Canada
In the United States, a New Championship Esports Qualifying Series Will Debut
The crypto, esports, and gambling industry has been growing at an equal pace over the past few years. Naturally, states try to invest as much as possible in these sectors. Especially in the Esports sector, almost all countries compete with each other.
The most important of these countries is undoubtedly the United States of America. The USA is preparing for a significant Esports initiative in the year 2022. In the statement made by the USEF, the United States Esports Federation, they stated that they have a plan to cover the whole country. They also announced at the USEF Esports industry conference that they are starting to develop national championship tournaments that could be the first of their kind.
In addition, USEF will run an incentive campaign to attract Esports players and fans from all over the country. Then, the USEF announced that it would launch national qualifiers to form the US National Esports team. It seems that the rise of Esports will continue in 2022.
We decided to evaluate the relationship between USEF and Esports in today’s article. We will also briefly touch on the reflections of the rise of Esports on the crypto and gambling industry. If you’re ready, let’s start.
Esports is Growing Rapidly Globally
As we mentioned at the beginning of our article, the esports, crypto and gambling industry continues to grow at an equal pace. Because these three sectors continue to create a different ecosystem by influencing each other. For example, different platforms that allow you to bet on esports using crypto, such as Thunderpick have started to emerge. No matter where you live, you can place bets on online Esports tournaments around the world. This also helps the Esports ecosystem flourish. Sponsorships, partnerships and many other agreements are making the sectors come alive.
Naturally, governments want to get their share from a sector where cash flow is very high. We can see the first example of this with the United States. They want to identify the best players by starting a national Esports qualifying process.
However, they also want to create a forensic and standard elimination system for National team selection. It is also within the scope of organizing many tournaments to discover the best of USA’s digital world. Especially the fact that these tournaments are on a national scale is of great interest to municipalities and venues in that region. Because we think that the economic activity in the regions belonging to the cities where major Esports tournaments are held will be positively affected.
There are also Esports related initiatives in some schools at the moment. Perhaps in the future there will even be lessons like how and why to start Esports in all schools. Regardless, the future of Esports seems to cover the entire system.
USEF’s Goals
USEF’s newly elected president, David Geddes, made a series of statements about the process at the Esports travel summit. Florida has called to attend the conference with the leading names of the industry to be held in Daytona Beach. While the conference was organized by the Esports Travel Summit, the company’s vice president, Jason Gewirtz, made the following statement:
“The Esports Travel Summit was designed to bring together stakeholders in the esports industry to help support the growth of in-person esports events,”
When he came to the partnership with the USEF, he continued his words as follows;
“the perfect example of the kinds of connections we are looking to foster with our event, since their approach to uniting stakeholders and growing a national team is the best of what we see in the future of esports events. We’re excited to offer attendees in Daytona the chance to meet them and hear more about their vision for the future.”
Comments by General Manager David Geddes
Given the partnership, Mr. Geddes from USEF is very optimistic about the new plans. He started his speech by referring to covid and then the Esports industry and continued his words as follows;
“We are very excited by the post-covid wave of interest to host in-person competitions, the esports industry is unifying just like other NGBs, such as USA Soccer or USA Climbing.”
He also added the following to his speech on establishing a national team for Esports;
“He went on to add, “I am so delighted when I think about how our nation’s esports competitors will face off to qualify for the national team – celebrity esports athletes will be made during our championship series of events.”
USEF has now stepped up the work for the Esports team that will form the entire USA national team. They are considering sending a team to the IESF Panama cup in Buenos Aires. Likewise, it appears that they have long-term plans to participate in the 2022 IESF World championship in Indonesia.
Final Words
We greatly appreciate initiatives such as the USEF and IESF that will accelerate the development of Esports. In addition, the growth of Esports enables the development of sectors such as crypto and gambling. The Esports industry is expected to grow up to US$1.62 billion in the coming years. Currently, according to current figures, this value was equivalent to US$ 1.084 billion by 2021.
In fact, let’s take a look at the biggest Esports tournaments of 2022. Then you can understand exactly what we mean.
It seems that in the future, investments in Esports teams and players will increase considerably. We may start seeing Esports internationally, even at the Olympic games. This sounds extremely exciting.
If you want to access up-to-date information about the Esports world, don’t forget to follow us. Goodbye!
Playson, the accomplished digital entertainment supplier, has forged a major global content deal with Light & Wonder to significantly enhance the reach of its extensive games portfolio.
This landmark agreement will enable Light & Wonder’s expansive operator network across the UK, Canada, and Latin America to gain access to Playson’s engaging offering.
UK-based operator Dazzletag Entertainment Ltd was the first to go live with the studio’s creative releases last month, with SUPERCHARGED CLOVERS: HOLD AND WIN and 3 POTS RICHES: HOLD AND WIN launched across its online casino brands.
