Author: Charles Shephardson

The UK government’s plans to give councils greater control over gambling premises have reignited fierce debate about the future of betting shops on the high street. Prime Minister Andy Burnham appeared to shift the focus of the plans by including betting shops in a video highlighting businesses he suggested local communities had not asked for. Writing in The Spectator, author Rupert Hawksley questioned why the government was targeting an industry already experiencing dramatic decline across the UK. There were 8,882 betting shops in the UK in 2015, falling to 5,872 by 2025, with Betfred recently announcing plans to close 132…

The UK Gambling Commission has found that consumers participating in social media lotteries are more focused on whether a draw looks genuine than whether it is legally operated. The regulator’s intelligence team recorded an increase in reports of suspected illegal lotteries and raffles on TikTok during 2025 compared with the previous year. In response, the Commission commissioned Yonder Consulting to examine why consumers take part in these draws, how they encounter them, and how operators run them. Key findings revealed that lower ticket prices, informal presentation and familiar payment methods could reduce consumers’ perception of risk when engaging with these…

CreedRoomz has announced the launch of what it describes as the first-ever culturally localized live casino game built specifically for the African region. The iGaming innovator says the new title is engineered to meet the demands of a rapidly expanding African market with genuine, localised gameplay experiences. At the heart of the game is a fully native Kiswahili user interface, covering all menus, buttons, betting layouts, and in-game instructions for seamless navigation. The title is hosted live by native Swahili-speaking dealers who communicate and interact with players entirely in Kiswahili throughout each session. This combination of language authenticity and live…

Rank Group has closed nine Mecca Bingo venues across financial year 2025/26 as it battles a toughening taxation environment across the United Kingdom. Eight of those closures came in a single wave during June 2026, with the shuttering of Mecca Bingo Scarborough in November 2025 bringing the full-year total to nine. CEO Richard Harris, who took over from John O’Reilly on an interim basis in January before being confirmed as permanent CEO in July, has overseen all eight of the June closures. Harris was direct about the reasoning, stating: “These clubs were either loss-making or not commercially viable, so we…

Bragg Gaming Group has pulled its 2026 financial guidance following a second-quarter revenue decline of 12% compared to the same period last year. Revenue for the three months ended 30 June came in at €22.9m, down from €26.1m recorded during the equivalent quarter in 2025. The shortfall was driven primarily by weaker platform revenue in the Netherlands and flat performance in Brazil throughout the period. Dutch revenue fell 14% as customers completed migrations away from legacy platform contracts, reducing income that Bragg had previously relied upon. Some Brazilian operators also moved towards direct integrations with suppliers during the quarter, further…

Kenneth Dart, the reclusive billionaire heir to the Solo Cup fortune, has formally tabled a mandatory cash offer to take Evolution private. Dart’s investment vehicle Candle Lake issued the offer on 13 August 2026, pricing Evolution shares at SEK695, equivalent to €63.03 per share. That figure represents Evolution’s closing price from 24 July and sits notably below the supplier’s current trading level of SEK733.30 per share. The mandatory offer follows Dart’s shareholding in the live casino giant crossing the critical 30% threshold last month, triggering obligations under Swedish listing law. Candle Lake has been clear, however, that it has no…

Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) is reportedly close to acquiring evoke’s share of B2C sports betting brand 888Africa, according to sources familiar with the matter. The Nasdaq-listed platform supplier is understood to be targeting evoke’s 80% shareholding in 888Africa, structured as a 20% direct ownership stake with the remainder held as a convertible loan. Evoke is said to be seeking between €20m and €30m for its share in the African venture, as the William Hill owner looks to raise cash ahead of its acquisition by Bally’s Intralot. The remaining 20% of 888Africa is held by the operator’s senior management team, who…

The UK Gambling Commission has issued a formal warning to remote operators after finding that some licensees are still failing to meet existing identity-verification requirements. The regulator revealed that more than a quarter of complaints received by its Contact Centre relate directly to identity verification issues across the industry. Disputes over the verification process are also among the most commonly referred complaints sent to alternative dispute resolution providers, highlighting the scale of the problem. The Commission identified a number of instances where licensees were not collecting sufficient information from customers at the point of registration to satisfy Licence Condition 17,…

The UK Gambling Commission has issued a formal warning to remote operators after finding that some licensees continue to fail existing identity-verification requirements. The regulator revealed that more than a quarter of all complaints received by its Contact Centre relate directly to identity verification issues experienced by customers. Disputes over the verification process are also among the most common complaints referred to alternative dispute resolution providers, underlining the scale of the problem. The Commission identified a number of instances where licensees were failing to collect sufficient customer information at registration to satisfy Licence Condition 17, which governs identity verification. As…

Evoke chief financial officer Sean Wilkins has confirmed the group is deliberately prioritising higher-value players over raw customer volume following a notable decline in active users. The operator reported a 6% year-on-year fall in active customer numbers during the first half of 2026, prompting questions about whether the drop reflected a strategic choice. Wilkins addressed the issue directly during the company’s H1 earnings call, making clear the decline was not simply a consequence of market conditions but an intentional shift in approach. He explained the strategy was focused on “getting significant value from our players”, with Evoke targeting both average…