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ESL Gaming and Maincast extend media rights agreement for four years
ESL Gaming, the world’s leading esports company, has today announced that it will extend its exclusive collaboration with Maincast for a further four years. With the current agreement running until 2023, the addition of multiple years ensures fans in Russia and the rest of the CIS region can keep enjoying ESL Gaming’s full premium product portfolio in their local language until Intel® Extreme Masters (IEM) Katowice 2027.
As part of the extension, Maincast keeps the exclusive rights to broadcast ESL Gaming’s tournaments on its Twitch channels in Russian and other CIS languages. Moreover, the agreement covers the complete product portfolio consisting of ESL Pro Tour Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), ESL Pro Tour StarCraft® II, and ESL Mobile, as well as ESL Gaming’s competitions for Dota 2.
ESL Gaming and Maincast joined forces in 2020, and their partnership has already seen ESL Gaming’s audience in the CIS region grow vastly, and the total amount of views doubled since then. Hitting a peak of 382,000 concurrent viewers during IEM Katowice 2020, Maincast delivered some of the best numbers for CS:GO globally. Additionally, ESL One Los Angeles 2020 became the most-watched online tournament in Dota 2 on Maincast’s Twitch channels with over 13 million views. These are but a couple of the success stories that show how Maincast excels in Russian-language broadcasts.
“Maincast is one of our biggest media partners and expertly localizes our competitions to fans all over the CIS region,” said Frank Uddo, Senior Vice President Global Media at ESL Gaming. “They are great to work with and we are particularly excited to see, through this seven-year partnership, how committed they are to significantly invest in esports long-term. It is a testament to how integral esports has become within the region and we look forward to building even more success in the future with them.”
“In 2020 Maincast signed a multi-year partnership agreement with ESL Gaming to broadcast their tournaments in Eastern Europe. In this period we’ve created an industry-defining product, finished numerous projects in close collaboration and provided on-site coverage of dozens of events,” said Andrii Grygoriev, CEO and co-founder of Maincast. “We are excited to announce that our partnership with ESL Gaming is extended up till Q2 2027. We’ve already begun working on long-term projects and looking for new ways of refining and improving our product. We will do our best to give our viewers even more high-quality broadcasts and on-site content, which you’ll always be able to find on our channels.”
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brand-partnership
G2 names Skin.Club official skin partner for its CS2 team
Skin.Club branding will appear on G2 jerseys, social channels and content series, with in-person activations planned.
G2 has partnered with Skin.Club as the official skin partner for its Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) team, with the deal spanning team jerseys, content and live experiences.
Under the agreement, Skin.Club will feature on G2’s CS2 team jersey as an official partner. The partnership also includes logo placement across G2’s social channels and integration within content series throughout the year, plus a “series of in-person activations,” according to the companies.
“Partnering with Skin.Club marks an exciting step forward for our G2 CS team,” said Alban Dechelotte, CEO of G2. “We’re always looking to work with brands that genuinely understand the Counter-Strike community, and Skin.Club brings both passion and innovation to the space. Together, we aim to create engaging experiences for fans while continuing to push the competitive ambitions of our roster.”
“At Skin.Club, we’re focused on creating experiences that bring the Counter-Strike community closer together,” said Dan Tar, CMO of Skin.Club. “Collaborating with G2 allows us to work alongside one of the most iconic teams in esports and deliver new ways for fans to engage. Drive, Love, Counter-Strike!”
Financial terms and the partnership duration were not disclosed.
The post G2 names Skin.Club official skin partner for its CS2 team appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
GGPoker
Marius Kudzmanas wins WSOP Europe Main Event for €2m
WSOP says the €5,300 Main Event drew 2,617 entries and created a €13.085m prize pool, the largest open event in European history.
Marius Kudzmanas has won the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe Main Event, taking home the €2,000,000 top prize and the WSOP Europe Main Event Champion’s gold bracelet, WSOP announced on April 11, 2026.
WSOP said the €5,300 Main Event attracted 2,617 entries and generated a €13,085,000 prize pool, calling it the largest open event in European poker history.
Across the wider WSOP Europe festival, WSOP reported more than 80 countries represented, 15 WSOP gold bracelets awarded, over €39,500,000 in prizes, and 15,779 total entries across all bracelet events.
WSOP also highlighted Switzerland’s Anna Eggenberger winning the inaugural WSOP Europe €1,000 Ladies Championship for her first bracelet, topping a 197-player field that WSOP said was the biggest ladies championship event ever held outside of Las Vegas.
WSOP executives framed the turnout as a signal of momentum heading into the summer WSOP in Las Vegas, scheduled to run May 26 through July 15. “We are absolutely thrilled with the phenomenal success of this year’s WSOP Europe, which has set new parameters for poker on the continent,” said Ty Stewart, Chief Executive Officer of WSOP. Gregory Chochon, Chief Operating Officer of WSOP, added: “This edition of WSOP Europe was the best yet, and we’d like to sincerely thank all of the players, dealers, staff, partners, and media that came together to make the festival so special. A core WSOP goal is to continually refine and improve our events – with that in mind, we can’t wait for the action to kick off next month in Las Vegas!”
The post Marius Kudzmanas wins WSOP Europe Main Event for €2m appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Casino Operators
LuckyStreak adds Popiplay slots to LuckyConnect aggregation API
Deal makes Popiplay’s 75+ game portfolio available to LuckyConnect customers, with new releases auto-synced via the platform.
LuckyStreak has added Popiplay to its iGaming content aggregation API solution LuckyConnect, expanding the aggregator’s third-party slots catalogue. The partnership was announced on 13th April 2026.
Under the deal, Popiplay’s full games library becomes available to LuckyConnect customers “instantly, with no additional technical work required,” according to LuckyStreak. The company said new Popiplay titles will be auto-synced with customers’ game management systems as they are released.
Popiplay, founded in 2022, is a Scandinavian slots studio with a portfolio of more than 75 games. LuckyStreak highlighted mechanics across the catalogue including Bonus Buy and Chance x2 & x3.
Rory Kimber, Commercial Director at LuckyStreak, said: “Popiplay is a great example of the new wave of studios building content for how players actually engage today. Their focus on performance, streamer appeal, and player-first design makes them a strong addition to LuckyConnect and highly relevant for operators targeting modern audiences. We continue to build a portfolio that balances proven performers with ambitious, high-growth providers, and Popiplay fits that strategy perfectly.”
Almir Kudic, CCO at Popiplay, said: “Partnering with LuckyStreak is an important step for us as we continue to grow our distribution. It gives us the opportunity to bring our games to a wider audience while working with a partner that shares our focus on quality and player engagement. We’re excited about what we can achieve together.”
The post LuckyStreak adds Popiplay slots to LuckyConnect aggregation API appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
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