Soft2Bet, Betsson Group and Kaizen Gaming were among the standout winners at the 2024 SBC Awards, marking the event’s debut in Lisbon.
Held on Thursday 26 September, the final day of the SBC Summit, the prestigious awards ceremony marked its 11th edition at the MEO Arena, one of Europe’s largest indoor sports venues. The evening was a tribute to the extraordinary achievements of global companies and individuals who have driven innovation and transformation within the industry. Over 1,200 industry professionals gathered to recognise excellence across 39 award categories.
Hosted by SBC Awards veteran and TV personality Kirsty Gallacher, alongside former Danish international goalkeeping legend, Peter Schmeichel, the ceremony highlighted the industry’s leading operators, affiliates, suppliers, media organisations and leaders.
Kaizen Gaming upheld their accolade as ‘Casino Operator of the Year,’ and also claimed the title of ‘Operator of the Year – Large’ while bet365 Partners successfully defended their title as ‘Best Affiliate Program’.
In other operator categories, Betsson Group earned the title of ‘Sportsbook Operator of the Year,’ Campeón Gaming claimed the ‘Operator of the Year – Medium,’ and Retabet secured the award for ‘Operator of the Year – Small.’
In the Rising Star categories, Vegas Legends and Boomerang Partners were named ‘Rising Star in Casino’ and ‘Rising Star in Sports Betting,’ respectively. Novibet was awarded the ‘Marketing Campaign of the Year’ award, whilst Coolbet were celebrated for their transformative impact on the industry, taking home the ‘Innovation in Casino & Gaming Entertainment’ award.
Winners in the Affiliate categories included FairPlay Sports Media, which earned the ‘Affiliate Product Innovation’ award, while Casino Guru was named ‘Casino Affiliate of the Year.’ Better Collective retained their title as ‘Sports Affiliate of the Year’.
SOFTSWISS secured the coveted ‘Employer of the Year’ award, while the prestigious ‘Leader of the Year’ honour was shared by Corinne Valletta (Betsson), Marina Ostrovtsova (BGaming), and Uri Poliavich (Soft2Bet).
In addition to being recognised for its outstanding leadership, Soft2Bet also garnered accolades for its cutting-edge offerings, winning awards for both ‘Innovation in Mobile’ and ‘Innovation in Casino Entertainment.’
IDnow was named ‘Fraud & Compliance Solution of the Year’ for the second year running, while Pay4Fun and Noda triumphed in the ‘Payment Innovation of the Year’ and ‘Payment Solution of the Year’ categories, respectively.
Pascal Gaming, Wazdan, and Pragmatic Play each reinforced their positions as innovators in slot design, taking home the awards for ‘Casino / Slots Developer of the Year – Small,’ ‘Casino / Slots Developer of the Year – Medium,’ and ‘Casino / Slots Developer of the Year – Large.’
Other notable winners on the night included:
- Fast Track: Acquisition & Retention Partner
- BETBY: Esports Supplier of the Year
- OpenBet: Land-Based Betting & Gaming Product
- Stats Perform: Sports Data Product
- EveryMatrix: Multi-Channel Supplier
- Gabsys: Rising Star in Sports Betting Innovation / Software
- Evolution: Live Casino Supplier
- Sportradar: Live Betting Product
- Winfinity: Rising Star in Casino Innovation / Software
- Optimove: Marketing & Services Provider of the Year
- Entain Foundation U.S.: Socially Responsible Initiative of the Year
- NSoft: Virtual Sports Supplier
- BetConstruct: Industry Innovation of the Year
- Alea: Platform Provider of the Year
- White Hat Gaming: White Label Supplier of the Year
- Digitain: Sportsbook Supplier of the Year
The awards ceremony capped off the final day of the SBC Summit, which drew 25,000 industry professionals to the Feira Internacional de Lisboa from September 24-26.
Source: Insider Sport