Cameroon-based sports betting operator, Winnerbet, has entered a partnership with next generation platform provider Pronet Gaming. 

Winnerbet, which currently has over 300 retail locations throughout Africa, will be migrating to the Pronet Gaming platform, making use of the supplier’s full turnkey solution across both online and retail operations. 

Colin McDonagh, Chief Sales Officer at Pronet Gaming, said: “As a platform provider, it’s particularly pleasing when your work in pulling together a strong product portfolio is recognised by an operator looking to accelerate its commercial growth.

“It was clear from the outset that Winnerbet was keen to utilise our market-leading product offering across both retail and online and we are delighted to be working with an operator and brand that resonates so strongly for players in Cameroon.”

Winnerbet’s CEO said: “We are confident in our belief that migrating to Pronet Gaming’s platform will prove to be a winning move as we aim to cement our status as a forward-thinking operator.

“The sports market in Cameroon has fantastic growth potential and we can’t wait for our players to engage with such a high-quality and wide range of products.”

Staying with Pronet Gaming, last week the company announced a new partnership with live gaming specialist TVBET. 

Swedish state-owned lottery and sports betting operator, Svenska Spel, has selected Forsman & Bodenfors as its new lead advertising agency. 

One of Sweden’s premier advertising agencies, Forsman & Bodenfors has around 700 employees in offices in Gothenburg, New York, Stockholm, Toronto, Montreal, Shanghai, and Singapore. The agency’s portfolio of clients includes global brands like Volvo, H&M, Häagen-Dazs, Goldman Sachs, TUI, and American Express.

Forsman & Bodenfors was selected following a tender issued earlier this year, and will be tasked with refreshing Svenska Spel’s brand and messaging. This will include the operator’s 2021 Tokyo Olympic campaigns, with Svenska Spel being principal sponsor of the Swedish Olympic Committee’s athlete development program. 

The contract with the agency is valid for two years, with the possibility of an extension, and comest into effect in May after the current agreement with Bloomy Ideas and Jung expires. 

Anna Ekström, Head of Marketing Communication & Activation for the group brand at Svenska Spel, said: “Svenska Spel’s group brand is strong, but we can become even better at communicating all the good things we do, both in gaming responsibility and sports. That is why we are very happy to have Forsman & Bodenfors as our partner. With their experience in branding, advertising and with a corporate culture that suits us, they will be a valuable partner for Svenska Spel.”

AYO.NEWS says:

With operators like LeoVegas pushing standards higher with new global marketing campaigns recently, the need to have strong branding in hyper-competitive markets like Sweden is pressing. Svenska Spel’s selection of such a renowned advertising agency seems to signal a desire to up the game when it comes to creativity, which can only be a good thing. We can’t wait to see what Forsman & Bodenfors come up with. 

British gambling group Entain has marked International Women’s Day by launching global initiatives to support women in tech.

Girls Who Code, an international non-profit organisation dedicated to closing the gender gap in technology, will receive $250K USD from the Entain Foundation. The funding will be used to support global programs to bring young women into the technology industry, particularly in the UK, US, Canada, and India. 

The Entain Foundation will also be providing $50K AUD to the Tech Girls Movement Foundation in Australia. The organisation works to challenge perceptions that limit girls’ participation in STEM (science, technology engineering and mathematics) through community and industry collaborations. 

Entain’s support of Girls Who Code and the Tech Girls Movement Foundation follow recent senior female appointments at the group, including that of new CEO, Jette Nygaard-Andersen, and non-executive board directors, Stella David and Vicky Jarman. 40% of Entain’s board, and almost 50% of the group’s total workforce is now female. 

Commenting on the news CEO of Entain, Jette Nygaard-Andersen, said: “I’m proud to be leading a global technology company which is making real strides in promoting women’s careers, not just in the West, but also developing markets like India where creating opportunities for young women is especially important.

“One of the biggest impediments to career choices around the world continues to be cultural, based on preconceived notions of what society and young women themselves believe they can do. That is why we are focusing on initiatives to support their education and build stronger pathways into technology-related careers.”

While Dr. Tarika Barrett, incoming CEO of Girls Who Code, added: “Passionate, ambitious and diverse young women are the key to transforming the world and the technical workforce. This International Women’s Day, we’re excited to partner with the Entain Foundation to support young women around the world on their journey into the technical workforce. Our work together will help spur the creation of a fairer and more equitable workforce, helping more women of all backgrounds rise to the top and achieve their goals of working in tech.”

