Kindred Group has launched the “Fair Sports 4 All” project in partnership with the European Football for Development Network (EFDN). 

Fair Sports 4 All aims to increase awareness of match-fixing among players, managers, and other sports stakeholders. The online educational tool will also provide training on how to resist offers and temptations to engage in match-fixing, and information on how to report match-fixing to the appropriate authorities. 

Discussing the initiative CEO of Kindred Group, Henrik Tjärnström, said:

“Match-fixing is a threat to the fundamental idea of sports. Billions of people around the world enjoy participating in or consuming sport, and if the unpredictability of sport events is taken away, this fundamental idea is in severe jeopardy. 

“Match-fixing is also a threat to the gambling industry. If people lose faith in the honesty of sports event, they will lose faith in betting products as well. Therefore are we excited for the Fair Sport 4 All-project where we can, together with EFDN, truly make a difference and together fight this very important battle.”

While CEO of EFDN, Hubert Rovers, added:

“Sport can be such a powerful tool in teaching life skills, promoting social cohesion and fostering values of respect and inclusion. However, this positive power cannot be used if the principles of sports get undermined by match-fixing. 

“Therefore, we are joining forces to protect the integrity of our sport. We are proud to launch the programme together with Kindred, a competent partner with a sustainability-driven approach for sponsorships and community initiatives.”

In 2019 Kindred teamed up with EFDN as the first commercial Community Partner of the network – which is working to promote the power of football as a tool for social development.

AYO.NEWS says:

Hats off to Kindred for taking a leading role in combating the scourge of professional sports by supporting the EFDN and initiatives like this. After all, reporting, monitoring, and reacting to match-fixing is all well and good, but it’s far better to prevent the fixing in the first place. And, to do that, it all comes down to equipping stakeholders with the knowledge and confidence to stop it gaining a foothold. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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Football teams in the Spanish La Liga Santander have been ordered to remove or hide all betting sponsorship from their shirts for the first three match days of the restarted season.

Under Article 37 of the Royal Decree of the State of Emergency which is currently in force in Spain, gambling advertising is banned. However, Leganes, Valencia, Sevilla, Osasuna, Levante, Alaves, Granada, and Real Mallorca all have betting operators as their main sponsors, and several other clubs have betting advertising featured somewhere on their shirts. 

The State of Emergency will remain in force in Spain until at least 21 June, but each LaLiga club is slated to play three games before then, and many of the clubs are heavily reliant on revenue from their betting sponsorship deals. 

LaLiga is said to be attempting to resolve the problem, but the ultimate decision will rest with the government. A source close to the Minister of Consumer Affairs is reported as saying:

“The government approved the banning of gambling advertising in March in order to protect the most vulnerable people during lockdown. The overexposure to this sort of advertisement threatened to generate a public health problem. As the risk decreases and always considering the maximum criteria of public health, the necessary measures to advance into the new normal will be taken.”

Unless the government agrees to change the law, no betting logos or branding will be allowed on shirts, in stadiums, or on TV broadcasts until 21 June. 

AYO.NEWS says:

With La Liga set to restart tomorrow, time is running out to find a resolution to what could be a major problem for clubs. With almost two weeks set to be subject to the sponsorship ban as things stand, will gambling sponsors demand compensation or be willing to take the hit?

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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English Premier League leaders Liverpool FC are being sued by sports sponsorship agency Winlink for a reported GBP £1.1m. 

According to SBC News the dispute, which is being heard at the High Court, involves Gibraltar-based bookmaker BetVictor’s £15m sponsorship of Liverpool’s training kit. 

Winlink claims that it had been “heavily engaged over a number of years in securing a successful introduction,” and that led to BetVictor entering the £5m per year deal between the 2016/17 and 2018/19 seasons. 

However, Liverpool FC are arguing that Winlink were not involved in securing the deal, and that it was the result of work by its former Head of Global Partnerships, Rafaella Valentino – who happens to be a friend of Andreas Meinrad, CEO of BetVictor. 

Proceedings in the case began yesterday, with Winlinks represented by Andrew Sutcliffe QC, who pointed to the agency’s track record of securing bookmaker introductions for clubs including Arsenal, Chelsea, Inter Milan, and Juventus, and receiving commissions for such. 

Representing Liverpool FC, Robert Anderson QC, argued that Winlink’s services played no part in securing the BetVictor deal.

The case is expected to last all week, with the final judgement being delivered, by Judge Mark Pelling QC, at a later date. 

AYO.NEWS says:

It’s obviously not appropriate to comment on an ongoing case, but needless to say it could have big implications for the business model and viability of agencies like Winlink if it loses the case. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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The UK could be about to reclassify loot boxes as gambling products, causing big headaches for game developers. 

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has said it will be looking at loot boxes, which are now a common feature of popular video games like FIFA, and considering whether to reclassify them as a gambling product. 

Many are concerned about the mechanics of loot boxes, which allow players to pay money for random in-game rewards like characters, skins and weapons are encouraging children to develop gambling habits. The fact that loot box winnings can also be exchanged for cash on third-party websites is also worrying some observers. 

According to Labour MP Carolyn Harris, who chairs a cross-party group of MPs investigating gambling-related harm, loot boxes are “a virtually speculative commodity that only help to normalise and encourage young people to take a chance.”

Research published last year, by academics at the University of York, claimed loot boxes are now present in 71% of the most popular titles on the gaming platform Steam – up from just 4% a decade ago. 

If the government does decide to classify loot boxes as gambling, it would force developers to either significantly redesign or completely withdraw many titles from many sales platforms. 

