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Flutter UKI Invests Nearly £7M into Community Sports
Former England heroes Alan Shearer and Peter Crouch are urging community sports clubs to take advantage of a £500,000 funding lifeline – as polling shows more than 40% (43%) of grassroots organisations are having to cancel services because of a lack of funding.
Clubs offering vital sports and fitness activities blame rising day-to-day costs, insurance bills and a difficulty in finding staff and other volunteers – with almost a quarter (22%) fearing they will be financially unsustainable within the next year.
The warning comes as Flutter launches Cash4Clubs 2026 – offering £500,000 to sports clubs across the UK and Ireland. Two hundred and fifty clubs will be able to bid for grants of £2000 a time to help buy new equipment, hire coaches, run training programmes or simply boost their marketing to bring in new members.
The polling, commissioned to coincide with the launch of Cash4Clubs 2026, shows grassroots sports funding has never been so important. Only 45% of clubs believe they can fully meet their members’ needs.
This year’s Cash4Clubs programme is backed by a host of sporting celebrities who are calling on clubs to apply for the money from Flutter UKI.
Paddy Power ambassador and former England and Liverpool striker, Peter Crouch, said: “An additional £2000 can make all the difference to local clubs – it can keep the lights on, keep facilities open and accessible and provide much needed funds to invest in equipment or training volunteers.
“These clubs aren’t just about sport – they’re giving people a place to belong, to build confidence and stay active. It’s why Cash4Clubs is so important, and I would urge people to apply.”
Alan Shearer, Betfair ambassador, said: “Throughout my career, on and off the field, I’ve witnessed the incredible power of sport to transform lives. Local grassroots clubs and organisations aren’t nice to have; they are essential community assets. These grants can provide a vital helping hand and the impact, particularly in deprived areas, can be profound.”
Acting on its commitment to Do More for Communities, Flutter UKI has invested nearly £7 million into community sports since Cash4Clubs launched in 2008. Earlier this year, almost 32,000 people from 200 different clubs benefited from this fund. Seventy-six percent worked with lower socio-economic groups, and 86% of clubs polled by leading UK charity Sported, who deliver the Cash4Clubs programme, reported they had grown their membership in the months since receiving funding.
Winners in 2025 included the Swindon Storm American Football Club, the Sunderland Deaf Darts Society and Wigan-based Parkinson’s Ninja – a pioneering club using the power of taekwondo, rock-steady boxing and mixed martial arts to tackle Parkinson’s disease.
Paul Williams, Parkinson’s Ninja says: “The grants from Cash4Clubs have allowed us to expand our offering to meet this need, including fulfilling the cost of additional coaching fees as well as maintaining the existing classes. As such we can continue helping people with Parkinsons by giving them the physical and social activity they vitally need.”
Sport England earlier this year showed significant growth in the number of adults and disabled people playing sport but said more work was needed in the most deprived areas. The UK Government has vowed to put tackling inactivity at the heart of its preventative health agenda.
Dame Caroline Dinenage, the Conservative Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, added: “I’ve seen first-hand the difference Cash4Clubs can make to the local community, and I would urge clubs to apply for the funding that Flutter is making available. Physical activity is vital for fitness and well-being and it’s always great to see the wide range of community organisations that benefit from Cash4Clubs. I hope this year’s programme is a huge success.”
Flutter UKI chief executive Kevin Harrington said: “Grassroots sports clubs are the beating heart of communities, but rising costs mean too many are now fighting to survive. That’s why we’ve committed £500,000 through our Cash4Clubs programme this year – to give local organisations the support they need to keep doors open, inspire participation and provide opportunities for adults to stay active and engaged with sports and all of the additional benefits that brings with it.”
Community clubs have until 8 December to apply for a grant through the Cash4Clubs website. This year’s programme is putting a particular emphasis on clubs that want to increase participation in sport in their local community, with the most recent round of grants attracting over 2500 new adults to recipient clubs in 2025.
The post Flutter UKI Invests Nearly £7M into Community Sports appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
BEON
QTech Games adds more creative content from BEON
Reading Time: 2 minutes
QTech Games, the leading game aggregator across all emerging markets, has continued to maintain the momentum in its premium pipeline, as evidenced by its latest deal with BEON, an emerging force in the slots space, whose first raft of games is crash games-focussed.
