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VIRGIN BET ANNOUNCED AS SPONSOR OF AYR GOLD CUP
Virgin Bet is to sponsor Scotland’s most famous flat race, the Ayr Gold Cup, and will also have naming rights for the three-day Ayr Gold Cup Festival which runs from Thursday September 16th through until Saturday September 18th.
Ayr Racecourse and Virgin Bet, the UK’s fastest growing sportsbook, unveiled the exciting new sponsorship deal during racing at the track (today) Monday.
The Virgin Bet Ayr Gold Cup will be run on Saturday September 18th and will be the highlight of ITV Racing’s live television coverage on the day.
In addition to the Virgin Bet Ayr Gold Cup, the sportsbook will sponsor seven other races during the week. On Saturday, this includes the Ayr Silver Cup, the Firth of Clyde Stakes (Scotland’s only Group race), and the Doonside Cup Listed Race. Virgin Bet will also sponsor Thursday’s Kilkerran Cup and the Ayr Bronze Cup on Friday.
David Brown, Managing Director of Ayr Racecourse , said : “I am thrilled that Virgin Bet have chosen to sponsor the Ayr Gold Cup which is not only Scotland’s premier flat race but one of the most prestigious sprint handicaps in the racing calendar.
“It is exciting for the team at Ayr to welcome Virgin Bet as sponsors of both the Ayr Gold Cup and as headline sponsors of the Virgin Bet Ayr Gold Cup Festival, along with several other races over the three days.
“Sponsorship has never been as important to racing that it is now in these difficult times, so it is with great pride we announce Virgin Bet as title sponsors of the Ayr Gold Cup. Virgin Bet is an exciting brand and I hope we can work together at Ayr for many years to come.”
James McKay, Sportsbook Director at Virgin Bet added : “We are excited to announce Virgin Bet’s new partnership with Ayr Racecourse, one of the great brands in UK racing. As one of the UK’s fastest growing sportsbooks, we know how much our customers enjoy the excitement of premier racing events at the most historic racecourses. The Virgin Bet Ayr Gold Cup will be a big moment in the flat-racing season, and we can’t wait to play our role over all three days at the Virgin Bet Ayr Gold Cup Festival.”
The roll call of winners of the Ayr Gold Cup down the years include last year’s winner Nahaarr and 2016 champion Brando, who subsequently went on to win a Group 1 contest in France. Other notable winners include Captain Ramius in 2012, and Lochsong, a former European horse of the year, who won the race in 1992.
Leading jockeys to have won the race include Frankie Dettori (twice), Paul Hanagan, Oisin Murphy and James Doyle.
Entries for this year’s Virgin Bet Ayr Gold Cup close on Tuesday August 10 at noon.
Issued by Iain Ferguson on behalf of Ayr Racecourse. For further information please contact Iain Ferguson on 01292-294972 of 07795-56691
AB Trav och Galopp
Richard Woodbridge Elected to ATG Board of Directors
At the Annual General Meeting of AB Trav och Galopp (ATG) on Thursday, May 7, 2026, Richard Woodbridge, CEO of Scandinavian Heritage AB, was elected as a new independent member of ATG’s board. He succeeds Mårten Forste, who left the board at the end of 2025.
“We welcome Richard to ATG’s board. His solid experience from the gaming market will add significant value to the board’s work,” said Peter Norman, chairman of ATG.
“I am pleased and grateful for the trust in me to take a seat on ATG’s board. ATG is a very strong company and brand with an important role in both gaming and horse racing, and I look forward to future collaboration with the rest of the board,” said Richard Woodbridge.
The Nomination Committee’s proposal for re-election of other board members was approved by the meeting.
ATG’s board thus consists of:
• Peter Norman (Chairman, independent)
• Boris Lennerhov (Vice Chairman, trotting representative)
• Katarina G. Bonde (Board member, independent)
• Marie Osberg (Board member, independent)
• Richard Woodbridge (Board member, independent)
• Marie Thelander Dellhag (Board member, trotting representative)
• Anders Lilius (Board member, galloping representative)
Employee representatives on the board:
• Björn Haglund (Board member, employee representative)
• Camilla Hasselström (Board member, employee representative)
• Alternates: Gustav Enström and Leo Wilson, both employee representatives.
The post Richard Woodbridge Elected to ATG Board of Directors appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
affiliate marketing
ReferOn completes management buyout as Alex Bukin becomes CEO
ReferOn has completed a management buyout, with former General Manager Alex Bukin acquiring the iGaming affiliate management platform and taking over as Chief Executive Officer.
Bukin said the deal is intended to support longer-term product and market plans: “This is an important moment for ReferOn and the beginning of a new chapter for the business. The management buyout provides us with the long-term focus required to continually advance the platform. We remain committed to product development, strengthening our offerings for partners, and supporting ReferOn’s continued growth across key markets.”
ReferOn reported that in its first 12 months post-launch it recorded 35.7 million clicks, 2.4 million registrations, 18,000 affiliates, and 136,000 active trackers. The company also said it was named “Best Affiliate Platform” in 2025 and 2026 by industry stakeholders.
The company said the ownership change will not affect day-to-day operations and that existing support and partnerships will continue. It also pointed to recent product updates including Refie, described as a built-in interface layer, alongside features such as dynamic reporting, Company Grouping, Sub-Affiliation, Independent Deal Calculation (IDC), two-factor authentication (2FA), and mobile optimization.
As part of the transition, ReferOn said its leadership team remains in place, with Vlad Bondarenko moving from Head of Product to Chief Product Officer and David Harris moving from Operations Lead to Chief Operations Officer.
The post ReferOn completes management buyout as Alex Bukin becomes CEO appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
ELA Games
ELA Games’ Joker Winpot shortlisted for Game of the Year at SBC Awards Americas
ELA Games said its slot title Joker Winpot has been shortlisted for “Game of the Year” at the 2026 SBC Awards Americas, with winners set to be revealed on June 10, 2026 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
The company described Joker Winpot as a consistent performer in its portfolio, combining a dark, character-driven theme with a 1×1 grid format.
ELA Games said the title’s core differentiator is its proprietary Winpot mechanic, a progression-based feature built around player choice. As rewards build inside the Winpot, players can either cash out or keep spinning in pursuit of higher payouts.
The 2026 SBC Awards Americas ceremony will take place at the Broward County Convention Center. Organizers expect around 600 industry professionals, with the awards running alongside SBC Summit Americas from June 9–11.
The post ELA Games’ Joker Winpot shortlisted for Game of the Year at SBC Awards Americas appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
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