Industry News
Presence of Hristo Stoichkov was a Main Attraction of Amusnet’s Stand at ICE Barcelona 2025
In 2025, ICE was held in Barcelona for the first time, attracting more than 55,000 visitors. A key moment at Amusnet’s stand was the exclusive participation of football legend, Barcelona icon and official company partner Hristo Stoichkov.
The collaboration with the leading all-casino solutions provider was officially announced in July 2024. It brings the excitement of football – one of the world’s most beloved sports, to a global audience while reinforcing the company’s commitment to delivering exceptional gaming experiences. The partnership with Stoichkov, a football legend ranked among the 100 greatest players of all time, strengthens Amusnet’s leadership in the gaming industry. It embodies core values like teamwork and determination, driving the company’s success and innovation.
The exclusive appearance of FC Barcelona legend Hristo Stoichkov at ICE drew thousands of visitors who seized the unique opportunity to meet him. In the city that played a pivotal role in his career, Stoichkov brought value to the global gaming community, further strengthening Amusnet’s dedication to world-class entertainment. Hundreds of attendees showcased their competitive spirit in a thrilling football championship, competing for exclusive prizes, including autographed footballs signed by Stoichkov and 2025 Champions League tickets. Adding to the anticipation, the iconic player personally drew the winners, making the moment even more unforgettable. The Amusnet team was also honoured to welcome Digitain’s founder, Vardges Vardanyan, alongside Real Madrid Legends: Michel Salgado, Michael Owen, Iker Casillas, and Luis Figo, to its stand. The presence of these iconic football stars, alongside Hristo Stoichkov, embodied the spirit of collaboration and innovation, reinforcing the concept of industry pioneers uniting to shape the future of gaming.
Visitors at the Amusnet stand had the chance to experience the celebrity slot game Stoichkov #8, launched ahead of UEFA EURO 2024 to heighten the tournament’s excitement. Inspired by Stoichkov’s legendary career, the game captures the essence of football with immersive graphics and dynamic features, bringing the thrill of real matches to the reels through Free Spins, Buy Bonus and Expanding Wilds for continuous action. Recognized for its excellence, Stoichkov #8 received the Online Game of the Year award at the BEGE Awards 2024. Since its debut, it has become a player-favourite across multiple markets in Europe and LATAM.
The post Presence of Hristo Stoichkov was a Main Attraction of Amusnet’s Stand at ICE Barcelona 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Alex Pratt
Edge Marketing Institute launches G.A.M.E marketing leadership programme for B2B gaming
Online, on-demand course targets CMOs and senior marketers, with WorldGaming signed as exclusive media partner.
Edge Marketing Institute has launched in the gaming sector with its flagship programme, G.A.M.E (Gaming Advancement in Marketing Excellence), positioned by the company as a dedicated marketing leadership course for B2B gaming.
The company said the programme is designed to help senior marketers develop commercial leadership skills as businesses push marketing teams to contribute more directly to revenue and growth.
Founded by Paul Rees and Gerhard Sagat, Edge Marketing Institute said G.A.M.E consists of 10 senior-level modules covering strategic marketing leadership, positioning, product marketing, sales alignment, go-to-market execution, marketing measurement, brand strategy, and organisational influence.
Paul Rees, Co-Founder of Edge Marketing Institute, said: “Gaming has talented marketers throughout the industry, but too many have been forced to learn senior leadership on the job without structured development or exposure to broader marketing best practice.
“This isn’t a talent problem; it’s a structural one.
“We created Edge Marketing Institute and G.A.M.E to help marketing leaders operate with greater commercial clarity, confidence and influence, so marketing becomes a genuine driver of growth rather than simply a delivery function.”
The programme has launched with the support of WorldGaming as its exclusive media partner. Alex Pratt, Managing Director at WorldGaming, said: “As gaming continues to evolve, the role of marketing is becoming increasingly commercial and strategically important.
“Helping marketing leaders better align marketing with business growth, commercial objectives and long-term industry development is positive for the wider gaming ecosystem, which is why we’re pleased to support the launch of Edge Marketing Institute and G.A.M.E.”
The post Edge Marketing Institute launches G.A.M.E marketing leadership programme for B2B gaming appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
BetBlocker
BetBlocker adds Syrian Arabic language support for gambling harm prevention
The charity says the rollout targets displaced Syrian communities across Europe as it works toward a partnership with a European regulatory agency.
