Author: Charles Shephardson

Altenar has appointed Mitchell Harrison as its new sales director, bolstering the company’s commercial leadership as it pursues aggressive growth across two major global markets. Harrison arrives with more than 20 years of experience in sales and business development, including eight years spent specifically within iGaming and sports betting. His career has spanned some of the industry’s most recognisable names, including SBTech, DraftKings, Genius Sports and GiG, covering sportsbook technology, supplier partnerships and international business development. The appointment signals Altenar’s intent to push deeper into Tier-1 regulated markets across Europe and North America, where competition among sportsbook technology providers continues…

Entain has called on the UK government to immediately close a loophole allowing unlicensed gambling operators to sponsor Premier League football clubs. The company’s push comes in response to a Department for Culture, Media and Sport consultation on banning all unlicensed gambling sponsorship in British sport. That government initiative was launched in February, targeting a long-running practice of UK football clubs signing deals with little-known Asian-facing operators. Many of these operators have opaque ownership and leadership structures, raising serious concerns about consumer protection and regulatory oversight. Entain’s own research now shows that 11 of 20 Premier League clubs have at…

Sportsbooks are projected to handle nearly 80% of all NFL wagering this season, even as prediction markets continue their rapid rise across the United States. Research and advisory firm EKG estimates around $31.7bn will be wagered on the NFL through sportsbooks during the current season, compared to $8.4bn through prediction markets. EKG described the prediction market figure as “a meaningful second channel” for NFL wagering but noted it remains “small on a relative scale” given the sector’s relatively recent emergence. The combined figures represent a 79%-21% split in favour of traditional sportsbooks, despite what EKG characterised as “soaring valuations” surrounding…

GamCare, the UK charity dedicated to tackling gambling-related harm, has raised urgent concerns about the rapid spread of gambling-like mechanics across non-gambling industries. The organisation is asking whether existing harm prevention frameworks are equipped to handle this growing trend before it causes widespread damage to vulnerable people. The concerns were published as part of GamCare’s inaugural edition of Signals Insight, a new analytical publication examining emerging patterns in gambling-related harm. For this first edition, GamCare analysed a total of 2,536 anonymised webchat transcripts gathered through the National Gambling Helpline. The transcripts, spread across 20 separate data points, provided the charity…

Spain’s autonomous communities are pushing back against what they see as an overreach by the national gambling regulator, creating a significant rift in the country’s gambling governance structure. The dispute was brought into public focus at the Expo Congress of Madrid, where regional governments outlined their grievances with the Directorate-General for the Regulation of Gambling, known as the DGOJ. At the heart of the conflict is the concern that the DGOJ is encroaching on licensing powers and rule applications that regional administrations believe fall within their own jurisdiction. The challenge is being led by Ramón Cubián, Madrid’s Director-General for Land…

Ireland’s betting industry is mounting strong opposition to proposals that the government raise its 2% betting duty as part of sweeping gambling reforms. The current 2% duty is applied to customer stakes but is paid by operators rather than bettors, making it a significant cost burden on the industry. Reports in the Racing Post and other Irish outlets suggest the government is considering increasing that rate ahead of the October 6 budget, alarming bookmakers across the country. Flutter Entertainment has already taken direct action, writing privately to Finance Minister Simon Harris last month urging him not to raise the tax…

ComeOn Group has appointed three new senior figures and confirmed an internal promotion as it prepares for its next phase of growth. The Malta-headquartered operator has brought in Alex Woodhams as Chief Product Officer, Sara Nunes as General Manager for Finland, and Kristoffer Ottosson as Director of IT Operations. Additionally, Sherwin Jarvand has been promoted from his previous position of Chief Growth Officer to the role of Chief Operating Officer. Woodhams joined the company’s London office earlier this week, bringing substantial industry experience accumulated over five years as CPO at Spotlight Sports Group, which owns Racing Post. His background also…

Bally’s Intralot’s planned all-share acquisition of evoke plc has cleared a major hurdle after shareholders on both sides of the deal voted in favour. Bally’s Intralot shareholders approved a board authorisation to increase the company’s share capital by up to €135 million through the issue of up to 450 million new shares. The vote took place at an Extraordinary General Meeting held on September 18, 2026, with results published the same day under Greek corporate disclosure law. A total of 102 shareholders attended the meeting, representing 1,361,379,872 common registered shares out of a total 1,867,802,694, equating to 72.89% of the…

The Gambling Commission’s Annual Report has revealed a dramatic contraction in British betting exchange activity, even as prediction markets surge in popularity across the United States. Gross gambling yield on UK betting exchanges has almost halved since the 2016/17 financial year, when the figure stood at £171.53 million. This decline has occurred despite the continued presence of major operators including the Betfair Exchange and Spreadex, as well as recent revamps at platforms such as Matchbook and Smarkets. Commission data shows that exchange GGY has contracted by 46% over the period, a steeper fall than the 26.8% decline recorded by high…

Entain has renewed its push for the UK government to immediately ban unlicensed gambling operators from sponsoring British sport. The Ladbrokes Coral owner has reiterated demands it first made during the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s consultation on the issue, this time backed by fresh analysis. Entain’s new submission draws on deeper research into the growing prevalence of black market bookmakers operating within the Premier League’s commercial ecosystem. Earlier this month, Entain wrote directly to ten Premier League clubs it identified as having affiliations with unregulated gambling companies. Shortly after that move, Sunderland announced a partnership with Shuffle,…