Author: Charles Shephardson

Italy’s National Olympic Committee has joined forces with Sisal to launch a dedicated lottery draw designed to raise funds directly for Team Italia. The initiative, called “Win for Team Italia,” represents the country’s first lottery draw of its kind, channelling proceeds to the Olympic team and its wider network of sports associations. The launch was announced jointly by CONI President Luciano Buonfiglio and Sisal CEO Roberto Di Fonzo, marking a significant milestone for Italian sport funding. The Vinci Italia draw was activated on 28 September across Sisal’s network of 35,000 retail points and its online platform, giving players nationwide access…

Playtech has welcomed the full publication of the Spectrum Report, arguing the document corroborates several findings from the original Black Cube investigation into rival supplier Evolution. The LSE-listed firm contends that the report, commissioned by Evolution itself, supports concerns raised by Black Cube around the availability of Evolution games in grey and black markets. Playtech also noted the report highlights the regulatory implications of Evolution’s practices and indicates the company does not proactively ensure customer compliance with contract terms. Critically, Spectrum was unable to confirm or refute a number of Black Cube’s findings because Evolution failed to provide information requested…

Regulatory consultancy BetComply has helped boutique games studio Playbook Fusion obtain its Swedish permit as the developer prepares to expand into further regulated markets. The UK-based compliance firm guided Playbook Fusion through the Swedish approval process, with the studio receiving the green light in less than two weeks. Playbook Fusion is the developer behind a real-money football management betting game, a product BetComply describes as requiring a deeper level of regulatory expertise. The complexity of the product and the specific requirements involved in securing market approvals made specialist compliance support particularly important for this jurisdiction. The Swedish permit follows an…

FeedConstruct has secured streaming and data rights for Panama’s two professional football leagues, marking another significant expansion of its sports content portfolio. The SoftConstruct subsidiary will stream both the Liga Panameña de Fútbol, the country’s top division, and the Liga PROM, which serves as Panama’s second tier. Every match across both competitions will be covered under the agreement, with full global exclusivity extended to FeedConstruct’s international network of partners. The company described the combined schedule of the two leagues as providing “a complete domestic framework that guarantees a continuous, high-volume calendar of official fixtures throughout the season.” This latest deal…

DATA.BET has expanded its predictions markets product with a new crypto-focused Up or Down market type, adding live and historical data widgets alongside full API integration. The Cyprus-headquartered sportsbook solutions provider first entered the predictions space in April 2026, with its initial product covering politics, geopolitics, finance, technology, crypto, economy, culture and weather. The new Up or Down market type allows operators to offer crypto markets based on a defined price target set ahead of each betting window. Players can wager on whether a given asset will move above or below that target level across five distinct settlement periods, spanning…

Goodwood has produced arguably the most remarkable result in British horse racing history after the shortest-priced favourite ever seen was dramatically turned over. Najidi Storm, sent off at the extraordinary odds of 1/33, was beaten in a three-horse race by the 10/1 shot Wreck It Ronnie on Tuesday afternoon. The winning horse is part-owned by Manchester City and England footballer Phil Foden, adding a celebrity dimension to an already sensational story. The result eclipses a famous 2023 upset at Ripon, where 1/25 favourite Doom was beaten in a two-horse race by Karmology, which had previously held the record. Najidi Storm…

Five studios behind Stake.com’s exclusive games portfolio have officially spun out as a new B2B iGaming provider called Juice. The new company brings together Twist Gaming, Knucklehead Syndicate, Monstrums, Massive Studios, and The Originals under a single commercial entity targeting operators worldwide. Operators will be able to access the full catalogue of more than 100 online titles through a single remote game server integration, streamlining the onboarding process considerably. Twist Gaming and Massive Studios are already well known for developing popular Stake.com titles such as Drac’s Stacks and Bank Basher, both of which have built substantial player followings. Knucklehead Syndicate…

The global illegal online gambling market generated approximately $50 billion in gross revenue throughout 2025, according to a report from Fincord Intelligence. The findings were highlighted by the Betting and Gaming Council, which used them to call for stronger government action against unlicensed operators worldwide. Fincord estimated that around 5,000 operator structures used more than 15,000 websites and apps to reach consumers during 2025 alone. Unlicensed operators are deploying cryptocurrency, digital marketing and mirror sites to evade enforcement efforts by regulators across multiple jurisdictions. The use of mirror domains, VPN access and browser-based applications allows blocked services to return online…

PhilWeb Corp. and JKS Tech Solutions Inc. have struck a landmark cross-equity investment agreement worth a combined PHP 4.23bn, equivalent to approximately US$67.5m. The deal involves PhilWeb Corp. and its wholly owned subsidiary PhilWeb Capital Corp. subscribing for a significant volume of JKS Tech Solutions shares across two separate agreements. Under the terms of the arrangement, JKS Tech Solutions will also acquire a 4.85% stake in PhilWeb, making this a genuine two-way investment between the two Philippine gaming technology firms. JKS will pay PHP 16.50 per share through a share purchase agreement to secure its holding in PhilWeb, according to…

Underdog Sports has confirmed it will surrender its fantasy sports licences in seven US states, choosing to protect its growing prediction market business instead. Founder and CEO Jeremy Levine announced the decision in a post on X on 5 September, outlining the scale of the withdrawal. The company will pull its ‘Drafts’ product from Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio with immediate effect. Players who have already entered drafts in the affected states will be permitted to continue as normal without disruption to their existing contests. However, Underdog will no longer accept new draft entries, with the…