Latest News
FUN88’S ONGOING PARTNERSHIP WITH NEWCASTLE UNITED EVOLVES AS ITS OFFICIAL BETTING PARTNER
FUN88 has redefined its association with English Premier League (EPL) football club Newcastle United as its Official Betting Partner for Asia, as a six-year long ongoing partnership naturally evolves with the Champions League club for the 2023/24 season and beyond.
During those six years as Newcastle United’s premium jersey sponsor, FUN88 saw its breakout brand carried to rollercoaster success – from the club’s spell in the EFL Championship, promotion to the EPL, throughout the fluctuating fortunes of the previous administration’s era, and on to this year’s spectacular run to Champions League qualification via fourth place in the Premier League.
FUN88 will continue its ongoing work with the club across a series of activations to engage with fans in both mature and emerging Asian markets. The brand has also developed a popular presence on social media, supported by over 2.5m engaged Newcastle United followers, with thousands of worldwide Magpies supporters interacting with its accounts and many benefitting from its competitions and prize giveaways (such as tickets and shirts) for the majority of the past decade.
The combined collaboration will also open up an increasing number of dedicated local channels and promotional activities, all focused on engaging and retaining this established audience both pre-game and in-play.
Moreover, FUN88 will renew its branding presence on LED perimeter boards inside the storied St. James’ Park Stadium, one of the more commercially valuable and premium pitch-side media spaces in the Premier League. And although FUN88 had the option to continue as shirt sponsor, it was happy to adapt the nature of its partnership, given the changing environment of football sponsorship in the Premier League.
FUN88 has always supported Newcastle United’s commercial development, as has been documented by the club itself, and has hugely enjoyed its time as Newcastle United’s official shirt sponsor. Now this time has come to an amicable end, it is delighted to stay on as an Official Partner of Newcastle United, focusing on growing club-awareness and appreciation in Asia as part of a wider global strategy.
While FUN88 continues to develop its online offerings for football fans across the planet, this latest move underscores its dedication to international club representation and fostering a football-friendly environment within a responsible gaming culture. FUN88 has pioneered the gamified betting experience, thanks to a unique interface and personalised customer service that deliver a cohesive player journey from log-in until the end result. This unified experience has also delivered great levels of retention and consumer satisfaction amongst its active user-base.
A FUN88 spokesperson said: “We are thrilled to seamlessly advance our longstanding relationship with Newcastle United as their Official Betting Partner for Asia. We have seen our brand grow and develop in unison with Newcastle United over much of the past decade, and look forward to promoting further success stories in this next chapter of our enduring journey together.
“We are also excited to organically develop our partnership with Newcastle United for a new era. Of course, during our six years to date, we have witnessed the natural ups and downs of life, but we are in this for the long haul together and FUN88 is proud to move forward with the club and our shared community.
“FUN88 is adamant that this continued collaboration will help us to solidify our status as one of the leading gaming and entertainment platforms in Asia. Our customers will see more in terms of team interaction and exclusive Newcastle United offerings, so watch out for a range of upcoming campaigns with the club, which will now reclaim its rightful spot in the Champions League 2023/24!”
Newcastle United have said: “Thank you, FUN88, for your incredible support as lead shirt sponsors over the past six seasons. Building on the success of our partnership to date, we look forward to this next phase and working together to engage fans and grow our collective reach throughout Asia.”
FUN88 provides one of the broadest offerings of markets and odds for the sports bettor. Customer satisfaction and socially-responsible entertainment remain at its heart, with the latest technology and games, all complemented by impeccable personalised customer service.
The company prides itself on a strong heritage in football and international sports, alongside a stellar line-up of ambassadors which positively sets FUN88 apart from its competitors in the sector. The brand has been very active in global sports marketing over the past decade, notably becoming a partner of Tottenham Hotspur FC in 2012 and the jersey sponsor of Newcastle United FC, before repositioning its support into a betting-partner role this year. Away from football sponsorships, FUN88 has also enjoyed instrumental associations with the late great basketball legend Kobe Bryant, the popular OG Dota 2 team in eSports, and cricketing superstar Daren Sammy.
