The leading innovative games provider, Wazdan, announced a new partnership with Luckia.

Luckia Inks Partnership with Wazdan

The latest deal was announced Friday and will significantly expand Wazdan’s reach. Under the terms of the comprehensive, multi-jurisdiction agreement with Luckia, popular content from the leading gaming provider will go live in Spain, as well as Latin America. Additionally, the deal will see Wazdan content reach select European jurisdictions. The rollout of Wazdan’s content for Luckia will be facilitated via OPENGAMING, Light & Wonder’s leading platform.

As a result of the latest deal Wazdan’s highly popular titles Sizzling Eggs, Magic Spins as well as multiple Power of Gods games will become exclusively available for two weeks for Luckia customers. What’s more, the collaboration will see Luckia’s players enjoy other popular titles offered by Wazdan including Cash Infinity, Collect to Infinity, Hold the Jackpot and Sticky to Infinity, among other popular games. Those titles offer unique fan engagement options and exciting experiences for online players.

“Wazdan brings a remarkable collection of slot titles to players that combines immersive themes with fantastic maths and an unmatched array of gamification and engagement-boosting tools.“

Ibai Goikoetxea, casino manager at Luckia

Ibai Goikoetxea, Luckia’s casino manager, said that thanks to the new deal with Wazdan, the company will expand its offering. He added that Wazdan’s games offer multiple fan engagement tools in combination with entertaining themes. Goikoetxea pointed out that Luckia is excited to join forces with the leading developer, making it the company’s first partner in Spain. Finally, he said that the company is looking forward to the unique experiences the collaboration will bring to its customers.

Wazdan Continues Its Expansion

Andrzej Hyla, Wazdan’s chief commercial officer, added that the company is excited to debut in Spain with Luckia, which is one of the most respected and experienced brands in the country. Acknowledging that the company is committed to offering supreme experiences for its players, he added that Wazdan is excited to bring its leading titles for players in Spain, as well as other jurisdictions. Last but not least, Hyla said: “we look forward to propelling each other to new heights.”

“We are very proud to be entering Spain for the first time, and doing so with one of the oldest and most prestigious brands in the country, Luckia.“

Andrzej Hyla, chief commercial officer at Wazdan

The developer’s latest deal complements its ongoing growth. Only recently, the company significantly expanded its European presence by entering the regulated gambling market in the Netherlands via a deal with Play North. Before that, in September, the company launched its content in Serbia and Montenegro via ExeFeed, while earlier in September, Wazdan launched its portfolio in Bulgaria as well.

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Xpoint, a leading provider of geolocation and compliance solutions, has received authorization to launch in the state of Ohio, United States. Thanks to the license received by the Ohio Casino Control Commission, the company will be able to provide its services in the Buckeye State.

Geolocation Services Are the Backbone of Sports Betting in the USA

Geolocation technology has been pivotal in ensuring that sports betting remains compliant with existing regulations, much of which is contingent on sportsbooks and iGaming operators being able to prove that any requests placed with their products come within the state borders.

Moving forward, Xpoint will be able to deploy its advanced solutions and help companies on their journey to compliance. Commenting on this, Xpoint CEO Marvin Sanderson said that he was thankful to the commission for recognizing the company’s product and efforts to deliver a compliant product. He added:

To be licensed to provide our technology solutions in the Buckeye State from the start of legalized sports betting is a huge honor, and we are looking forward to working with multiple partners in Ohio to help them engage with their consumers safely, securely and free from fraud.

Xpoint CEO Marvin Sanderson

Ohio is yet to roll out sports betting in the state, but applicants are already vying to make sure that they are among the first to launch such a product. In the days leading up to the launch date on January 1, 2023, the state is likely to experience an influx of pre-registrations and temporary promotional offers.

Ohio to See a Number of Prominent Applicants Enter the Betting Arena

Ohio is actually an outlier insofar as the way it is going to be deploying its sports betting product, as it will also feature leagues and professional teams as some of the purveyors of those products. Among the stakeholders, in the newly-regulated Ohio sports betting markets are prominent sports franchises such as the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns, and not least the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Caesars Sportsbook has already introduced its mobile betting app available for download in the Buckeye State, well ahead of the timeline. There is also a betting bonus to go hand-in-hand with the launch. The Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment (HOFV) is another prominent company that has received conditional approval to go live in the state.

