Latest News

Beyond Ancient Egypt: Are ‘adult-themed’ slots the future of iGaming?

Published

8 months ago

May 27, 2025

beyond-ancient-egypt:-are-‘adult-themed’-slots-the-future-of-igaming?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

In the dynamic landscape of online slots, a notable shift has recently occurred when it comes to game themes. Breaking away from tried and tested themes such as Ancient Egypt, Greek mythology, the Wild West, fishing and fruits, a new wave of tongue-in-cheek ‘adult-themed’ slots is emerging. With this controversial approach, pioneering suppliers aim to stand out in a crowded marketplace, capturing the attention of players and influencers alike by introducing playful yet potentially provocative content. While these games generate initial buzz and conversation, the critical question remains whether their novelty can translate into sustained player loyalty and long-term success.

We asked Wicked Games, a studio developing this genre of games, Thunderkick, a more classic slot developer, and a streamer, Fruity Slots, whether they thought the shift towards adult-themed content really is the future of iGaming.

Karl von Brockdorff, Head of Brands at Wicked Games: “For years, slot providers have stuck to the same safe themes because they worked. And fair enough—people like what’s familiar. But familiarity gets boring. Players aren’t stupid; they’ve seen it all before.

At Wicked Games, we’re just making the kind of slots we’d actually want to play—ones that don’t take themselves too seriously, that make you laugh, maybe even make you uncomfortable. It’s not about being ‘edgy’ for the sake of it. It’s about giving players something with actual personality, something they’ll remember; something they would share.

Are adult-themed slots the future of iGaming? Maybe, maybe not. But games that feel fresh, that aren’t afraid to have a point of view? That’s where things are headed. And we’re all in for that.”

Johanna Backlund, Head of Marketing at Thunderkick: “In an industry where thousands of new games are released annually, the rise of playful, adult-themed slots is an intelligent PR move designed to make players and influencers take notice. When done the right way, it can be bold, fun, and spark conversation – a solid strategy to stand out in a competitive environment.

The divisive question is whether these products have genuine staying power. They are entertaining to try and exciting to talk about, but do they encourage the kind of loyalty that drives player retention? These themes might capture the industry’s attention initially, but at the end of the day, it’s the gameplay, mechanics, math, and player experience, that determines longevity.

Rather than simply delivering the shock factor, the real challenge is ensuring the product itself has sufficient substance to keep players engaged session after session. The novelty may fade, and it is the overall quality of content that will ultimately define success.”

Josh Green, Managing Director of BetUp Media which operates influencer brands, Fruity Slots and Hideous Slots: “This reliance on well-known themes has arguably fostered a degree of stagnation within the iGaming ecosystem. While conventional genres undoubtedly retain broad appeal, their persistent repetition can lead to a lack of innovation and diversity, potentially tiring more seasoned players.

These make up a significant portion of our audience, those who engage with gambling content recreationally, and many now prefer adult-themed titles over traditional slots. Consequently, studios demonstrating a willingness to break free from this cycle have often experienced rapid growth and visibility, particularly among experienced players eager for novel and engaging content and across our streaming team seeking something new and entertaining to play to our audience.

While some critics might attribute the success of adult-themed slots to mere shock value, their emergence represents a more nuanced strategy, a deliberate statement of differentiation that can capture the attention of players increasingly seeking alternatives in a saturated market. These studios’ success across our audience demonstrates that this approach is working.

Looking ahead, this push for differentiation raises the question of whether such widespread efforts will truly enable individual studios to stand out, or if the pendulum will begin to swing back towards more traditional approaches. The challenge will be maintaining a unique identity in a space that’s increasingly full of outliers.”

The post Beyond Ancient Egypt: Are ‘adult-themed’ slots the future of iGaming? appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Latest News

Welsh great-grandfather wins £291,000 with The Pools

Published

47 minutes ago

January 13, 2026

Wladimir P.

welsh-great-grandfather-wins-291,000-with-the-pools

Liverpool fan Peter celebrating bumper payout thanks to Man Utd’s late 4-4 draw with Bournemouth

A Welsh great-grandfather is celebrating a life-changing £291,000 win with The Pools, after selecting eight score draws, including Manchester United’s 4-4 Premier League December classic with Bournemouth.