Light & Wonder’s content marketplace is utilised by some of the biggest operator brands from across the globe, providing them with access to more than 3500 games from a host of third-party studios to allow them to build personalised, mobile-ready player experiences and stay ahead of regulatory changes.
The partnership signifies the strength of Playson’s reputation as a respected and highly sought-after provider to operators globally, as the rising demand for its games looks set to take the studio to new heights for 2025.
Blanka Homor, Sales Director at Playson, said: “Our deal with Light & Wonder is a major milestone in our strategic roadmap, as we embark on the next chapter of our global growth. This agreement expands our reach and allows us to deliver our appealing titles to new operators and players.
“The launch of our titles across Dazzletag’s two brands is a great start, and we are confident this relationship will further elevate our presence in the ever-evolving online casino space.”
Steve Mayes, Senior Director of Partnerships at Light & Wonder, said: “We are delighted to be working with such a highly respected digital entertainment provider and deliver their portfolio to our network. This strengthens our commitment to offering operators the best game releases available.
“We look forward to other successful launches in 2025, as we continue to support our operators with diverse content.”
The post Playson Signs Agreement with Light & Wonder in Global Distribution Deal appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Bragg Gaming Group
Bragg Gaming Announces Preliminary Unaudited Results for the Year Ended December 31, 2024 and 2025 Strategic Initiatives and Guidance
Bragg Gaming Group announced its preliminary unaudited results for the year ended December 31, 2024 based on information currently available to management and certain strategic initiatives and issued financial guidance for 2025, highlighting anticipated double-digit growth in Revenue and Adjusted EBITDA driven by a strategic focus on proprietary and exclusive content.
Anticipated Full Year 2024 Results Highlights
The Company expects the financial results for full year 2024 to include the following highlights: Revenue not less than EUR 102 million, an increase of 9% from EUR 93.5 million for 2023, Adjusted EBITDA of not less than EUR 15.4 million, an increase of 1% from EUR 15.2 million for 2023.
Anticipated Financial Highlights for 2025
Revenue Guidance: Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2025, is expected to reach between EUR 117.5 million and EUR 123.0 million, representing double digit growth compared to the Company’s anticipated 2024 revenue.
Adjusted EBITDA Guidance: Adjusted EBITDA is forecasted to range between EUR 19.0 million and EUR 21.5 million, supported by a shift toward higher-margin product offerings.
Strategic Business Drivers
The Company is expecting to realize its anticipated 2025 results in part, as a result of certain strategic initiatives, including:
• Shift in Revenue Concentration: The percentage of revenue from the Company’s proprietary and exclusive content business is expected to increase providing a more margin-accretive mix and improving profitability with reduced reliance on third party content revenue by year end.
• Growth in Key Markets: Content-focused products, including proprietary, exclusive and aggregated content are projected to drive significant revenue growth in North America and Brazil, which are expected to contribute up to 10% and 15% of revenue, respectively by year-end.
• Brazil’s Growth Potential: The Company believes that its proprietary and exclusive content and aggregation businesses are strategically positioned to capture a significant share of Brazil’s $1.5 billion iGaming market, projected to more than double to over $3.3 billion by 2029, according to H2 Gambling Capital.
• US Market Penetration: The Company believes that it is strategically positioned for significant growth in the US market by leveraging its proprietary and exclusive content portfolio. Through integration with top-tier operators such as DraftKings, FanDuel, Rush Street, Caesars and BetMGM, and licenses in all key iGaming states, the Company’s content is accessible to over 90% of the US iGaming market, valued at over $9.5 billion, according to H2 Gambling Capital. Under the leadership of Neill Whyte, Chief Commercial Officer, and Garrick Morris, SVP (Commercial, US & Canada), veterans of the iGaming industry with multi-decade successful market penetration experience under their belt, the Company has strong leadership to garner enhanced market share. It is expected that proprietary and exclusive content growth in the US will be further driven by the recently announced technology and content partnership with Caesars Entertainment Inc. This partnership, which leverages the Company’s cutting-edge technology and innovative development strengthens the Company’s profile in a competitive and dynamic market.
• Stronger Penetration in Major European Markets: Bragg aims to expand content distribution in key Western European markets, including Italy, UK, Spain, and Sweden, by leveraging existing integrations with top operators and implementing targeted sales strategies.
• Expand Exclusive Partnerships: The Company plans to increase its roster of partner studios to enhance the release cadence of titles in North America. Additionally, Bragg aims to grow exclusive content distribution in Central European markets, including the Czech Republic and Germany, through strategic partnerships with studios such as Gamomat and King Show Games.
• Stability in PAM Business: The Company’s PAM business is expected to remain flat year-over-year, an overall positive, despite the anticipated contraction of the Netherlands market in 2025 due to regulatory changes made in the fourth quarter of 2024.
