Analyse this – challenges for the betting market
This panel asks the leading analysts what they think of the advances being made by the major listed (and unlisted) firms in terms of football betting. The panel will be asked what they think the shape of the sports-betting industry in Europe will look like in the next few years and who will be the winners and losers as the consolidation phase reaches a conclusion.
Are the operators giving away too much margining bonuses and offers?
Is the current level of marketing spend sustainable?
Is there enough innovation in the football betting product?
Are the operators still reliant on grey market revenues?
Is football just a loss-leader for casino?
Is football betting becoming too predictable?
Simon Davies, Head of European Research, Canaccord Genuity
Simon French, Leisure Analyst & Senior Executive, Cenkos Securities
Ed Birkin, Director, Ignite Research
Chaired by Scott Longley, Clear Concise Media

Self regulation – are we doing enough?
What happens when regulators and governments crack down on the advertising of gambling during pre-watershed football? Does the industry need to repair relationships with the government, sport and the gambling and advertising regulators? How will a pre-watershed ban affect other sponsorship and advertising opportunities? Is there any evidence that gambling advertising truly affects the behaviour of the vulnerable?
Marc Etches, CEO, GambleAware
Jason Chess, Media Lawyer, Wiggin
Clive Hawkswood, CEO, Remote Gambling Association
Chaired by Peter Greenhill, Head of eBusiness, Equiom Group Europe

Refreshment Break

Keeping it clean – preventing match fixing
The Gambling Commission’s Sports Betting Integrity Unit has UK remit, but what is being done internationally? Has the FA’s blanket ban on betting been effective, despite some high profile charges? What onus is on bookmakers to report footballers placing football bets? Should bookmakers resist taking bets on certain competitions?
Does the blanket ban sit right with the amount of betting sponsorship the sport takes?
Bill South,‎ Group Director of Security and Community Affairs, William Hill
Ivor Heller, Commercial Director, AFC Wimbledon
Alfredo Lorenzo, Integrity and Security Director, La Liga
Chaired by Khalid Ali, Secretary General, ESSA

Managing risk – what are investors looking for in the betting market? – Sponsored by SuperScommesse.it
Following a year of mass industry consolidation, is the sports betting still an attractive proposition for investors. A BOFCON high-level investor panel discusses venture funding within the industry examining new propositions, level of investment needed by stakeholders and market disruption.
Session Focus:
– Sports Betting as a marketplace for investors
– Types of investment for betting operators – Venture, debt, start-up,
– Investor relationship with enterprise
– Managing Investor expectations
– Assessing exit strategies – IPO or buyout
– Examining market failures
Marek Šmrha, ‎Investment Manager at Penta Investments
Mark Blandford, Valhalla Investments, Chairman
Shay Segev, COO, GVC Holdings
Christian Edler, Dreamworx Online Ltd, Founder & Investor
Chaired by Ian Hogg, Chairman, GamCrowd

Networking Lunch Break

Betting Leaders Panel – Valuing Changing Dynamics – Sponsored by Secure Trading
Is there going to be further consolidation in the market? How do you compete in the new environment? How is Decision making changing in betting? Concerns over third party suppliers – NYX/Openbet for example
David Bazak, CEO, 10Bet
Per Widerstrom, CEO, Fortuna Entertainment Group
Britt Boeskov, CPO, Kindred Group
Chaired by Jake Pollard, Head of Online Content & Intelligence, iGaming Business

New brands in football betting – Sponsored by Oddslife
What are the ambitions for new brands to enter the market? How are they expecting to disrupt the status quo and make a dent in the market share of bigger, more established operators?
Zeno Ossko, Managing Director, Betstars
Stuart Tilly, CEO, BetOnBrazil
Marcin Sapinski, Managing Director, EnergyBet
Monica Rangel, Chief Business Development Officer, Betcart
Chaired by Paul Petrie, Director, McBookie.com

Refreshment Break

Acquiring minds – Affiliate leaders panel – Sponsored by Betcart
There’s been a lot of M&A in the affiliate arena of late – is the sector becoming more corporate? Is this a good thing? Is there still room for new entrants? Does the relationship between bookmakers and affiliates need to improve?
Are affiliates in a position to start challenging operators’ marketing strategies? Are affiliates going to start taking their own sports bets?
Is regulation a threat?
Robin Eirik Reed, Group CEO, Gaming Innovation Group
Henrik Lykkesten, Board Member, Better Collective
James Garmston, CEO, EasyOdds
Richard Moffat, CEO, OLBG
Chaired by Lee-Ann Johnstone, VP of Biz Dev & Marketing, Income Access