AYO.NEWS says:

The loot box ‘controversy’ is one of the most farcical pantomimes of recent times. While no one would condone marketing pure gambling sites to children, for example, the fact is that life is ALL about gambling, and learning to weigh risks and chances. It is a skill that is required for everything in life, from crossing roads to running a business. 

Unfortunately, the ability of young people to effectively assess risk is rapidly disappearing, precisely because of misguided fools like Carolyn Harris MP, who are on an idiotic crusade to shield children and young people from any exposure to “chance.” 

From games like Monopoly to trading cards, it is critical that young people learn about chance through practice. And, as for the trading of loot box contents on third-party sites – what better way for kids to learn about trading and entrepreneurship! 

There will always be those who develop problems in everything, but attempting to wrap young people up in cotton wool is a massive mistake that will have hugely negative consequences in the long term. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) has joined the campaign against additional ‘temporary’ restrictions during the COVID-19 crisis. 

In a statement, EGBA secretary general Maarten Haijer argued that draconian restrictions like advertising bans and blanket deposit limits will likely do more harm than good, by pushing customers, including vulnerable gamblers, to illegal unlicensed sites. 

Supporting its case, the EGBA pointed to figures from Denmark, where traffic to licensed gambling sites has plummeted 60%, Belgium where it has dropped 38%, and even Sweden, which has seen a 6% fall. 

In a shot across the bow of politicians and regulators, Haijer said:

“We must remember that gambling is human behaviour, consumers will always make their own choices and effective regulation needs to be based on what works well, not what makes good headlines.”

Just yesterday we reported that nine high-profile CEOs had issued a statement, through Swedish iGaming trade body BOS, calling on the Swedish government to drop its plans for more restrictions due to the COVID-19 crisis. 

The signatories, which included Betsson AB CEO Pontus Lindwall, Kindred Group CEO Henrik Tjärnström, and LeoVegas Group CEO Gustaf Hagman, pointed to research suggesting that any further restrictions will make the Swedish market non-viable for all current licensees. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Wherever you stand on the moral rights and wrongs of gambling, the EGBA’s logic seems pretty watertight. In many jurisdictions, especially Sweden and the UK, those operators trying to play by the rules are already being made to jump through hoops and deal with ever-moving goalposts, while on an uneven playing field compared to unlicensed offshore operators.

If regulators and politicians genuinely care about protecting the vulnerable, and encouraging responsible gambling, they absolutely have a moral duty to support licensed operators as they compete against unlicensed ones, not actively conspire to destroy them. 

The truth is that, in many countries, there is a determined, ideologically-driven anti-gambling element that, rather than being honest and arguing their case in the open, is hiding behind the COVID-19 crisis to ram through their agenda. And, does anyone really believe the limits will be ‘temporary?’ 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

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Several major Swedish online gambling licensees have banded together to oppose the Ministry of Finance’s plans for further draconian restrictions. 

In a statement issued by BOS, the Swedish iGaming trade body, nine high-profile CEOs have urged the government to reconsider its “unrealistic proposals”, arguing that they will simply encourage customers to turn to unlicensed operators. 

The signatories of the statement were Pontus Lindwall, CEO, Betsson AB; Henrik Tjärnström, CEO, Kindred Group; Gustaf Hagman, Group CEO, LeoVegas; Therese Hillman, VD, NetEnt AB; Ulrik Bengtsson, Group CEO, William Hill; Lahcene Merzoug, CEO, ComeOn; Alexander Stevendahl, CEO, Videoslots; Tomas Backman, CEO, Hero Gaming and Henric Andersson, CEO, SuprNation.

As we’ve previously reported, elements within the Swedish government, notably Social Security Minister Ardalan Shekarabi, are convinced that the COVID-19 crisis has led worrying trends in player behaviour, which justifies harsh new restrictions. 

However, licensed operators are convinced that any further restrictions, like deposit limits, will simply lead channelsition for online casinos to fall even further, as more players chose to play at unlicensed offshore sites. 

As an alternative, the CEOs have suggested a package of measures that could be taken help promote safer gambling and ensure high standards. These include extending licensing requirements to cover technology provisions, promoting the national self-exclusion register Spelpaus, the integration of an IQ campaign, enhancing data sharing and risk ratings, and extending the gambling regulator’s oversight of marketplace requirements. 

BOS also commissioned consultancy Copenhagen Economics to conduct market research into the issue. Its findings suggested that the government’s current plans risk “losing half the licensed online casino sector,” causing a 63% drop in channelisation demands, and would make the market non-viable for all current licensees. 

Explaining their position, the BOS statement read:

“Neither the Ministry of Finance nor any other stakeholder has presented facts to support the underlying assumption that gambling in general – and play on online casinos in particular – have increased during the covid-19 crisis. In its recent report to the Swedish government, the agency responsible for the Swedish gambling market also confirms it hasn’t detected increased gambling during the coronavirus pandemic.

“The government is aware of the alarmingly low percentage of online casino players who now play within the licensed Swedish system. The government has also seen data from the Swedish Tax Agency that show gambling on horse races – and not online casino gambling – has increased during the coronavirus crisis.

“We share the government’s view that protection for and of players is of the utmost importance. We agree that this work must continue and that together we can create a sustainable gambling market with strong consumer protections. But the work must be based on facts.

“The Ministry of Finance has the opportunity to implement a number of fact-based measures that would improve consumer protections without damaging the important channelization. On the contrary, the channelization would benefit with these measures, which would also strengthen consumer protections.”

AYO.NEWS says:

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again; it is clear there are some in the Swedish government who are using the cover of the COVID-19 crisis to press ahead with an ideologically driven anti-gambling agenda. While we very much agree with the arguments made by BOS and the signatories of the statement, we can’t help but think they will be falling on deaf ears. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020