Peter, 77 from Pontypridd, has played The Pools for over 40 years and enjoyed a magical Christmas and New Year to remember after securing the lucrative jackpot via his Classic Pools selections last month.

Seven correct selections from a rollercoaster weekend of European football in December saw Peter go into the Monday evening fixture at Old Trafford needing a score draw to land a life-changing sum. A topsy-turvy affair saw eight goals scored, including Eli Junior Kroupi’s 84^th-minute equaliser, which brought home the eight-fold coupon.

Peter’s win was the biggest on Classic Pools since September 2024 when a lucky player took home £318,292.

Peter said: “I had selected the eight fixtures, but wasn’t watching the Manchester United game – it wasn’t until I received the phone call the next morning that I realised I’d won! I was shocked, happy, crying – all those emotions at once!

“I’m actually a Liverpool fan, so it’s fair to say we had a good 2025 – lifting the Premier League trophy and then winning on The Pools the week before Christmas. There was certainly plenty of celebrating across the festive period!

“This would be special at any time of year, but especially around Christmas and New Year, it was amazing, it couldn’t be better.”

‘This money means security and happiness for my family’

Peter was diagnosed with a rare spinal disability around 20 years ago, meaning most of his time is spent at his home in South Wales. But having always looked forward to playing The Pools each week, his win now offers his family a bright future.

He added: “The Pools has always been a hobby for me and I look forward to playing every weekend. I was diagnosed with syringomyelia in my 50s, a neurological disorder of the spine, so spend most of my time at home.

“I haven’t been able to travel for a long time, we haven’t been on holiday for a number of years, but I’m hoping we can maybe now book a trip to Spain with all the family.

“I’ve won small amounts with The Pools before, but nothing quite like this! It’s an amazing amount of money for my wife Janet, the children, the grandchildren, and the great-grandchildren too.

“We live in a house, but we can now hope to move into a bungalow, all on one floor, which will help me a lot. This money means happiness and security for my family, which will allow us to plan for the future.”

James Arnold, CEO of The Pools, said: “We’re all about celebrating all wins at The Pools, both big and small, but it’s fair to say one of our customers in Wales pulled off quite the coup with this Classic Pools selection last month.

“Landing eight correct score draws, ending in Manchester United’s memorable 4-4 draw with Bournemouth, has given Peter a life-changing sum, and we’re delighted to see the positive impact the winnings can have both for Peter, his wife Janet and all his family.

“Peter has played with The Pools for more than 40 years, so to see his success one week before Christmas, the same year his beloved Liverpool won the Premier League… it’s fair to say you couldn’t write the script for this one!”

Peter’s winning coupon

Saturday 13^th December

Telstar v NEC – 2-2
Waregem v RAAL La Louviere – 2-2

Sunday 14^th December

AC Milan v Sassuolo – 2-2
Bayern Munich v Mainz – 2-2
Freiburg v Borussia Dortmund – 1-1
NAC Breda v Utrecht – 1-1
Genk v Westerlo – 1-1

Monday 15^th December

Man Utd v Bournemouth – 4-4

The post Welsh great-grandfather wins £291,000 with The Pools appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Boomerang Partners

The exclusive ‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’ by Boomerang Partners will help affiliate teams with strategy planning

Published

6 hours ago

January 13, 2026

Wladimir P.

the-exclusive-‘sports-marketing-&-betting-calendar-2026’-by-boomerang-partners-will-help-affiliate-teams-with-strategy-planning

Boomerang Partners has prepared an exclusive, expert guide for sports affiliate teams worldwide. The ‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’ confirms the company’s deep expertise, which places it among the leading sports affiliate programs in the industry, and provides valuable insights.

This detailed study incorporated a large amount of proprietary data from Boomerang Partners’ analytical department, the company’s sponsorship department, and the affiliate managers’ team. Industry trends were analyzed during its preparation, and the fact that 2026 will be a year of sports was taken into account.