Operating in a multi-asset marketplace – Supplier CEO Panel
How are suppliers tackling consolidated market realities, as operators begin to change their dynamics and corporate values. Are top level suppliers defining effective strategies and product development as operators focus more on in-house competencies? Furthermore, how will the supplier B2B side of the industry be affected by the multi-asset enterprises such as NYX Gaming, Playtech, GVC Holdings
Session Focus:
– Outlining B2B market conditions for suppliers
– Defining importance of independent protocols and best practice
– Market competition – can suppliers compete, will market see a cull
Vahe Baloulian, CEO, BetConstruct
Jacob Lopez Curciel, CEO, OPTIMA
Richard Carter, CEO, SBTech
Kostandina Zafirovska, CEO, BtoBet
Chaired by Robin Hutchison, Director, Square in the Air

Official Betting on Football Networking Drinks

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Kensington Roof Gardens

Spain & LATAM – What is the potential? – Sponsored by R. Franco Group
In 2015 sportsbetting wagers totalled Euro 5.4 billion – a 40% increase on 2014 and the opportunities continue to grow as deregulation slowly makes its way through the regions. But what is the potential of the market? How are the clubs responding to the increased presence of betting brands? And how are operators making the most of their experience in Spain to the LATAM markets?
Gregory Bolle, Head of Global Partnership Sales, LaLiga
Daniel Graetzer, Executive Director, R.Franco Group
Alfredo Lazcano, Gaming, Sports & Entertainment Lawyer, Lazcano Samano
Chaired by Christian Tirabassi, Senior Partner, Ficom Leisure

Africa – coming to a Premier League shirt near you soon – sponsored by Golden Race
Session exploring how a complex and diverse African market can grow beyond its initial steps and create a lucrative and transparent market for local and international stakeholders. How is the industry dealing with market digitalisation and infrastructure? WIll African bookmakers be competing with Asian and UK bookmakers for football marketing real estate? How successful a betting event was the AFCON this year?
Florian Guede, CMO, MyBet
Matt Jellicoe, Co-founder & CEO, Offsidegaming
Mathew Symmonds, Founder & Director, WinDrawWin.com
Barney Barrow, CEO, Cheza Gaming
Chaired by Andrew McCarron

Refreshment Break

Germany – playing the waiting game – Sponsored by Sporting Solutions
The German sports betting market is worth more than £5bn but the delayed process in starting the licensing process means it remains a grey market. Should brands wanting to enter the market wait for deregulation or move now?
Markus Peuler, CEO, MyBet
Alexander Martin, Executive Board Member, Gauselmann AG
Dr. Andreas Blaue, Chief Legal Officer, Sport1 Media GmbH
Chaired by Robin Harrison, Gaming Intelligence, Editor

Italy – developing with the market – Sponsored by Tonucci & Partners
Football and bookmaking have both seen changes in recent times. How will the extended number of licences affected the market? How is the balance between retail and online? Is Serie A competing with the popularity of foreign leagues? Italian regulations were once perceived as ground breaking – have they kept up to speed?
Fabio Schiavolin, CEO, SNAI
Jaap Kalma, Chief Commercial Officer, AC Milan
Francesco Carione, Business Unit Director, La Gazzetta dello Sport
Francesco Rodano, Chief Policy Officer, Playtech
Chaired by Quirino Mancini, Partner, Tonucci & Partners

Networking Lunch Break

Eastern Europe – New opportunities in the CIS and beyond – Sponsored by Inbet Games
How is the Russian market adapting to the gambling regulations? What crossover is there between the different jurisdictions? How are the local sports approaching partnerships with bookmakers?
Sergey Portnov, CEO, Parimatch
Alexey Sinyushkin, COO, BetOlimp
Nikos Halikias, CEO, Favbet
Dražan Planinić, Sportsbook Managing Director, Nsoft
Paruyr Shahbazyan, Founder & CEO, Bookmaker-Ratings.ru
Chaired by Dan Iliovici, Executive manager, Rombet

Scandinavia – a hotbed of gambling innovation – Sponsored by OPTIMA
Denmark is leading the way with its mix of state owned and private operators – what can its neighbours learn from its success? Why is there such a hotbed of gaming talent in the region compared to the rest of Europe?
Niels Erik Folmann, CEO, Danske Spil
Jesper Kaarbrink, CEO, Mr Green
Johan Styren, CEO, Leo Vegas
Chaired by Keith O’Loughlin, Executive VP Sportsbook, Openbet