American gambling industry
Gaming Americas Weekly Roundup – January 26-February 1
Welcome to our weekly roundup of American gambling news again! Here, we are going through the weekly highlights of the American gambling industry which include the latest news and new partnerships. Read on and get updated.
Latest News
ComeOn Group has launched its new marketing campaign in Ontario. The campaign underscores ComeOn Group’s long-term commitment to sustainable expansion – powered by ComeOn’s proprietary technology and a clear focus on delivering standout, personalised entertainment experiences at scale. At the centre of the campaign is a series of premium television commercials starring Jeremy Piven, a long-standing ComeOn brand ambassador. Piven’s high-energy presence and authentic connection to sports reinforce the brand’s entertainment-first positioning, bringing ComeOn’s sportsbook experience to life across TV and digital. Produced by ComeOn Group’s internal creative hub, the campaign provides a cohesive creative platform that clearly differentiates the brand in a crowded market.
Michigan commercial and tribal operators have reported a combined $399.8 million total internet gaming (iGaming) gross receipts and gross sports betting receipts in December. Gross receipts increased 19.1% compared to November. December iGaming gross receipts totaled $315.8 million, the highest to date. The previous high was $278.5 million recorded in October 2025. December gross sports betting receipts totaled $84.0 million, which is a decrease from the $87.3 million recorded in November. Combined total iGaming and internet sports betting adjusted gross receipts (AGR) for December were $357.87 million, including $296.74 million from iGaming and $61.13 million from internet sports betting — representing an iGaming increase of 27.2% and a sports betting decrease of 5.6% when compared to November 2025.
The Cordish Companies and Bruce Smith Enterprise celebrated the highly-anticipated grand opening of Live! Casino Virginia, the region’s first full-scale casino. The opening of the temporary gaming facility marks an important milestone in bringing new jobs, economic development and tourism to the region while construction advances on the permanent resort destination next door. Located just 25 miles south of Richmond and only 45 miles north of the North Carolina border, Live! Casino Virginia is conveniently off I-95 at Exit 48B. Live! Casino Virginia delivers a full-scale gaming experience 24 hours a day, seven days a week, featuring 75,000 square feet of gaming space with more than 900 state-of-the-art slot machines and over 30 live-action table games.
Partnerships
GuardDog, a responsible play innovation fund from Underdog, has announced an investment in Regen, the first platform to automatically convert entries into savings with every play. In addition to the investment, Underdog will feature Regen as a new resource in its responsible play hub, highlight Regen in customer communications from the responsible play and customer support teams as well as provide access to the platform to all of its employees. Regen allows users to link their sportsbook, fantasy sports and prediction market accounts, and automatically save a small percentage from every entry, win or loss, creating savings without changing how they play.
Table Trac Inc. has announced that the Mardi Gras Hotel & Casino located in Las Vegas, United States, Nevada, will soon have Table Trac Inc.’s CasinoTrac casino management system installed. Mardi Gras Hotel and Casino is located just steps from the Las Vegas Convention Center and Main Monorail terminal the Mardi Gras is convenient to all of the World Famous attractions of Las Vegas.
The post Gaming Americas Weekly Roundup – January 26-February 1 appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Africa Bet Partners
How Traffy Cut FTD Cost in Half and Scaled Betting in Tanzania for Africa Bet Partners via Moloco Ads
This case highlights the impact of systematic optimization in Moloco Ads for the Betting vertical. Despite market turbulence in East Africa, Traffy not only maintained Africa Bet’s KPIs but also significantly improved ROI through deep, data-driven optimization.
Project Overview
Africa Bet Partners Offer: Betting
Traffic Partner: Traffy
Source: Moloco Ads (Google Play Inventory)
Geo: Tanzania (TZ)
Period: 2 months
Total Spend: ~$42,000
Final CR (Reg-to-FTD): 60%
Final CR (FTD 1-to-FTD 2): 45%
Challenge and Initial Metrics
At the launch of the campaign, the situation was challenging. The complex economic and political environment in Tanzania had a direct impact on consumer purchasing power and the stability of payment systems.
Initial Cost per FTD: $15.00
Goal: Reduce the cost of the target action to below $8 and identify scaling potential.
