In today’s online betting and gaming industry, player experience has become one of the biggest differentiators between attracting a player and keeping them engaged.
But creating a stronger experience is no longer simply about adding more rewards, missions or personalised features. Operators must understand how different players behave, tailor journeys to their needs and manage the risks that come with deeper engagement.
That challenge becomes even more complex for licensed operators working across multiple jurisdictions, where player expectations can differ. Businesses must find ways to strengthen engagement while protecting players and supporting sustainable growth.
SBC Summit’s Player Experience Academy has been designed to show how those priorities can work together through a hands-on, expert-led learning experience.
Combining keynote insight, panel discussion, a practical case study and an interactive workshop, the Academy will move beyond theory and help delegates understand how responsible player experience strategies work in practice.
Taking place on the afternoon of Tuesday, 29 September, in Sala Tejo at the MEO Arena, the Academy will explore the strategies, technologies, psychology and ethical considerations shaping modern player engagement.
In this guide, we’ll break down some of the sessions, introduce the experts leading the Academy and explore the practical skills attendees can take back to their businesses.
Table of Contents
How the Player Experience Academy Works
The Player Experience Academy is built around one key principle: show, don’t tell.
Through a blend of keynote presentations, expert panels, case studies and interactive workshops, delegates won’t simply hear what responsible player experience looks like; they’ll examine how different strategies work in practice, explore the risks operators must manage and learn how to tailor engagement to different customer segments.
Designed for marketers, product teams, CRM specialists, compliance professionals and operators, each session tackles a different part of the player journey, from personalisation and targeted retention to risk management and responsible design.
By the end of the Academy, delegates will know how to assess engagement strategies, tailor experiences to different player segments and build journeys that support both commercial performance and sustainable growth.
What you’ll achieve by attending:
- Design more engaging player experiences by understanding the mechanics behind missions, progression systems, battle passes and reward structures that drive long-term retention.
- Build engagement responsibly by learning how behavioural psychology, ethics and responsible gambling can work together to create sustainable player experiences without crossing regulatory or ethical boundaries.
- Understand how responsible player experience can strengthen retention by embedding player protection, behavioural insight and clearer communication throughout the customer journey.
- Create more personalised player journeys by learning how to identify different player types and tailor rewards, progression and CRM strategies to maximise engagement while supporting safer gambling objectives.
Let’s take a closer look at each session.
Session 1: Player Experience Academy 2026 Update: As it is now and what’s next?
📅 Tuesday, 29 September | 13:30–14:00 | Sala Tejo at the MEO Arena
The Academy will open with a strategic overview of player experience across the gaming industry.
The keynote will examine how evolving player expectations, advances in engagement technologies and increasing commercial pressure and challenges are redefining product design, retention strategies, and the end-to-end customer journey.
Building on this foundation, the afternoon sessions will explore the next generation of player engagement, highlighting how operators can leverage personalisation, gamification, behavioural science and data-driven insights to create experiences that are more relevant, immersive and sustainable. Delegates will gain a practical understanding of how these capabilities can drive stronger customer relationships, improve long-term value and deliver responsible commercial growth in an increasingly challenging market.
What you’ll walk away with:
- An overview of the current player experience landscape.
- The trends changing how operators approach engagement and retention.
- Insight into how player expectations and product priorities are evolving.
Session 2: Driving Innovation in Responsible Player Experience
📅 Tuesday, 29 September | 14:00–14:45 | Sala Tejo at the MEO Arena
This panel will explore how behavioural design and layered safeguards can work together to build experiences that are compelling, responsible and commercially sustainable.
The conversation will also tackle the question of how operators apply these strategies across multiple jurisdictions. With multi-jurisdictional requirements varying widely, balancing player wellbeing against retention and long-term growth means no single approach fits everywhere.
What you’ll walk away with:
- How behavioural design can support stronger player engagement and retention.
- Ways to build player protection into the experience from the outset.
- Approaches to balancing commercial objectives with player wellbeing.
- Practical considerations for scaling responsible player experience across multiple jurisdictions.
- Insight into how responsible innovation can support sustainable growth.
Meet the panel:
- Chris McGowan (CEO, Scatters Group) – McGowan has worked in iGaming since 2002 and brings a background in evolutionary behavioural psychology, giving him a strong understanding of how product mechanics influence player behaviour.
