy constructing new frameworks to govern the betting sector. In the UK, Remote Gaming Duty rose from 21% to 40% from April 2026, following the budget announcement made the previous…

GGBET UA and Ukrainian football club FC Polissya have reaffirmed their shared mission to “bring sport closer” to fans across Ukraine. The partnership, which first launched in June 2025, has evolved into a broad creative collaboration spanning exclusive content, fan events, and media activations. The 2026/27 Ukrainian football season kicked off on 2 August, with FC Polissya opening their campaign against Chornomorets Odesa on Sunday afternoon. GGBET UA has built its Ukrainian marketing strategy around the deep community roots that football clubs hold across the country, recognising sport as a powerful cultural touchstone. Beyond FC Polissya, the betting brand also…

Two Premier League clubs are scrambling to find a new main shirt sponsor just three weeks before the 2026/27 season gets underway. Sunderland AFC and Nottingham Forest FC both previously held front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship deals, but neither has secured a replacement as the new ban comes into effect. The front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship ban has been introduced for the 2026/27 Premier League season, forcing clubs to seek commercial partners from outside the gambling industry. W88, an operator without a UK licence, had its logo on the front of Sunderland’s shirts throughout the 2025/26 campaign, giving the club significant exposure in that…

Betfred is set to close more than 132 betting shops across the UK, putting up to 600 jobs at risk later this year. The closures represent approximately 10% of the company’s retail estate, which currently spans over 1,200 shops nationwide. Chief Executive Officer Joanne Whittaker has directly attributed the decision to a combination of difficult fiscal and regulatory pressures currently facing the industry. Whittaker said the decision to close the shops was taken with “deep regret,” acknowledging the significant human cost tied to the announcement. Remote Gaming Duty rose sharply from 21% to 40% from 1 April 2026, applying to…

Waterhouse VC, the gaming and wagering-focused venture capital fund run by Australian bookmaking figure Tom Waterhouse, has published its July 2026 newsletter. The fund invests globally in publicly listed and private companies across the wagering and gaming ecosystem and is available to wholesale investors only. Since its inception in August 2019, Waterhouse VC has achieved a net total return of +2942%, equivalent to 65% per annum annualised, as at 30 June 2026, assuming reinvestment of all distributions. This month’s newsletter focuses specifically on the impact prediction markets are having on the underlying economics of sports betting. The World Cup provided…

Wetherspoons has fired back at the Financial Times after a provocative analysis suggested its gambling machines may rival food sales in profitability. The FT’s calculations focused on the pub giant’s gaming machines, which represented just 3.4% of group revenue in 2025 but carry potentially higher margins due to leasing arrangements. Wetherspoons issued an unusually detailed rebuttal, accusing the newspaper of “voodoo economics” and pointing out that food sales remain more than 10 times larger than machine revenues. The company also noted that gaming machine revenue as a share of total sales has actually fallen dramatically since its original stock market…