Optimization Strategy: What Was Done
The success of this case is the result of Traffy’s consistent work across four key areas:
1. Traffic Quality Management (Exchanges & Publishers)
Traffy conducted a comprehensive audit of publishers (placements) through which Moloco acquired inventory.
- Blacklists were created based on low deposit conversion.
- Collaboration was optimized with specific ad exchanges that demonstrated stronger Retention.
2. Creative Strategy
Traffy moved away from standard approaches and implemented a system of regular testing of new creative packs. Creative optimization significantly increased CTR and IPM, providing the Moloco algorithm with more data for learning.
3. Traffic Cleanup to Avoid Paying for Bots
- Placements with suspicious install times (CTIT) were filtered out to protect against click flooding.
- Device “farms” were identified and banned through Device ID analysis.
- Using BI tools, installs were cross-checked with real user activity. Placements with no engagement were added to the Blacklist.
4. Funnel Optimization
Through targeting optimization at the campaign level, Traffy attracted more relevant users. This led to an increase in the CR from registration to FTD up to 60%, which is an abnormally high indicator for this region.
Key Insight
Deep publisher analytics in Moloco Ads combined with category segmentation allows reducing deposit cost by more than 2x while maintaining high player quality (Retention and repeat deposits).
Result
Traffy not only met Africa Bet’s KPIs but also built a stable model for further scaling. Even in “difficult” geos, a systematic optimization approach makes it possible to achieve outstanding results. At the moment, the campaign continues to run, and user Retention (FTD 2) shows organic growth.
The post How Traffy Cut FTD Cost in Half and Scaled Betting in Tanzania for Africa Bet Partners via Moloco Ads appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Africa Bet Partners
How Traffy Cut FTD Cost in Half and Scaled Betting in Tanzania for Africa Bet Partners via Moloco Ads
This case highlights the impact of systematic optimization in Moloco Ads for the Betting vertical. Despite market turbulence in East Africa, Traffy not only maintained Africa Bet’s KPIs but also significantly improved ROI through deep, data-driven optimization.
Project Overview
Africa Bet Partners Offer: Betting
Traffic Partner: Traffy
Source: Moloco Ads (Google Play Inventory)
Geo: Tanzania (TZ)
Period: 2 months
Total Spend: ~$42,000
Final CR (Reg-to-FTD): 60%
Final CR (FTD 1-to-FTD 2): 45%
Challenge and Initial Metrics
At the launch of the campaign, the situation was challenging. The complex economic and political environment in Tanzania had a direct impact on consumer purchasing power and the stability of payment systems.
Initial Cost per FTD: $15.00
Goal: Reduce the cost of the target action to below $8 and identify scaling potential.
Optimization Strategy: What Was Done
The success of this case is the result of Traffy’s consistent work across four key areas:
1. Traffic Quality Management (Exchanges & Publishers)
Traffy conducted a comprehensive audit of publishers (placements) through which Moloco acquired inventory.
- Blacklists were created based on low deposit conversion.
- Collaboration was optimized with specific ad exchanges that demonstrated stronger Retention.
2. Creative Strategy
Traffy moved away from standard approaches and implemented a system of regular testing of new creative packs. Creative optimization significantly increased CTR and IPM, providing the Moloco algorithm with more data for learning.
3. Traffic Cleanup to Avoid Paying for Bots
- Placements with suspicious install times (CTIT) were filtered out to protect against click flooding.
- Device “farms” were identified and banned through Device ID analysis.
- Using BI tools, installs were cross-checked with real user activity. Placements with no engagement were added to the Blacklist.
4. Funnel Optimization
Through targeting optimization at the campaign level, Traffy attracted more relevant users. This led to an increase in the CR from registration to FTD up to 60%, which is an abnormally high indicator for this region.
Key Insight
Deep publisher analytics in Moloco Ads combined with category segmentation allows reducing deposit cost by more than 2x while maintaining high player quality (Retention and repeat deposits).
Result
Traffy not only met Africa Bet’s KPIs but also built a stable model for further scaling. Even in “difficult” geos, a systematic optimization approach makes it possible to achieve outstanding results. At the moment, the campaign continues to run, and user Retention (FTD 2) shows organic growth.
The post How Traffy Cut FTD Cost in Half and Scaled Betting in Tanzania for Africa Bet Partners via Moloco Ads appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
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