UK-based football trading platform Football Index has been forced to disable Twitter comments following personal threats against staff, after “substantial” losses forced a dividend restructure. 

With the COVID-19 crisis significantly reducing liquidity on the platform, which allows players to trade shares in professional footballers stock market-style, Football Index has been forced to reduce dividends. 

Illustrating the scale of the crisis the platform is facing, a share in Borussia Dortmund’s Jadon Sancho cost players £15.04 GBP at the start of September 2020, but had plummeted to just £1.03 at the time of writing. 

With some players reported to have six-figure stakes invested in players on the platform, there has been growing desperation among users, with many angrily lashing out at Football Index, and some making personal threats against staff, prompting the platform to disable Twitter comments.

As previously reported, in December 2020, Mike Bohan took over as CEO of Football Index, while previous CEO, Adam Cole, was appointed company chairman.

AYO.NEWS says:

Football Index has made quite a splash in the UK over the past six years, offering players an alternative to traditional sports wagering. Of course, the COVID-19 crisis has been a true ‘black swan’ event, and hit many businesses in unexpected ways – none more so than football and other sports – so it’s not exactly surprising to see Football Index negatively affected. 

However, critics of the platform have long warned about potential dangers, especially the fact rules can be changed mid-contract, and we’re sure the development will prompt some observers to again question whether Football Index has been portrayed too much like an investment product, rather than a gambling product. 

Hundreds of people in the UK joined protests calling for an end to gambling advertisements in football over the weekend. 

In an initiative called the Big Step, around 300 people, including several Members of Parliament and the families of gambling addicts who committed suicide, walked to their local football stadiums to demand change. 

It was the fourth Big Step protest since 2019, and was likely muted due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions banning large gatherings. A petition is also being put together, with organisers pledging to deliver it to 10 Downing Street when it reaches 10,000 signatures.

Protest organiser James Grimes, a received gambling addict, told the BBC; “We are trying to amplify the voice of people with lived experience. I lost every single penny I had in the world on a lunch break and went home, cried, hid in my room, turned my phone off for three days, lost my job and I probably was suicidal.”

The latest protest action was timed to coincide with the British government’s review of the 2005 Gambling Act – submission of evidence for which must be made by 31 March. 

With around 75% of Premier League and 87% of Championship clubs currently having commercial deals in place with gambling companies, the consequence of any ban could be far reaching for the British football industry. 

#TheBigStep – March 6th & 7th 2021 #WalkingForChange

🚶‍♂️ 300+ people

🥾 3000 miles

👣 7 MILLION STEPS

📝 7700+ signatures

📢 1 message to football and government:

⚽️ Stop promoting gambling.

To everybody that walks and stands with us, thank you.https://t.co/NagsYqjTi7 pic.twitter.com/jFbsad6vqN

— The Big Step (@the_bigstep) March 7, 2021

AYO.NEWS says:

With each day that passes, it looks increasingly likely that the UK will follow the path of Italy and Spain, and ban gambling advertisements in sport. Should the gambling industry just accept times have changed, voluntarily end all sponsorship arrangements now, and at least save some face, rather than courting even more negative coverage in the popular press?

Sports betting and entertainment products and services provider, Sportradar, has acquired personalised messaging platform operator Fresh Eight Ltd. 

Sportradar says the acquisition will strengthen its digital marketing services platform with a DCO personalisation technology in both display and paid social, enabling sportsbook operators to fully optimise their media investments. 

The technology also allows sports-orientated publishers to control the integration of native and personalised sport-betting content into their platforms. 

Fresh Eight’s acquisition will complement Sportradar’s existing ad:s platform, which offers highly-targeted programmatic advertising capabilities to a significant number of betting and gaming businesses.

Carsten Koerl, Sportradar Group CEO, said: “We have developed ad:s into a substantial business for Sportradar with its platform offering and a significant portfolio of sports-book clients. But the market doesn’t stand still, and we must continually innovate and grow. The acquisition of Fresh Eight will accelerate that growth, as we add this personalization technology to our marketing services offering.”

Andrew Sharland, founder and CEO, Fresh Eight, said: “We founded the business with the ambition to substantially improve advertising efficiency and returns for the world’s leading gambling operators and media groups. Today we partner with some of the industry’s biggest brands in Europe and the US.”

Fresh Eight’s current operator clients include FanDuel, Entain, William Hill and LeoVegas, as well as major sports publishers ESPN, CBS Viacom, NBC Sports and News UK.

Staying with Sportradar, last week the company announced it had signed a data and audio-visual rights deal with Australia’s semi-elite NBL1 basketball league.