Refreshment Break

North America – is the tide turning for sports betting support? – Sponsored by Don Best
Will Trump mean sports-betting will be legalised in the US? Will there be opportunities for European bookmakers? How do US punters bet?
What lessons can be learned from Canada’s approach to sports betting?
Jon Thompson, Trading Consultant
Quinton Singleton, VP, NYX Gaming
Ed Alfaro, CFO, SportsbookReview
Matthew Cullen, CEO, San Manuel Digital
Chaired by Benjie Cherniak, CEO, Don Best

Asia – still leading the way in global betting market – Sponsored by Ganapati Malta
Will the Chinese football revolution compete against European leagues for punter’s attention? Are the bigger regional sports (such as IPL) causing governments to get more involved in the betting sector? Is the Premier League still the draw it once was?
Jim Yu, CEO & Founder at TCM Inplay / Group Senior VP at 500.com
Nelson Ferrigni, Ogoun Consulting, Owner & MD
Andre Rodrigues, CEO, Goldblue
Chaired by Rory Anderson, Consultant, 12Bet

Official Betting on Football Networking Drinks

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Kensington Roof Gardens

Esports – the new digital engagement with football fans?
Will Football Clubs’ Esports teams open the door for bookmakers to connect and engage with a new audience? PSG, Manchester City, Schalke, Sporting CP…all these clubs are now involved in esports to some degree. With more clubs entering esports every week, this panel will look at why they’re doing it and the differences in their approaches.
Pedro Silva, Executive Director, Qwatti Agency
Martin Wyss,  MD & Founder, STARK Esports
Wouter Sleijffers, CEO, Fnatic
Chaired by Ollie Ring, Esports Insider

How to acquire and engage football punters
Dave Watkins, Sales Director, BetGenius

Visible education: The Digital Opportunity with Google
Digital is no longer the daunting aspect of a marketeers’ strategy planning, it has become one of the necessities. How can operators without a huge advertising war chest make a mark in an increasingly competitive market and what are the trends that businesses need to capitalise on? Find out where the opportunities lie in the world’s number 1 search engine.
Onur Bildik, Senior Business Development Consultant, Google Marketing Solutions, EMEA

Data Protection: Marketing and operational implications of the new rules
The enacting of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”, applicable starting from May 25th, 2018) is set to have a significant impact and betting and gaming companies need to be gearing up now for the new privacy rules. The paper shall outline the main practical fulfillments to be complied with by betting and gaming companies when processing personal data.
Professor Alessandro Del Ninno, Tonucci & Partners

Official Betting on Football Networking Drinks

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Kensington Roof Gardens

Registration Coffee
Morning coffee provided for delegates arriving first thing until the start of the first conference session

Exhibition Area Opens
The exhibition areas in The Trinity and The Foyer opens for the day.

Refreshment Break
A chance to perk up and do some early networking away from the conference floor

Refreshment Break
A break for refreshments and the chance to do some more networking away from the conference floor

Networking Drinks
The chance to chat and relax after a full first day

Betting on Football C-Level Dinner
An exclusive, invite-only get together for industry leaders at a secret location

Betting on Football Affiliates Dinner
An exclusive, invite-only get together for sports betting affiliates at a secret location

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Kensington Roof Gardens
A chance to let your hair down!

DFS – king of customer engagement
Does DFS need to be a stand alone product to work? How are bookmakers using DFS as a customer engagement tool? Is the DFS player the ideal demographic for bookmakers?
Riccardo Mittiga, Founder, Sportito
Valery Bollier, CEO, Oulala
John Gordon, CEO, Premier Punt
Björn Fjellby, CEO Malta, Scout Gaming Group
Chaired by Tal Itzhak Ron, Managing Partner, Tal Ron, Drihem & Co

Refreshment Break

Premier partners – international reach of the Premier League
Half of the premier league shirt sponsors are from the gambling industry, with the majority of brands looking at foreign markets. Is the international appeal increasing? What opportunities are there for UK brands? Is there going to be a backlash against clubs sporting betting brands, and if so, what can be done about it?
How do regional betting partners fit into the mix?
Mark Davies, Former Head of New Business, Leicester City FC
Philip Canavan, Director, SEM Global

Shaun Simmonds, Managing Director, Supersub Sports Management
Chaired by Gwenole Andrieux, Managing Director, DICE London

