SBC Summit Barcelona: Overview of the Global Betting and iGaming Conference

Modern gambling is not only about excitement and risk but it’s also a major business and entertainment industry. It has always been in the spotlight, but now the industry is growing fast. Expos and conferences are significant for the development and international expansion of gambling projects. They let you analyze the specifics of different gambling markets, identify potential opportunities and challenges, and deepen your knowledge by studying the best practices and successful strategies of other companies on the market. This helps to build and optimize your own business development strategy in the international gambling industry.

For this reason, MK:translations make sure not to miss important iGaming events. Recently, our representatives attended one of such events, SBC Summit Barcelona. Let’s take a look at the Summit through their eyes.

Source: SBC’s official Instagram page

Read also: Peculiarities of gambling projects localization

SBC Summit Barcelona: most interesting things we saw and heard

SBC Summit Barcelona conference and exhibition is the place where global sports betting and iGaming leaders come together to discuss the future of the industry, share their knowledge, and make powerful connections. This is truly an event of global significance: this year, more than 15,000 professionals and experts from 95 countries joined the Summit, with the 38,000 m2 of exhibition space divided into separate zones to make it easier for participants to navigate and socialize.

1. Sports Betting

A platform for meeting influential representatives and experts from leading international operators, exchanging ideas on the latest industry trends, and previewing the next generations of bookmaking solutions from innovative developers.

2. Casino and iGaming

The world of new iGaming technologies, releases from major developers and innovative gaming studios, as well as the latest products and services from platform providers, content aggregators, and player acquisition specialists.

Images from our own sources

3. Payment Service

Networking zone with representatives of the largest international operators, payment service providers, KYC experts, and the world’s leading specialists in safe gambling.

4. Partnerships, Marketing, and Media

A zone for communicating with partner operator teams, digital marketing experts, and leading industry publishers. Here, the participants shared their thoughts and ideas on key topics such as partner licensing, the future of SEO, media collaborations, iGaming marketing strategies, and tools for reaching new markets.

5. New Technologies, Blockchain, and Metaverse

A platform for exploring the latest technologies, discussing opportunities and current trends with leading professionals from product development and tech companies, learning about startups, and meeting investors.

Besides, more than 450 speakers and dozens of panel tours were held in the seven conference halls. Such as:

• Dan Taylor, CEO of Flutter International, shared his insights and experience in managing such brands as Sisal, Junglee, Adjarabet, and Flutter.
• Key issues, including governance, mergers and acquisitions, entering new markets, and regulated and unregulated licensing, were covered during the interactive session.
• The topic of sports and sponsorships was addressed. Amid the significant growth of the gambling sponsorship market in the United States and Latin America, the participants studied the new segments as well as discussed ways to increase the prosperity of the European market and the steps that sports teams can take to assess the risks and opportunities associated with gambling sponsorship.
• Nick Cockerill, VP of Betting Products, presented a number of new ready-to-launch products and shared the results of work with clients as well as new ways of using products in the Live Streams, Trading Data, and Bet Engagement portfolios.
• Frank Abagnale, a world-renowned expert on cyber security and fraud prevention, spoke on cybercrime, identity theft, and fraud.
• Oren Cohen Schwartz, CEO of Delasport, shared his experience in expanding player opportunities through personalization. This can be beneficial for operators as it increases player retention and satisfaction.
• A round-table discussion was held about the financial risks associated with regulatory differences, cultural peculiarities, and market saturation. Participants outlined the advantages of reaching new gambling markets as well as analyzed potential benefits in terms of revenue growth, diversification, and access to new customer demographics.

SBC Awards: Winners

SBC Awards have been honoring and recognizing the very best in sports betting and gambling for the past ten years. This year’s ceremony was held on September 21, with former Dutch football legend Clarence Seedorf and TV presenter Kirsty Gallaсher as hosts.

A total of 39 nominations were awarded. Here are some of them:

• Best Bookmaker — Bet365;
• Best Casino Operator — Kaizen Gaming;
• Best Operator in Northern Europe — Glitnor Group;
• Best Operator in Southern Europe — Kaizen Gaming;
• Best Operator in Eastern Europe — STS S.A;
• Best Operator in Western Europe — Betsson Group;
• Best Affiliate Program — Bet365 Partners;
• Best ESports Operator — Betway Group;
• Marketing Campaign of the Year — Betsson Group;
• Rising Star in Sports Betting — Rhino.Bet;
• Rising Star in Casino Category — Betiton Casino;
• Casino and Gaming Entertainment Innovations — Betsson Group;
• Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative of the Year — Entain Foundation US;
• Employer of the Year — Flutter Entertainment PLC.

The full list of nominees and winners is available on the official SBC website.

Who We Met at SBC Summit Barcelona

Gambling exhibitions and conferences are platforms that combine innovations, experience, networking, and cooperation in order to develop effective solutions and increase the competitiveness of the iGaming business. MK:translations team made the most of these opportunities — we met interesting providers, negotiated potential partnerships, and made promising deals. And most importantly, we got to meet our old friends, Evoplay, who we have been successfully partnering with in the localization field for years. The company was represented by an impressive stand with a separate B2B zone and a bar counter, where they served 21-year-old whiskey. This was a cordial meeting: we talked about the details of our partnership, shared our impressions of the Summit, and discussed the industry’s prospects. Then, we agreed to meet again at the next event in November in Malta.

Image from our own sources

Read also: How to choose IT products’ localization contractor for foreign markets