The resort, entertainment and media company centered around professional football, Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment (HOFV), announced it has been given conditional approval to launch sports betting operations in Ohio.

Expanding into Sports Wagering

HOFV has been authorized by the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) to operate a retail sportsbook and a mobile sports betting platform ahead of the official launch of legal sports wagering in the state on New Year’s Day, 2023.

Michael Crawford, president and chief executive officer of HOFV, commented on the new opportunity provided by “the legalization of sports betting in Ohio” with regard to the company’s “three business verticals” and its fans.

“We will have the only physical sports book in Stark County and the first dedicated sports microbetting platform via the Betr mobile app, bringing fans and guests a multitude of different and new ways to experience sports entertainment,” Crawford pointed out.

Headquartered in Canton, Ohio, and operating in partnership with the Pro Football Hall of Fame, HOFV is the owner of the Hall of Fame Village, a destination located around the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s campus, offering multi-sport use and entertainment.

The BetRivers and HOFV/Betr Sportsbooks

The retail sportsbook will be operated in partnership with Rush Street Interactive (RSI) after HOFV and the Chicago-based gaming operator signed a 10-year agreement recently to name RSI HOFV’s official retail sports betting partner. The sportsbook will operate as BetRivers Sportsbook.

The BetRivers Sportsbook will be located at a sports and entertainment-themed promenade of the Hall of Fame Village, the Fan Engagement Zone, which will become the go-to place for guests before, during and after events, offering fine dining and socializing, as well as rooftop views of Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

HOFV and Betr will operate a mobile sportsbook after a 10-year partnership between HOFV and the mobile betting brand founded by industry veteran Joey Levy and media mogul Jake Paul named Betr HOFV’s official mobile sports betting partner.

The HOFV/Betr mobile sportsbook will offer bettors in Ohio a combination of seamless mobile sports wagering with the perks of the Betr app that is being consistently ranked in the Top 10 Free Apps in the sports category in Apple’s App Store.

The Betr app leverages microbetting to take sports prop betting to an entirely new level by offering bettors to place bets on nearly every moment of every sporting event, instantly bringing an extra dose of adrenaline.

HOFV’s conditional approval to operate retail and mobile sports betting granted by the OCCC is the next step of the resort’s plan to enter the sports wagering space and scale its business as part fo which it has appointed Rob Borm as executive vice president of Gaming earlier in the year to manage the firm’s gambling division.

Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort, a venue describing itself as “the Midwest’s premier gaming and hospitality destination,” has commenced the installation of the Quick Custom Intelligence (QCI) platform in its Mount Pleasant casino. The agreement with QCI will help the operator handle and process data.

QCI to Process Data for Soaring Eagle

Under the agreement, QCI will leverage its unified gaming platform to align marketing, player development and casino operations around one view of Soaring Eagle’s customer data. The Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe-owned casino and hospitality specialist believes that QCI’s AI-powered analytics is a perfect fit for the casino.

In an official statement, Melinda Coffin, chief executive officer of Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort, shared that her team is looking forward to using the QCI Platform. She explained that prior to choosing QCI, Soaring Eagle extensively researched the available business analytic tools. The research identified QCI as the leading company in AI-powered solutions, which is why the casino decided to adopt its tech.

Coffin added that QCI’s Robotic Process Automation solution will help Soaring Eagle save a lot of time and money each month by supporting its marketing efforts.

QCI Is Excited about the Agreement

Meanwhile, Dr Ralph Thomas, the chief executive officer of Quick Custom Intelligence, praised Soaring Eagle as a leading local operator and said that the QCI team sees the agreement as an important business opportunity. He noted that the casino and hospitality venue’s decision to pick QCI’s platform shows how important continually developing high-quality products that fit the customers’ needs is.

“We see our business partnership with Soaring Eagle, a premier operator in the Michigan market, as a strategic business relationship. 

Thomas noted that his company currently serves more than 85 casino resorts across North America and over 4,000 sites across the world. He said that this team is confident in the proven qualities of the Unified Gaming Platform and is sure that it is going to meet the growing needs of Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort.