Gambling harm prevention charity BetBlocker said today it has expanded its service to include support for Syrian Arabic speakers, aiming to improve access for displaced Syrian communities living across Europe.
The organisation said years of conflict have led to large Syrian diaspora communities across neighbouring countries and many European nations. BetBlocker added that immigrant communities can face higher risk of gambling harm, with religious, social, cultural and linguistic barriers reducing engagement with support services.
BetBlocker said the Syrian Arabic rollout was prioritised as part of work towards a partnership with a European regulatory agency, positioning it to support diaspora Syrian communities across Europe.
Founder and Trustee for BetBlocker, Duncan Garvie, said: “I’m always really happy when BetBlocker can line-up priorities for where our work for mature markets also facilitates us extending protections to populations that are under served. Our project to deliver Ukrainian as apart of the Improving Outcomes for Minority Communities fund via GambleAware in the UK was a great example of a project that met the needs of the UK funding system, while concurrently extending the support we could offer to an entirely new project.
This project offers similar opportunities. Where extending our support to Syrian Arabic both allows us to submit a more competitive tender to an EU regulator, whilst simultaneously expanding our support to a country/population that currently has very limited options for people experiencing gambling harm.
BetBlocker’s uptake in Syria is climbing rapidly at the moment, and this new launch should ensure that far more people who need support can access it.”
The post BetBlocker adds Syrian Arabic language support for gambling harm prevention appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
AI
Tugi Tark whitepaper puts AI iGaming support at €0.15 per ticket
Tugi Tark has released a 2026 whitepaper, The economics of AI-powered iGaming customer support, arguing that AI changes the unit economics of player support and can reduce costs compared with human-led operations.
The report cites “verified pricing” of EUR 0.15 per AI-handled ticket. It compares that with fully loaded employer costs for human support in Romania and Bulgaria of EUR 1.73 to EUR 1.88 per ticket. At a “realistic” 70% AI containment rate, the whitepaper claims a blended cost of about EUR 0.67 per ticket, which it describes as roughly a 64% reduction versus a human-only baseline of EUR 1.88.
Tugi Tark says its analysis draws on Eurostat 2024 labour cost data, published research on AI chatbot benchmarks, independent iGaming player behaviour research, and operational data from its own deployments. The company estimates operators can achieve a 55% to 75% reduction in total support expenditure, and argues AI can absorb volume spikes—such as during major sporting events—without additional hiring or training lag.
Harpo Lilja, founder and CEO of TUgi Tark, said: “In 2026, the ‘wait-and-see’ approach to AI is costing operators millions in unnecessary overhead. We aren’t just talking about chatbots; we’re talking about a fundamental shift in the unit economics of player retention.”
The whitepaper also frames customer support as a retention lever, stating that payment issues account for 52% of ticket volume and that slower response times drive churn. It claims a 0.5 percentage point churn reduction could retain an additional 500 players per month for a mid-sized operator, translating to €200,000 in annual revenue based on an assumed €400 Player Lifetime Value. Tugi Tark also claims AI agents average ~7 seconds for first response versus ~60 seconds for human agents, and outlines use cases across Responsible Gambling escalation, KYC/AML workflows, and GDPR-aligned data sovereignty.
The post Tugi Tark whitepaper puts AI iGaming support at €0.15 per ticket appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
-
Canada7 days agoAnalysis flags World Cup 2026 stress test for Canada’s patchwork betting rules
-
Canada7 days agoRESPWNED and LOTUS 8 to launch GIRLGAMER Winnipeg Festival in 2026
-
Asia5 days agoKazakhstan Orders Telecom Providers to Block Illegal Online Casino Payments via Mobile Balances
-
Compliance Updates6 days agoEndorphina secures UAE Gaming-Related Vendor License (Tier II) from GCGRA
-
Acquisitions/Merger6 days agoPetroglyph Development Group Completes Acquisition of Great Canadian Casino Vancouver
-
Canada7 days agoRESPWNED partners with LOTUS 8 to bring GIRLGAMER festival to Winnipeg in 2026
-
Africa6 days agoJogabets migrates to VeliTech iGaming platform for Mozambique operations
-
Ilkka Kosola6 days agoVeikkaus Appoints Ilkka Kosola as its New Chief Financial Officer



