Affiliate Network

Gambling.com rebrands as Grandstand, aligning its corporate identity with sports data, advertising, and entertainment services. The change follows record 2025 revenue of $165.4M but a net loss of $27.2M, a new CEO, and a recent 25% workforce cut.

Global iGaming operators are shifting from marketing-led growth to compliance-driven strategy, as local licensing becomes essential for financial partnerships, consumer trust, and sustainable business models. Examples from Europe, Brazil, and Latin America show regulation embedding into technology and culture, with operators like 1xBet illustrating how multi-jurisdictional compliance is becoming industry standard.

LuckyHills Casino has earned the AskGamblers Certificate of Trust, an award for operators that excel in player care, responsible gambling, and operational reliability, adding to its earlier Casino Guru Awards win for fairest T&Cs.

SBC Summit Tbilisi 2026 concluded with strong attendance and a Regulatory Forum, while SiGMA North America 2026 is set to debut in Mexico City with 4,000 delegates, reflecting the industry's focus on regional expansion in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Americas.

Established iGaming brands like 1xBet are shifting from rapid expansion to regulated growth, prioritising compliance, risk management, and long-term partnerships as markets demand greater transparency and stability.

N1 Partners introduced its N1 Duality booth concept at iGB L!VE 2026, blending tech with artistry, and highlighted its N1 Sport Promo campaign. Maria Bobrovskaya outlines the company's goal-first approach to conference planning and shares lessons from the sports promo for affiliates.

Affiliates can combat slot fatigue by prioritizing player retention metrics over RTP, evaluating balanced progression systems, and using educational content to explain gamified mechanics, with video-game-style features set to become much more common in future slot development.

SBC has partnered with Conversion Conf to co-produce the Affiliate Leaders Summit 2026 in Lisbon, combining their respective platforms to expand the event's international reach and enhance its conference programme. The summit will run alongside SBC Summit, expected to host 40,000 attendees, and will feature shared flagship experiences including a keynote with Michael Jordan.

iPredicta launches a US-focused prediction market comparison platform aggregating live prices from multiple exchanges, featuring AI-driven explanations, liquidity scoring, and price alerts, with founder Charlotte Nimmo citing the rapid growth of the sector from $15.8B to $63.5B in global trading volume over the past year.

Conor McGregor’s leg injury at UFC 329 and his headline-making $100,000 bet on the Globe Cup 2026 final illustrate his enduring influence on MMA and iGaming, with 1xBet highlighting how his media persona creates engagement opportunities for affiliates via the 1xPartners ecosystem.

DeGaming has partnered with Tequity to integrate its Originals, Publishing, and Trading Games content, increasing the range of customizable and branded titles available to operators via DeGaming's Web3 platform.

Affigates' CPO Vahe Vardanyan reflects on the company's first year, highlighting its end-to-end model of software, vetted affiliates, and managed services to address operators' resource gaps and rebuild trust through transparent payments and fraud detection, with AI supporting but not replacing human relationships.