• Enhanced Technology Profile: The Company continues to innovate with technologies such as FUZE, which provides bonuses, free rounds, tournaments, jackpots, recommendation engine and other engagement and promotional tools seamlessly across all iGaming, Sportbetting and iLottery products, requiring no additional integration. These advanced features enhance player experience and contribute to the growth of the Company’s product portfolio revenue.
• Data and AI Enhancements: By leveraging extensive gaming data, the Company generates actionable insights and employs AI-driven optimizations to elevate player experiences and enhance operator profitability, thereby accelerating profitable growth in proprietary and exclusive content verticals. Opportunities to leverage AI to reduce costs and enhance product margins are also being actively explored.
• Pipeline Opportunities: A robust pipeline of opportunities is under development, which, if realized, could further enhance 2025 performance but are not yet reflected in the current guidance.
• Stock Appreciation Rights Plan: Bragg has also introduced a new Stock Appreciation Rights (SAR) plan for its executive management team, further aligning management interests with those of shareholders. The SAR plan has been implemented under the Company’s Amended and Restated Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan and pays out only if the Company’s share price increases over a three-year period, with a full payout contingent on achieving a four-fold increase from a base price of $5 CAD. This structure ensures that executive compensation is firmly tied to delivering significant shareholder value. Additionally, the plan includes accelerated vesting provisions in the event of a change of control, preserving alignment with shareholder interests in all value-creation scenarios. SAR award payouts may be settled through the payment of cash, the issuance of shares, or through a combination of both, subject to the discretion of the Company’s Board and availability of shares under the Company’s equity incentive plan at the time.
“I am pleased with where we believe 2024 results will land and very excited about the strong growth trajectory outlined in our 2025 guidance. Our strategic investments in proprietary and exclusive content as well as various Data, Player journey and AI enhanced engagement features, are expected to drive our growth in 2025. By focusing on margin-accretive products, we are well-positioned to boost both revenue and profitability while pursuing opportunities in key markets such as Brazil and the United States. Our PAM product remains a top-tier performer, and while our 2025 growth will largely come from the content side of the business, we have exciting prospects to expand our PAM offering. Additionally, I’m particularly proud of the strong executive team that we have assembled at Bragg this past year. The recently announced Caesars deal highlights their impressive capabilities,” said Matevž Mazij, CEO of Bragg.
The post Bragg Gaming Announces Preliminary Unaudited Results for the Year Ended December 31, 2024 and 2025 Strategic Initiatives and Guidance appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
NorthStar Gaming Holdings Inc. announced that the company has, subject to final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, entered into a credit agreement (the “Credit Agreement”) in respect of a senior secured first lien term loan facility providing for loans in an aggregate principal amount of up to $43.4 million CAD (being the approximate equivalent of $30,000,000 USD) (the “Credit Facility”) to be made available by Beach Point Capital Management LP (“Beach Point”). Playtech plc (“Playtech”) and certain Playtech subsidiaries have agreed to provide credit support for certain obligations under the Credit Facility. The Credit Facility represents a significant milestone for NorthStar, strengthening its balance sheet and enabling the Company to continue to accelerate its growth initiatives.
“This is a pivotal moment for NorthStar, marking the largest financing in our history. This Credit Facility strengthens our balance sheet and directly supports our ability to scale operations and drive the business towards profitability with a single-minded focus. We are grateful to Beach Point Capital Management for their trust in our strategy and vision. We are also thankful for Playtech’s steadfast partnership which was instrumental in securing this funding, reinforcing their value both strategically and as a technology provider,” said Michael Moskowitz, Chair and CEO of NorthStar.
“Beach Point has deep experience investing across the gaming sector and is excited to partner with NorthStar to support their strategic initiatives. The online gaming sector has been growing rapidly, and this investment reflects our confidence in the Company’s leadership, market potential, and ability to deliver long-term sustainable growth. Likewise, we value the partnership with Playtech, who are contributing their leading technology, global reach, and strategic vision towards NorthStar’s continued success,” said Gabriel Fineberg, Managing Director at Beach Point.
The purpose of the Credit Facility is to support NorthStar’s continued growth by significantly strengthening the Company’s balance sheet. The Company will use the proceeds of loans made pursuant to the Credit Facility: (i) to repay the aggregate $9.5 million CAD principal amount (plus accrued interest) loaned to the Company by Playtech pursuant to unsecured, interest-bearing promissory notes dated April 25, 2024, September 13, 2024 and December 16, 2024; (ii) to fund an interest reserve account in respect of the Credit Facility in an amount equal to $7,000,000 CAD; (iii) for working capital and general corporate purposes; and (iv) to pay transaction costs in connection with the Credit Facility.
The post NorthStar Gaming Announces $43.4 Million Long-Term Debt Financing appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
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