Insights, traffic peak predictions, and practical benefits

‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’ is a professional playbook for sports affiliates. For those working with sports traffic, this is a must-have tool for planning campaigns and strategies. Using these insights, affiliate partners can properly assess player behavior, avoid missing seasonal peaks of interest in sports, and choose effective tools for monetization. For ease of study, the guide is divided into several blocks, the main ones being:

The actual sports events calendar for 2026, with top tournaments, traffic peaks for them, and popularity in specific GEOs
Expert insights and analytics for planning pre-, live-, and post-event campaigns
Industry trends for 2026, and how this can be used in work
A Boomerang Partners’ strategic partnership with AC Milan, and what benefit affiliate teams can derive from this
Toolkit for affiliates with practical recommendations on adapting traffic strategies according to the tournament stage.

Anton Eshtokin, Chief Marketing Officer at Boomerang Partners, said: “We hope this calendar becomes a practical tool for sports affiliate partners when planning 2026, as well as generating interest in deeper strategy development with our involvement in joint projects”.

What can the guide be useful for

Boomerang Partners has prepared ‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’ in such a way that it can bring practical benefit not only to experienced sports affiliates. Those industry representatives who are just starting or would like to begin working in this direction will find the information in the guide maximally practical and in-depth. This data will help affiliate teams:

Navigate the sports schedule for 2026
Assess the popularity of a particular sport in specific GEOs
Not miss traffic peaks
Use expert advice for campaign monetization
Understand player behavior before, during, and after tournaments
Adapt to industry trends and use them in their work
Effectively segment audiences by GEO, device, type of traffic, and other parameters, and so on.

Additionally, using the example of cooperation with AC Milan, Boomerang Partners demonstrates how a partnership with such a top Club can bring practical benefits to sports affiliates. This concerns both obtaining exclusive media content from AC Milan and opportunities for monetization through merchandise giveaways, a focus on player-specific online betting markets, and various promotional activities.

A universal toolkit for affiliates

2026 will be rich in sporting events. With the exclusive ‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’, affiliate teams can use expert insights for quality preparation and monetization of their campaigns. Download the guide from the official Boomerang Partners website for free, plan your campaigns like a pro, and catch every traffic peak.

About Boomerang

Boomerang Partners is a rapidly growing global marketing agency offering a wide range of services. Boomerang Partners is the Official Regional Partner of AC Milan. In 2024, it launched the inaugural Golden Boomerang Awards — a global tournament for affiliate teams. More than 400 affiliate teams participated in the second season of the tournament in 2025. Partners of the Agency launched six new products in 2024-2025, contributing to a nearly 1.5-fold increase in product users.

The agency’s client portfolio contains 13+ brands offering affiliate and entertainment services across 40+ markets in compliance with local regulations. These products provide personalized bonuses and 24/7 multilingual support.

The post The exclusive ‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’ by Boomerang Partners will help affiliate teams with strategy planning appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Boomerang Partners

The exclusive ‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’ by Boomerang Partners will help affiliate teams with strategy planning

Published

6 hours ago

January 13, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

Insights, traffic peak predictions, and practical benefits

The actual sports events calendar for 2026, with top tournaments, traffic peaks for them, and popularity in specific GEOs
Expert insights and analytics for planning pre-, live-, and post-event campaigns
Industry trends for 2026, and how this can be used in work
A Boomerang Partners’ strategic partnership with AC Milan, and what benefit affiliate teams can derive from this
Toolkit for affiliates with practical recommendations on adapting traffic strategies according to the tournament stage.

What can the guide be useful for

Navigate the sports schedule for 2026
Assess the popularity of a particular sport in specific GEOs
Not miss traffic peaks
Use expert advice for campaign monetization
Understand player behavior before, during, and after tournaments
Adapt to industry trends and use them in their work
Effectively segment audiences by GEO, device, type of traffic, and other parameters, and so on.

A universal toolkit for affiliates

About Boomerang

The post The exclusive ‘Sports Marketing & Betting Calendar 2026’ by Boomerang Partners will help affiliate teams with strategy planning appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.