The Saints have invited “early-stage sportstech” to test their unique solutions aimed at innovating football and generating new experiences for sports aficionados. 

Together for the Future of Soccer

Alongside Yolo, the group that introduced next-level innovation to the worlds of gaming, fintech, and blockchain, and Sport Republic, the London-based investment company with a focus on sports and entertainment, the soccer club has launched a four-week virtual program. 

“The Future of Football” program will revolve around sportstech and Web3 developments. The campaign is meant to discover and harness fresh solutions that will help the king of sports grow in the upcoming years. The list of solutions that three parties are looking for with the help of the new program covers a series of disciplines related to loyalty programs, gamification, fan engagement at a worldwide level, and matchday experiences. 

Sportstech startups are welcome to bring their new ideas regarding scouting, recovery, training, and game analytics to the table. Southampton’s director of marketing and partnerships Sarah Batters spoke about the club’s ​commitment to promoting innovation and creating a “positive impact”. She called these goals a central piece of their operations and decision-making process. Batters also expressed excitement about seeing all participating startups bring their own contribution toward the future of the popular sport.

Customized Workshops for Qualifying Participants

All startups that will fully comply with the program’s qualification requirements will be invited to take part in a series of “tailored workshops” organized with the help of the Yolo Group. The group, which is the operating company of the blockchain betting brand Sportsbet.io, Southampton’s main sponsor in the past two years, will help the best startups test their pilot solutions.

At the end of the trials, the grand finale will be held at St. Mary’s stadium. The start-ups will have the opportunity to present their ideas in relation to a commercial partnership with the soccer club and potentially win a share of the £100,000 discretionary prize pool for solution development at the end of the program.

Yolo’s founder Tim Heath described the program as one that has been “designed to push boundaries” and reunite a plethora of solutions from startups located in all parts of the world. Heath called the “Future of Football” an opportunity to create one-of-a-kind approaches and also assess them. In December 2022, Yolo named Joe McCallum as its new director of gaming for Business-to-Consumer.

Sport Republic’s and Southampton’s chairman Henrik Kraft expressed eagerness to be part of the challenge that would help infuse sports tech with innovation. At the end of 2020, Southampton announced it would support RecoverMe, a new mobile app looking to offer discrete support for at-risk gamblers. The app would use cognitive behavioral therapy for treating problem gambling.

Global supplier of gaming technology and solutions International Game Technology (IGT) announced it has signed an agreement with UBetOhio and deployed its PlaySports QuickBet Kiosks at restaurants and bars across Ohio.

Betting Kiosks Just the First Step

Going live with the self-servicing betting kiosks via the agreement with Green Bear Gaming Development, LLC, the business entity behind UBetOhio, is just the first step for IGT as the supplier of betting technology and solutions is planning to deliver its PlaySports Pads in the coming months.

Commenting on the development, president of Sports Betting at IGT, Joe Asher, outlined the agreement as an opportunity for IGT to utilize UBetOhio’s Type C Sports Gaming license which allows it “to offer betting on popular sports,” while providing the technology to empower its partner to offer sports wagering “in societal settings where fans are already watching games on TV.”

Licensed by the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) as a Type C Proprietor and regulated by the Ohio Lottery, UBetOhio is planning to offer full-service sports betting retail kiosks to over 1,000 bars, grocery stores and restaurants statewide.

“IGT’s PlaySports QuickBet Kiosk is our most widely used self-service sports betting technology in the U.S. and will allow UBetOhio to deliver a fun betting experience to players in a compact footprint.”

IGT’s PlaySports QuickBet Kiosk technology features a simple and intuitive user interface, which, together with the comprehensive betting menu, makes it easier for bettors to place wagers on any sporting event.

‘Added Excitement for Patrons’

Andy Westmeyer, chief executive officer and chief operating officer of UBetOhio, was thrilled to see the firm partner with IGT and bring its “award-winning technology and convenient betting solutions to the many sports fans throughout the state.”

“IGT PlaySports is the leading sports betting provider in the U.S., and its experience in delivering world-class technology enables us to offer restaurants and bars added excitement for patrons while they are watching their favorite Ohio sports teams,” Westmeyer concluded.

In the coming months, IGT is planning to bring sports betting directly to the player and further elevate the betting experience via its PlaySports Pad solution, a tablet-based betting device that can be tethered to a bar, tabletop, or another surface.

As the latest state to officially launch sports betting, Ohio is at the center of the betting industry and will remain there for a while, especially after the start was more than encouraging: in the first two days of betting the number of wagers placed surpassed that in New York.

