Category Archives: Betting

OPAP offloads Betano stake to Allwyn investment vehicle

OPAP SA has notified investors that it has divested its ‘minority interest’ in Betano, the Pan-European sportsbook subsidiary of Kaizen Gaming.  Issuing a market filing, the Athens-listed gambling group disclosed that it had sold its 36.75% stake in Betano to Rubidium Holding – a fully owned ‘indirect’ investment vehicle of Allwyn Entertainment. Deal terms will …

OpenBet names Stewart Groumoutis VP to lead Canada commercial drive 

OpenBet has announced the appointment of Stewart Groumoutis as Commercial VP for Canada, expanding the sportsbook technology supplier business’ development resources within North America’s most nascent marketplace.  An expert in Canadian gambling, Groumoutis joins OpenBet’s North American senior management team after formerly serving as Director of eGaming for the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC). During …

888 Q1 revenue declines 18% ahead of William Hill integration

888 Holdings has detailed that both its B2C and B2B operations suffered a substantial decline during first quarter trading, citing a number of factors impacting the FTSE250 group’s commercial performance.    Publishing a trading update for Q1 2022, 888 detailed a year-on-year corporate revenue decline of 18% to $224 million (2021: $273m –  a percentage decline …

Incentive Games secures ‘flagship moment’ with Esports Technologies deal

Incentive Games and Esports Technologies have entered into a commercial agreement, with the former supplying the esports betting provider with free-to-play games.  The software licence and service agreement deal will see Esports Technologies incorporate a customised suite of free-to-play products into its range of brands, including a number of European operators.  Esports markets covered by …

Northern & Shell joins Camelot challenge of National Lottery tender 

Northern & Shell Plc, the publishing group of Richard Desmond, will appeal the UK Gambling Commission’s (UKGC) decision to award the 4th National Lottery operating contract to Allwyn Group.  According to a Financial Times report, Northern & Shell will join ousted incumbent Camelot UK in launching a High Court appeal against the UKGC’s decision to …

SBC Awards 2022 set for Barcelona in September

The SBC Awards are moving to a new location and a new spot in the sports betting and igaming industry calendar, as the 2022 ceremony will take place in the magnificent setting of the Palau Nacional in Barcelona on 22 September. The switch from the customary December date in London will see the Awards staged …

Sarah Gardner: UKGC aware of blurred complexities governing novel product interactions

The emergence of ‘new, novel products’ that have hit the UK’s online gambling market in recent years have presented a unique challenge for both regulators and operators. Speaking to industry stakeholders at last week’s ICE 2022 London expo, UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) Deputy CEO Sarah Gardner outlined ongoing concerns, noting that many of the products …

Richard McGuire to serve as Chairman of new look Sportech 

Sportech Plc has announced that Giles Vardey has decided to end his tenure as Non-Executive Chairman of the London AIM-listed wagering and racing systems supplier.  Last week, Vardey notified Sportech’s board of directors that he would not seek re-election as chairman of the company, a position that he had served since July 2019. Former Sportech …

Racehorse Lotto to pursue Irish expansion with £2m investment

James and Hugh O’Donnell have stated their intention to invest £2 million into the duo’s ‘Racehorse Lotto’ venture in order to expand the business in Ireland, according to The Telegraph.  The brothers – James is the former horse racing breeder for the Queen and Hugh is CEO of Furlong Games and worked as an investment …

Flutter calls on Betfair Cluj recruitment drive to support global IT expansion

Flutter Entertainment has disclosed to Romanian media that it seeks to recruit 500 new software developers and IT engineers to join its Betfair Cluj Napoca tech hub. The FTSE100 betting group has operated its Cluj tech hub since 2015, established by its Betfair business ahead of the subsidiary’s £4 billion merger with Paddy Power – …