A different league – is there better value away from the EPL?
The Premier League takes a lot of attention – but the EFL still has large international coverage. But how far does it extend? Does the Championship provide a better ROI? What about lower down the pyramid?
Mark Bullock, Commercial Manager, Nottingham Forest FC
Jaap Kalma, Chief Commercial Officer, AC Milan
Adrian Filby, Commercial Director, Celtic FC
Chaired by Clive Russell, MD, BD Sports Rights

Networking Lunch Break

Creative approach – innovation in football betting
What new products are hitting the market in 2017? What makes the football sector so appealing for new start-ups? What do they have to do to be successful?
Assaf Stieglitz, Founder & CEO, Odds1x2
Adam Kalmanson, Founder, Bookee
Sadok Kohen, Founder, Betbull
Adam Cole, CEO, Football Index
Chaired by Graham Carrick, Founder & CEO, RunLastMan

Affiliate branding – a move into traditional marketing channels – Sponsored by LeoVegas
With affiliates increasingly adopting traditional marketing channels, is the sector competing with operators more than ever now?
Where will this trend end? Does it mean that affiliates have to become more brand conscious? Will affiliates start competing for shirt sponsorships? Or will affiliates become the natural marketing arm for bookmakers, removing them from the political crosshairs?
What role do affiliates play in customer retention rather than activation?
Jonathan Edelshaim, General Manager, Natural Intelligence
Riccardo Mittiga, CEO & Founder, Superscommesse
Matthew Glazier, Managing Director, Bookies.com
Fintan Costello, Revenue Engineers, CMO
Chaired by Tom Galanis, Director TAG Media

Refreshment Break

Reaching an audience through content
Content is king, but the way the public interacts with it is constantly changing. Is social sharing the best way of measuring success?
Twitter/ Snapchat/Instagram – how are these making inroads to the Facebook and Youtube generation?
How will ‘fake news’ alter how Google and Facebook interact with news sites? What will be the standard?
Sanjit Atwal, CEO / Co-founder, Squawka
Matt Wilson, Co-founder, Ball Street
Chris Harrison, Industry Head – Financial Trading and Egaming, Google
Martin Crawford, Head of Content, Snack-Media
Chaired by Paul McNea, Director, Igaming Performance

Star Signing – are ambassadors a better marketing tool?
As Ladbrokes’ use of Chris Kamara demonstrates, a good ambassador can be more effective (and cheaper) that teaming with a football club. But what are ambassadors prepared to do with betting – and how are they using social media to their advantage?
Chris Kamara, Sports Personality
Jim Erwood, Founder, Extra Time Management
Paul Brighten, CEO, Entourage Sports & Entertainment
Chaired by Ian Nolan, CCO, Dugout

Official Betting on Football Networking Drinks

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Under The Bridge

Future tense: What will the trading floor look like in five years’ time? – Sponsored by Matchbook
Technology has transformed the operation of sports-betting in recent years, but what changes are yet to come? Has full automation been simply delayed? Are the traders set to become extinct? Is trading any longer a key component of any bookmaking operation? Or is it now just about marketing? Will sports trading become more to resemble the black box trading of the financial markets without human intervention? What are the inherent dangers of this? What part will AI play in the sportsbook of the future?
Christopher Langeland, Managing Director, Gaming Innovation Group
Jim Humberstone, GVC Holdings, Group Trading & B2B Director
Paolo Personeni, ‎Managing Director, Managed Trading Services – Betradar
Jens Nielsen, Head of Sportsbook, Danske Spil
Chris Duncan, Adviser at Oddslife, Co-Founder at Betsson

Refreshment Break

From cash out to edit my bet – control moves to the punters – Sponsored by Bookmaker-Ratings
What challenges do the new marketing promotions throw up for the traders? Are the traders already ceding control to the punters (via the algorithms)? Are there more bet types and innovations hidden within the current data sets? BTTS wasn’t even around five years’ ago – and now it’s one of the most popular types of bet – so what other potential popular bets are now hidden in plain sight? Will there be any distinction in future between pre-match and in-play? What are the benefits of keeping bets alive for as long as possible?
Bernard Marantelli, CEO, Colossus Bets
Andrew Wright, Head of Football Trading, SkyBet
Tom Warburton, Head of Sportsbook Product, Betgenius
Eoin Ryan, Head of Sportsbook Product, BetVictor
Chaired by Mark Langdon, Football Expert, Racing Post