Sports betting media group Better Collective is determined to award key personnel with a new incentive plan which will provide grants in the form of performance share units and/or share options.

Participate in Value Creation

The Long Term Incentive Plan (LTI) approved by the board of directors at Better Collective is aimed at retaining, motivating and rewarding selected key employees at the group, while supporting the creation of sustainable value for Better Collective shareholders.

Designed by the Remuneration Committee, the LTI also seeks to align the interests of key personnel to those of the sports betting media group’s shareholders by providing an opportunity for the employees to participate in the value creation measured against selected metrics and share price growth.

Grants totaling 134,953 performance share units and 239,350 share options will be available to 63 key employees under the LTI in 2023, and while the program will be revolving around a yearly grant, its size and allocation in the following years will be determined solely by the board of directors.

In 2023, the LTI’s total value will range from €2.9 million ($3.06 million) payable at 100% target achievement of the financial goals, to €4.4 million ($4.65 million), in case the group performs exceptionally well and above the targets. Both amounts are calculated based on a constant share price but the grant will be zero if the group does not meet its financial goals.

Expensed as Employee Remuneration Costs

Better Collective outlined that “the grant value of the program will be evenly expensed as an employee remuneration cost during the vesting period,” while after each period, the cost will be subjected to evaluation based on “the forecasted performance on the financial KPIs at that time and the expected retention rate of the employees included in the program.”

The sports betting media group noted that the LTI will not dilute share value for its shareholders as the obligations towards its employees, Better Collective intents to meet “by way of treasury shares acquired in share buy-back programs.”

Employee remuneration plans are not new to the sports betting media and developer of online gaming educational platforms,  determined to go the extra mile in keeping key employees by motivating them to stay with the business.

In October 2021, Better Collective came up with a $12 million incentive plan aimed at retaining management personnel and certain key employees of Action Network with the company following its acquisition by the group earlier in the year by rewarding them based on revenue and EBITDA projections.

The world’s largest online poker room operator, GGPoker, announced an agreement with the Dublin Poker Festival today to become the title sponsor of the live poker event.

Ten Days of Live Poker Action

The announcement of GGPoker’s sponsorship for the Dublin Poker Festival will make the 15^th edition of the poker event the biggest in its history. Scheduled to run from February 16 to February 26, the festival will feature three tournaments with an aggregate guaranteed prize pool of €325,000 ($344,000).

Under the sponsorship agreement, GGPoker will offer online satellites to the festival’s headline tournament, the European Deepstack Poker Championship, a €570 ($604) Buy-in event luring players with its €200, 000 ($212,000) guaranteed.

Head of Marketing in the UK and Ireland at GGPoker Angela Martin was delighted to announce the new partnership with the Dublin Poker Festival and give “all GGPoker players the opportunity to win their seats in some of Ireland’s best-loved poker events.”

“With hundreds of thousands in guaranteed prizes to be won and satellites starting from just €1, Dublin will be the place to be in February, and we want as many GGPoker players there as possible,” Martin added.

The Amateur Championship of Poker, a €300 Buy-in tournament with €100,000 ($106,000) guaranteed, will get the action underway with on February 16 at The Bonnington Hotel, setting the tone for ten days of live poker.

Multiple Ways to Qualify

The festival will also feature dozens of low-stakes side events, cash games, and the Irish Senior Championship for players aged 50 and over with €25,000 ($26,500) guaranteed, besides the festival’s flagship event, the European Deepstack Poker Championship.

Hailing the “fantastic partnership” with GGPoker, Brian Lannon of Dublin Poker Festival outlined the 10-day event as an excellent opportunity for a wider player base to play live poker, looking forward to “building a close partnership with GGPoker” and continuing to grow the poker festival in the future.

Created in 2012 by merging the Amateur Championship of Poker and the European Deepstack Poker Championship, the poker festival spanning over two weekends added the Irish Senior Poker Championship later on and has been continuously growing throughout the years.

The Dublin Poker Festival is set to return to its original dates in February 2023 after its schedule has been disrupted the year before and is eager to welcome poker players from around the world who are willing to experience what it is like to play poker in the capital of Ireland.

Details of the launch emerged Wednesday and see PointsBet studio introduce “Count It,” a new NBA and college basketball-focused original show.

Count It: A New Basketball Show by PointsBet

PointsBet revealed that besides YouTube, Count It will air on all podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and others. The company said that the new original programming will deliver exciting stories from college basketball and the NBA. What’s more, Count It will be airing four times a week and is expected to feature opinions from leading analysts and experts delivering betting picks.

