EGR Power 50: 21-30 (2018)

21. Betway (20)

Betway continued its all-out marketing blitz in 2018, with sponsorships of racing, snooker, football and esports a clear priority, along with a £100m war chest earmarked for international expansion. However despite the massive ad spend, Betway CEO Anthony Werkman was adamant the operator turned a profit in 2017, telling EGR: “The business is exceeding our original forecasts, and we have seen revenues increase five-fold over the last three years. I’m glad to say that the business in 2017 was profitable and we will continue to re-invest as we gain traction in a number of new and existing markets across the globe.”

22. Mr Green (29)

Mr Green has shuffled up the ranks once again on a heavy product focus and a handful of strategic acquisitions which contributed to 51% revenue growth in Q3 to SEK445.2m (£37.9m). The freshly rebranded group this year renewed its financial targets for 2020, raising revenue expectations by 5%. Much of the group’s focus has been on product and its unique 3D-rendered live casino product and express registration function have attributed a great deal to profit growth. A major group rebrand to MRG has helped the Swedish company to establish a more mature and varied brand image as it swooped in this year to acquire Redbet parent company Evoke Gaming and Baltics-facing sportsbook 11.lv. William Hill acquired the operator in October and is expected to operate its Malta hub out of MRG’s headquarters.

23. Tombola (25)

Tombola has had another successful year and thus climbs up two places in the 2018 rankings as the bingo operator continues to initiate its five-year strategy to double turnover. This company game plan has led to a strong financial performance according to confidential numbers seen for the Power 50, while its most recent published accounts with Companies House revealed turnover for the 12 months ended 30 April 2017 was up 24% to £73.7m. The privately owned company, which won Bingo Operator and Marketing Campaign at this year’s EGR Operator Awards, recently moved into a new headquarters in Sunderland to aid its growth plans, while expansion into new regulated markets, including Sweden, is also on the cards in the next few months.

24. SBOBET (15)

While SBOBET is relatively unknown in the UK since announcing its departure from the market in 2014 following the introduction of the 15% PoC tax, it is in the Far East where the bookmaking powerhouse is a firmly established brand. However, the Celton Manx-powered operator, which specialises in high-volume, low-margin Asian Handicap markets, made inroads into Germany this summer by inking a deal to become the official betting partner in Asia of German soccer giants Borussia Dortmund. As part of the deal, which runs for the 2018-19 season, SBOBET is promoted across the club’s digital channels and it’s an opportunity for the bookmaker to tap into the growing interest in the Bundesliga across Asia.

25. 12BET (23)

Asia powerhouse 12BET has continued its strategy of finding niche, but highly lucrative, sponsorship opportunities, which tie in with the company’s aim of boosting its brand prowess in its core markets. Since last year’s rankings were released, the TGP Europe-powered operator has secured, for example, a betting partnership deal with the YONEX All England Badminton Championships, which has an extensive TV audience in Asia, adding to the sponsorship of the International Table Tennis Federation World Cup. Earlier this year, 12BET also signed up to use Optimove’s marketing platform in a bid to improve the operator’s customer conversions and retention rates.

26. Lottomatica (24)

While the impending blanket advertising ban is the perpetual grey cloud that currently hangs over Italy, the country’s online gambling market has witnessed strong growth in 2018 and local brand Lottomatica continues to be one of the market leaders. In fact, Lottomatica could well stand to be one of the biggest benefactors of the ban given its history in the market and retail legacy – a luxury that foreign operators simply won’t have. Boutique research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming estimates the operator was the fourth largest brand in the overall online market last year, while it also performs particularly well in the casino vertical.

27. Tabcorp (32)

It’s now almost a year since the A$11bn mega-merger was finally completed between Melbourne-based Tabcorp and rival Tatts Group, creating a gambling powerhouse to compete more effectively with foreign brands. Full-year earnings announced in August showed annual revenue for the enlarged business had increased 71% to A$3.8bn, up from A$2.2bn last year due, in part, to the World Cup. Yet there have been bumps in the road, notably the $90.5m Tabcorp had to pay News UK to exit the doomed Sun Bets venture in the UK earlier this year. Furthermore, there are headwinds in Australia, including new PoC tax regimes and a ban introduced last March on gambling advertising during the daytime (racing excluded).

28. Gaming Innovation Group (36)

The past year has been 12 months of revision for GiG. Having launched the final piece of its B2B puzzle with a game development arm, the Oslo Exchange-listed operator has renewed its B2C focus on the best performing brands. Q2 revenues rose 20% year-on-year to €24.2m as GiG sought to increase revenues and reduce operation costs across its spate of brands. Sweden-facing SuperLenny was shuttered and relaunched as an affiliate site and Thrills as a Pay N Play product in the Nordics. At the time Group CEO Robin Reed said GiG would shake up the no-registration space with much improved UX/UI to its competitors. Every couple of years or so the group reshuffles its senior management to encourage fresh thinking and a new focus.

29. DraftKings (N/A)

DraftKings enters the list for the first time this year partly on the strength of its circa $250m DFS revenues, but also on the sudden power it wields in the US betting market. DraftKings was first to market in New Jersey to the surprise of just about everyone, including DraftKings CEO Jason Robins, and has made it count. In October the firm generated more than half of all online sports betting revenues in New Jersey, at close to $5m. The operator has also hired a host of Vegas bookmaking veterans as it starts building up a retail estate to go alongside its digital business.

30. Stride Gaming (22)

Stride Gaming’s Daub Alderney subsidiary was on the receiving end of a £7.1m fine from the UK Gambling Commission in November. Stride had originally set aside £4m for the financial penalty, but a UKGC regulatory panel decided that £7.1m was more reflective of the bingo operator’s anti-money laundering and social responsibility failings. Before the fine, Stride had already pledged to pivot towards an international growth plan for its B2B business, Stride Together. It recently stated it feels the increasingly stringent UK regulations will force small operators out the market and provide the setting for them to take share in the bingo-led casino market.