Keeping it real time – the challenges of live betting data – Sponsored by Ardenta
How do you gather effective data form live betting markets and user engagement on products which can be used for the benefit of all operator channels (marketing, retention, operations, customer services, compliance etc… ).
Henrik Lykkesten, Board Member, Better Collective
David Lampitt, Managing Director Group Operations, Betradar
Jon Thompson, Director of Risk Management, Private Investment Company
Chris McKenzie, Head of Product and Trading, 888 Holdings
Chaired by Jonathan Smith, Sportsbook Training Services

Networking Lunch Break

KEYNOTE SESSION – One on one with John O’Reilly – Sponsored by SBC Global
Not many people have held director level positions at the traditional big three UK bookmakers, but John O’Reilly has managed that in his 25 year career in the industry.
During this session, he will share his thoughts on the current state of the betting market and how its relationship with the sport has developed over time.
John O’Reilly, Non-Executive Director, William Hill
Chaired by Scott Longley, Founder, Clear Concise Media

Football association – emulating the beautiful game
How can football themed products complement the real life action? Where does virtual football and football slots fit in? Are they destined to be side games, or Can they plug the gap when there is no huge football tournament in the summer?
Martin Wachter, CEO, Golden Race
Simon Westbury, Sales Director, VsoftCo
Tim Green, Managing Director, Highlight Games
Chaired by Simon Burrell, Consultant

Refreshment Break

How SSBTs are changing the face of betting shop business
The evidence from the UK bookmakers would seem to be that SSBTs are replacing lost OTC revenue in betting shops. Which is good news for the bookies. Yet the skew on SSBTs is marked towards football betting and this feature would seem to herald a different way of understanding the retail betting environment.
If betting on machines became more popular, and if as it seems likely, it remains a format dominated by football, then what does it say about retail betting for the future? How will the industry cater for a more football-focused customer? What else can it add over and above in-play and virtuals?
Howard Chisholm, MD, Chisholm Bookmakers & Director, Bookmakers Technology Consortium
John Pettit, MD – UK & Ireland, Best Gaming Technology
Predrag Popovic, Director, Fincore
Jamie Maskey, Commercial Director, OPTIMA
Chaired by Suzanne Davies, Director, Clifton Davies

The future of exchange betting
With Betfair now part of a major sportsbook organisation, is there an opening in the betting exchange arena for other brands to start taking some more market share? Where are the opportunities for the independent betting exchange? How important is the B2B trade for liquidity? Where is the future growth for the market as a whole? How robust is the practice of taking prices from Betfair’s early markets?
Mark Brosnan, CEO, Matchbook
Todd Johnson, COO, Smarkets
Lennart Gillberg, Founder, Spiffx
Chaired by Tina Thakor-Rankin, Principal Consultant, 1710 Gaming

Official Betting on Football Networking Drinks

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Under The Bridge

Betting on Georgia Roundtable – Sponsored by SBCnews.co.uk
Georgia has become a Regional Gambling Hub as it is the only “Fully” Regulated Market in the region, with the sophisticated and clear regulation system separating online and offline operations for Sports Betting.
It has become an attractive gambling spot for international gambling brands like Sweden Betsson, that entered Georgia with $85 mln acquisition in 2015.
How is the market structured, who are the main players and what are the opportunities for the bookmakers in Newly Formulated Regulated Market?
Lasha Machavariani, Consultant & SBC Ambassador

Bookmakers Technology Consortium – Regional Meeting
CLOSED TO DELEGATES

US Sports Betting – now is the time to push for legalisation
Matthew Cullen hosts an intimate roundtable to explain the aims of a new political coalition & lobby group (US Sports Integrity Alliance), which aims to pull the US Gaming stakeholders and European industry together in order to put the case for sports betting legislation to the powers that be in the USA.
Presented by Matthew Cullen, CEO, San Manuel Digital

Official Betting on Football Networking Drinks

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Under The Bridge

Registration Coffee
Morning coffee provided for delegates arriving first thing until the start of the first conference session

Exhibition Area Opens
The exhibition areas in The Trinity and The Foyer opens for the day.

Refreshment Break
A chance to perk up and do some early networking away from the conference floor

Refreshment Break
A break for refreshments and the chance to do some more networking away from the conference floor

Networking Drinks
The chance to chat and relax after day 2

Betting on Football C-Level Dinner
An exclusive, invite-only get together for industry leaders at a secret location

Betting on Football Affiliates Dinner
An exclusive, invite-only get together for sports betting affiliates at a secret location

Official Betting on Football Networking party at Under The Bridge
A chance to let your hair down!