Basketball fans that watch the show can also enjoy interesting interviews with famous guests from the world of basketball. According to PointsBet, Kazeem “Kaz” Famuyide, a famous sports media personality that is a part of MSG Networks will be hosting Count It.

Besides MSG Networks, Kaz has more than a decade of experience as a part of different organizations involved in music and sports entertainment. His professional background includes hosting positions with The Ringer, as well as The Springhill Company. Additionally, Kaz has also held editor-level positions with leading publications such as The Source and Bleacher Report, among others.

Count It complements other original programming from PointsBet studio. Previously, the company has released “Stoppage Time with Ian Joy,” a soccer-focused show, as well as “The Straight Line,” a show that was hosted by the famous ex-NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf.

The Company Is Excited to See Kazeem Famuyide Host the Show

Sharing his excitement, Famuyide said that he is delighted to join PointsBet as the host of its latest original show. “Being able to talk about the sport I’m so passionate about with incredible guests and to do so against the backdrop of sports betting is next to none,” he added. Finally, Famuyide said that he is looking forward to seeing the success of Count It.

“We’re thrilled to kick off 2023 with “Count It” following an incredible year filled with new content and talent additions.“

Liam Roecklein, SVP of content at PointsBet USA

PointsBet USA’s SVP of content, Liam Roecklein, was also excited about the new basketball-focused show. He explained that Count It comes just in time for the new year and complements the success of 2022. Roecklein added that Kaz has unmatched energy and a unique perspective for both the NBA and college basketball. Moreover, he acknowledged that the host of the new show has “unmatched insights into picks of the day.” Last but not least, Roecklein said that the new original show comes at the perfect time and that PointsBet is delighted to see Kaz as its host.

The GGR for the third quarter was €240.83 million ($253.7 million), representing a 31.29% increase compared to the results from the same period in 2022.

The Spanish General Directorate for the Regulation of Gambling (DGOJ) published on its website a report at the end of last year, according to which the Spanish gambling sector registered a gross gaming revenue (GGR) of €240.83 million. The data reveal an improvement in the Spanish gambling sector, given that the GGR was less than 2.5% of turnover in the previous four consecutive quarters. The said GGR for the third three-month period in 2022 represents an increase of 18.1% compared to the previous trimester and 31.3% when compared to the period between July, August, and September 2021.

Ups and Downs in Spain’s GGR Performance

As for the other figures, player deposits and withdrawals increased by 26.72% and 24.85%, respectively, year over year. When compared to the previous quarter, deposits increased by 4.6%, while withdrawals decreased by 8.7%. The marketing expenses increased by 7.79% in comparison to the previous trimester, and the new accounts decreased by 4.01% when compared to the previous quarter.

The GGR amounting to €240.83 million ($253.7 million) was split between the following game segments: €89.04 million ($94.29 million) in bets; €3.68 million ($3.89 million) in bingo; €127.95 million ($135.5 million) in casino (53.13%), €0.03 million ($ 0.03 million) in contests (0.01%) and €20.14 million ($ 21.33 million) in poker.

GGR of All Gaming Sectors

The data published by DGOJ reports that the betting sector increased by 46.20% quarter over quarter and 48.61% year over year. The bingo segment rose 9.63% trimester over trimester and 4.64% when compared to the previous year. As for the casino sector, it experienced an increase of 9.22% when compared to the previous quarter and 27.55% in comparison to Q3 of 2021. Slots rose 27.89% and life roulette increased 37.79% year over year. There was a rise in the contests segment of 215.95% compared to Q2 of 2022, but a decrease of 72.10% year over year. The poker segment represents a decrease of 10.64% quarter over quarter, but an increase of 2.83% compared to the same period in the previous year.

Marketing expenditure amounted to €96.31 million ($101.99 million) in Q3 of 2022 and is split as follows: €10.34 million ($10.95 million) on affiliation expenses, €1.78 million ($1.88 million) on sponsorships, €41.47 million ($43.91 million) on promotions, and €42.73 million ($45.25 million) on advertising.

The monthly average of active gaming accounts is 999,322, which is 0.07% less than the active gaming accounts in the previous quarter, and 9.18% more in comparison to the same three-month period in 2021. The monthly average of the new game accounts stands at 109,312, which is a decrease of 4.01% trimester over trimester and a decrease of 19.93% when compared to the Q3 of 2021.