- Justin Muscat Galán (Senior Product Manager – Player Rewards & Gamification, Betsson Group) – Muscat Galán focuses on player rewards, gamification and engagement, including how operators can use these mechanics effectively without crossing into exploitative design.
- David Nardaia (CEO, Lambda Gaming) – Nardaia leads the studio behind Avion, where player feedback, rapid experimentation and intuitive product design guide the development process.
- Christoffer Grönlund (CEO, Mindboogie Affiliate Marketing & Growth) – Grönlund brings more than 18 years of iGaming experience across affiliate marketing, customer acquisition and market growth.
Session 3: What iGaming Can Learn from Responsible Player Experience?
This presentation, supported by some C-level panellists, explores how iGaming can draw on responsible player experience practices to build engagement that’s both effective and sustainable, and the lessons operators can apply to their own player experiences.
What you’ll walk away with:
- Player experience strategies grounded in responsible engagement.
- New approaches to building loyalty without compromising player protection.
- Lessons from businesses that balance retention with player wellbeing.
- Concepts that can be adapted for sports betting and online casino operators.
Meet one of the instructors, Arjan Korstjens (Principal Trainer, Casino Marketing Academy)
Arjan Korstjens is an international casino marketing consultant, speaker and trainer with experience across both land-based and online gaming. He has advised operators including Holland Casino, SBM Casinos Monaco, Casinos Austria and Olympic Entertainment Group, specialising in promotional strategy, responsible gaming, database marketing and loyalty programmes.
At the Player Experience Academy, Korstjens will draw on that experience to explore how responsible player experience can support stronger engagement, clearer communication and more sustainable customer relationships. His session will help attendees consider how player protection can be embedded within wider product, marketing and retention strategies rather than treated solely as a compliance requirement.
Session 4: Responsible Player Experience: Managing Risk for Commercial Sustainability
This case study explores how responsible player experience can balance commercial performance with player protection. Attendees will examine how behavioural design, engagement mechanics and retention strategies can be used to build sustainable, lower-risk player experiences.
What you’ll walk away with:
- How responsible player experience supports long-term commercial sustainability.
- Strategies for identifying and mitigating behavioural, operational and reputational risk.
- How to balance engaging design and mechanics with effective player protection
- Practical approaches to building sustainable player experience frameworks across multiple markets.
Case Study Expert: Dr Colin Lawrence (Former Senior Regulator and Former Director of the Risk Specialists Division, FSA/Bank of England)
Dr Lawrence brings more than 30 years of experience across risk, regulation and financial services.
A former senior regulator, he has advised global financial institutions, central banks and regulators on risk strategy, governance and sustainable business models.
He is a former Professor of Risk in International Trade and Finance at Columbia University and is currently a visiting Professor of Risk at University College London, Department of Computer Science.
At the Academy, he will apply his expertise to the commercial and player-protection risks surrounding engagement mechanics such as battle passes and mission-based rewards.
Session 5: Know Your Player: Building Gamification for Different Customer Segments
This interactive workshop explores how operators can identify different player types and tailor gamification strategies to match behaviours, motivations and risk profiles, creating more engaging and responsible player experiences.
Workshop Leader: Helen Walton (Chief Commercial Officer and Co-Founder, G Gaming)
Helen Walton brings more than a decade of experience creating games that combine creative design with strong commercial performance. During the workshop, she will help attendees understand player motivations and behaviours, helping operators build more personalised gamification strategies that improve engagement, retention and long-term player experience.
What you’ll walk away with:
- How to identify different player personas and engagement styles.
- Ways to personalise missions, rewards and progression systems.
- Strategies for improving retention without taking a one-size-fits-all approach.
- How player segmentation can support both commercial and responsible gambling objectives
How to Secure Your Spot at the Player Experience Academy
Access to the Player Experience Academy is available to those with an Education+ pass.
Available as a premium add-on for all SBC Summit ticket types, the Education+ Upgrade Pass is priced at just €249.
To purchase an Education+ Pass, click here. After completing the quick form, you will then receive a dedicated payment link to complete your upgrade.
Final Thoughts
Great player experiences are not created by adding more mechanics for the sake of it.
They come from understanding who the player is, what keeps them engaged and where responsibility must shape the product.
The Player Experience Academy will help delegates bring those elements together. Through expert discussion, practical case studies and hands-on learning, delegates will leave better equipped to personalise player journeys, manage risk and create sustainable experiences that support both customer loyalty and commercial growth.