In other news, in September, Gaming Dynamics, a leading gaming analyst, announced that it had reached an important milestone in Australia with QCI. The latter company leveraged its solutions to offer tools for more than 2,500 games in various locations across the Australian state of New South Wales.

Meanwhile, Soaring Eagle teamed with Evolution, which is keen on expanding its presence in Michigan. To that end, the provider agreed to supply the tribal operator with online casino content.

Australia’s counter-terrorism financing and anti-money laundering regulator AUSTRAC has ordered an external audit of two leading online gambling companies, namely Sportsbet and Hillside, which operates under the name bet365, under section 162 of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (AML/CTF Act).

The audit will be authorized by the financial crimes watchdog and will be performed to establish if both corporate bookmakers comply with the AML/CTF Act and Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules Instrument 2007 (No. 1) (AML/CTF Rules).

Before taking these measures, AUSTRAC undertook an extensive supervisory campaign to assess entities in the corporate gambling sector.

Entain Was Subject to an Enforcement Investigation

AUSTRAC’s actions also come after the beginning of an enforcement investigation into Entain Group Pty Ltd. The probe was launched in September and will assess Entain’s compliance with its AML/CTF obligations.

Sportsbet’s and bet365’s Audit within 180 days

The external auditors will have 180 days to conduct the audit and to report to AUSTRAC if Sportsbet and bet365 comply with the respective laws, namely if both companies have and maintain an AML/CTF program to identify, mitigate and manage money laundering and terrorism financing risks.

The audit will also examine if both bookmakers undertake an appropriate ML/TF risk assessment of the risk related to their customer types, the types of services they provide, and the respective methods of delivery of services. Through the probes, the auditors will have to examine if Sportsbet and bet365 have a framework via which their “boards and senior management have ongoing oversight of their part A programs.” The two online gambling giants will have to prove that they are monitoring their customers properly to identify, mitigate, and manage the risk they may face given that “the provision of designated services may involve or facilitate money laundering or the financing of terrorism.”

The audits’ extent is established by the Australia financial crimes watchdog and will be at both bookmakers’ expense.

Based on the results of the examinations of Sportsbet and bet365, AUSTRAC will decide if any further regulatory actions are needed. The audit’s outcomes will also help both gambling companies to comply better with their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing obligations.

Nicole Rose, chief executive officer of AUSTRAC, commented that failure to comply with the AML/CTF Act was a serious issue. She also added that identifying and sanctioning non-compliance was necessary to protect the community. Leading businesses have to fully comply with the AML/CTF Act – in order to “understand and mitigate their risks and report suspected crimes.”

Finally, Rose stated that if non-compliance was identified, AUSTRAC would not hesitate to take the respective measures in order to protect the Australian community.

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ParlayBay, a supplier of innovative sports betting titles, has formed a new content alliance with BlueOcean Gaming, which focuses on creating platform solutions for the online casino sector. This will mean that moving forward, ParlayBay will incorporate its entire portfolio of titles with BlueOcean Gaming’s platform, helping it deliver more impactful gamification options for its own network of operators.

ParlayBay Deploys Extensive Portfolio of Unique Games

As such, ParlayBay will get significant exposure to its product with leading operators. ParlayBay has been known for a number of games already, including Streak, Boss, Gekko, Cut, Greyhound, and Rush titles. This partnership has been welcomed by ParlayBay CEO Patrick Nordwall who said:

We’re delighted to have reached this partnership with BlueOcean Gaming, a company that shares our vision for innovating in iGaming. BlueOcean Gaming is one of the most recognized aggregators in the market and has a sublime and efficient platform that perfectly complements our fast-paced titles.

ParlayBay CEO Patrick Nordwall

There will be additional solutions incorporated with this partnership, including the PARLAYPOWERS tool, which features a number of promotional solutions designed to help with player acquisition and retention. These tools will be launched in early 2023 and complement the offer.

They will come with options such as early bird bonuses, cash drops, free bets, and many other options that are designed to improve the overall offer significantly. ParlayBay similarly features an in-house odds engine developed to provide players and consumers with real-time game states, multi-betting functionality, and more.