For Q3 of 2022, the number of licensed gaming operators is 78.

The island then accepted the support of the Dutch government in an attempt to withstand the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. In return, the Netherlands asked for updates regarding specific reforms in Curacao. The upgraded schedule was supposed to be completed by January 1, 2023. The progress of the upgraded gaming bill will be the topic of discussion of an official public debate that will take place this month, according to the agreement inked between the island’s Minister of Finance and the Dutch Minister of Legal Protection, iGB reveals. 

Curacao’s Online Gambling Regulation Awaiting Changes 

These much-anticipated updates refer to a series of details regarding online gambling laws on the island. For the time being, the current gambling legislation regulates one of the most liberal licensing systems in the industry. The licensing of gaming operators is handled by four private businesses on the island. Each of these businesses holds a master license issued by the government. Operators must pass very low barriers to be granted a license and access to the market. At the same time, operators are subject to low levels of scrutiny. 

These aspects are prone to go through significant changes according to the newly scheduled changes in legislation. Curacao plans to adopt additional anti-money laundering measures while also preparing to ask licensees to show proof of having a minimum of three employees occupying “key positions” on the island.

According to Curacao’s Finance minister Javier Silvania, some operators may be forcefully removed from the market once the new license regulations will officially come into effect. Silvania also explained that the removal of these operators would not be a problem for the minister that he is ruling over. 

The New Bill Ready to Be Presented to the Parliament Next Month 

According to the Dutch government’s Q4 update, the new gaming bill should be introduced to the Parliament in February 2023. The same report, however, mentioned the fact that the respective timeline might suffer a delay because of important stakeholders’ input. The first quarter update for 2023 explained that this is exactly what happened, leading to the postponement of the new legislation. As a result, the Temporary Work Organization, which is the Netherlands’ governmental body responsible for implementing the reforms tied to the Covid-19 aid, was still waiting for the adjusted schedule from Curacao’s Ministry of Finance. 

The new regulation would allow the formation of a new independent gambling regulator that would be known as the Curaçao Gaming Authority. The new authority would be responsible for granting licenses to Business-to-Business and Business-to-Consumer operators in exchange for licensing fees.

Last December, 1xBet, one of the leading online sports betting companies in the world, was put face to face with the imminent threat of having to file for bankruptcy in Curacao. The news came after the company faced a long and difficult legal battle with the Foundation for the Representation of Victims of Online Gaming. 

The regulatory body in charge of sports betting, the New Hampshire Lottery, has announced its latest report, outlining that November marked a strong month for retail and mobile sportsbooks in the state.

November Sports Betting Handle Soars

In total, the combined retail and mobile betting handle in November hit $93,090,530. This marked the third month in a row with an increase in the betting handle, considering that a month earlier, in October, it halted at $91.3 million. Moreover, the $93.1 million betting handle reported in November marked the second-best result for 2022, surpassed only by the $99.5 million combined betting handle reported in January 2022.

While the betting handle increase month-over-month in November, gross gaming revenue (GGR) decreased. Back in October 2022, GGR was $9.1 million, marking the best result since the start of the year. Yet, after one month, in November, the GGR plummeted to $4,963,600. This result was close to the $4.5 million and $4.2 million in GGR reported in July and August 2022 but also fell behind the $7.4 million reported in September.

Considering the decrease in GGR, the state collected less tax revenue. The $9.1 million GGR reported in October resulted in $4.5 million in proceeds for New Hampshire. However, in November, the state’s revenue share decreased to $2.2 million, which was lower than in October and September, but higher than the figure from August.

Mobile Betting Handle on the Rise

According to a breakdown provided by the New Hampshire Lottery, the betting handle from mobile sports betting increased in November, hitting $69.1 million, up slightly when compared to the $68.2 million result from October.

GGR from mobile betting in November was $5.4 million and could not surpass the GGR reported a month earlier, in October. The state’s share based on the reported GGR in November was $2.4 million, still behind the results from October and September, but an improvement from the figures from August and July.

On the other hand, retail sports betting has seen $24 million in betting handle in November. This marked an increase when compared month-over-month, but GGR from the activity plummeted to negative $422,119. Despite that, the betting handle from retail sports betting has been continuously growing and in fact, the result from November marked the highest figure for 2022.

Located in the Northeastern US, New Hampshire borders Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont and is the only state that currently offers sports betting. Both Massachusetts and Maine have legalized the activity but are yet to launch their regulated sports betting markets, while Vermont hasn’t even legalized sports wagering yet.