BlueOcean Gaming Executives Are Excited to Be Teaming with ParlayBay

ParlayBay is attempting to build an innovative form of entertainment product designed to appeal to a large number of demographics familiar with other aspects of the iGaming markets, including social gaming experience, casino, and sports betting options.

BlueOcean Gaming CEO Dejan Jović was similarly excited to be teaming up with ParlayBay and offered his opinion.

We’re always on the lookout for exciting additions to our platform and with ParlayBay’s unique approach to sports betting, we’re confident we’ve made the right choice.

BlueOcean CEO Dejan Jović

Overall, Jović expects this tie-up to lead to further opportunities in terms of player engagement across numerous markets in which BlueOcean Gaming’s partners operate.

GambleAware has announced that it has appointed Lucky Generals and OmniGOV at MD OMD as their new creative advertising and media planning and buying agencies respectively. The new agencies will assist with the charity’s efforts to continue delivering powerful and player-focused messages that seek to protect consumers in the United Kingdom.

GambleAware Finds New Creative Partners to Deliver Impactful Messages

The agencies have been selected for a period of three years and they focus on bolstering GambleAware’s efforts in delivering a tailored national behavior change campaign. This comes as a part of a new program designed to raise awareness about the risks of gambling, and also help tackle a common misunderstanding about the problem, and the stigma that follows it.

GambleAware also wants to encourage people to seek assistance and help, and reach out to the many treatment options now available in the United Kingdom as part of the National Gambling Treatment Service, among others. GambleAware is also hoping to help the general public understand that problem gambling is not something that people choose and there is scientific evidence that explains why this is the case.

GambleAware CCO Alexia Clifford welcomed the addition of the new agencies and noted that the charity is fully focused on ensuring that its campaign plays a central role in achieving a society in which people are free from gambling harm and that public health campaigns continue to make it possible for the general public to be educated about the issue. Clifford added:

Following a robust agency pitch process, which generated an outstanding response from the industry, I’m delighted that we’ll be working with two of the very best in the business, Lucky Generals and OmniGOV.

GambleAware CCO Alexia Clifford

Lucky Generals is a company that works with a number of prominent brands, including Yorkshire Tea, Amazon, and Virgin Atlantic. Outlining the choice of Lucky Generals, the official press release shared by GambleAware not that the creative agency was a cut-through creative and smart thinking. Lucky Generals founding partner Andy Nairn welcomed this opportunity and said:

We have a great opportunity here to not just tackle one of society’s biggest problems, but also turn GambleAware into a brand that can help people experiencing gambling harm for years to come.

Lucky Generals founding partner Andy Nairn

Big Focus on Behavioral Health Learning

GambleAware was also pleased to be teaming up with OmniGOV which is an agency with a “strong focus on behavioral health learning,” which is precisely what the charity was looking for. “GambleAware tackles one of the biggest health issues in our society today and we are proud to be part of this newly formed team that will aim to make a difference to those who need it most,” said OmniGOV at MG OMD CEO Paul Knight.

The new partnership comes at a time when the UK government is preparing to re-regulate the gambling industry, with the long-anticipated White Paper still not given a final date when it will appear.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup is special for a number of reasons. First of all, it’s the first tournament in the history of the competition that’s taking place in Asia. Secondly, it’s the first World Cup that’s held in fall/winter (in the Northern hemisphere).

Still, the no.1 reason why the 2022 Qatar World Cup differs from all the previous ones is that the competition is incredibly fierce. A total of 32 teams will compete in the tournament, and it seems that almost 50% of them stand a good chance of lifting the trophy on December 18.

Obviously, some teams are seen as stronger candidates than others. The reigning champion France and  the 5-time World Cup winner Brazil are the two main favorites, followed by Argentina, England, Spain, Germany, and others.

This, of course, doesn’t mean that underdogs like Portugal or longshots like the United States cannot upset the odds.

2022 Qatar World Cup Winner Odds – Top 10 Favorites

*Betting odds taken from 888sport on Thursday, November 3, 2022.

When, Where, and How to Watch

• Dates: November 20 – December 18, 2022
• Location: Eight venues in five cities in Qatar
• How to Watch in the US: FOX Sports (TV), Telemundo (TV), Peacock (stream), Fubo (stream), Vidgo (stream), and SlingTV (stream)

2022 World Cup Bracketology