Integrating a progressive portfolio from one of the most productive and innovative developers in the sector adds more muscle to QTech Games’ proprietary platform, which is leading the way across growth markets like LatAm and Africa. In a progressive production line that will span different slots genres, BEON is also committed to launching games tailored to specific partner requests, while simultaneously growing its portfolio with a new wave of titles in development.
As a result BEON is building a reputation for creating high-quality, immersive games with standout features that set them apart in any igaming domain, thanks to a smooth performance running off agile mechanics which are dedicated to gameplay precision and optimal retention. Its first five games to be released comprise Skydot, Fury Flight, Redy, Nomad and Orizon, while BEON’s unique Crash Game Generator tool allows operator partners to launch customised content inside 24 hours.
This collaboration delivers a targeted range of localized content, enabling QTech Games to continue to meet the varied preferences of players across emerging markets, while supporting both companies’ ambitions for global growth.
Philip Doftvik, QTech Games’ CEO, said: “BEON’s initial rollout of eye-catching crash games is premised on clever mechanics, easily intelligible gameplay, high payouts and colourful graphics, which are breaking up an often-copycat environment. This kind of content is well-suited to LatAm and African markets, which directly tracks our ongoing expansion throughout these territories. These games are robust, scalable, and future-ready – so, we look forward to seeing what’s next. ”
Saba Chkheidze, Managing Partner at BEON, added: “Partnering with QTech Games constitutes the perfect opportunity for us to bolster our product distribution across emerging markets and deliver our fantastic crash games to more and more top-tier operators.
“It’s a collaboration which marks a step-change in BEON’s growth strategy across untapped markets like Latin America and Africa, where we hope our games will connect with many new players. Aside from crash games, our roadmap is packed with fresh concepts and slots titles that aim to combine engaging gameplay with solid technical performance, ensuring that our partners and players always have something new to look forward to.”
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Behind the Gloves
GR8 Tech Brings Behind The Gloves Boxing Experience to SiGMA Central Europe 2025
Reading Time: 2 minutes
GR8 Tech is adding a knockout dimension to its SiGMA Central Europe presence with Behind the Gloves. On November 3–6 in Rome, booth 5028-2 visitors can take up a challenge and train like a champion with Lee McFarland, iGaming veteran and founder of the Behind The Glove initiative.
Step Into the Ring
Each day at GR8 Tech’s booth 5028-2, Lee McFarland will lead 15-minute boxing training sessions on specialized pads, giving participants a taste of the discipline, focus, and resilience that define both elite athletes and elite operators. Sessions run:
- 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM: Morning knockout slot
- 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM: Afternoon power rounds
With a limited capacity of 12 slots per day, pre-registration is required at this LINK. Slots are available for individuals or pairs looking to share the experience.
Champions Train Together
The collaboration between GR8 Tech and Behind the Gloves is a natural fit. Lee McFarland, a British military veteran turned iGaming consultant, created the initiative to combine boxing with corporate wellness and social responsibility, proving that strong businesses are built on strong people and stronger communities.
“At Behind The Gloves, we’ve always believed in the power of sport to connect people, energize communities, and tell authentic stories. Partnering with GR8 Tech at SiGMA Central Europe is a natural fit; they’re known as the ‘heavyweight of iGaming,’ and our activations are built around that same spirit of strength, discipline, and drive. Together, we’re creating more than just a stand experience—we’re building a moment that unites delegates through energy, fun, and purpose”, said Lee McFarland.
The activation reinforces GR8 Tech’s Platform for Champions positioning and the elite Heavyweight Club community of operators who are ready to lead, not follow. The company’s boxing-themed booth and partnership with Ready to Fight by Oleksandr Usyk embody the same champion’s mindset: resilience, high performance, and the relentless pursuit of excellence.
“Champions don’t talk about performance—they live it,” said Yevhen Krazhan, CSO at GR8 Tech. “Bringing Behind The Gloves to our booth embodies the discipline and drive we build into our technology. If you want to compete at the highest level, you have to train like it.”
Where Business Meets the Ring
The Behind The Gloves sessions complement GR8 Tech’s showcase of the ULTIM8 Sportsbook and The Heavyweight Rulebook—a collection of Champions’ Rules gathered from iGaming’s top performers. Together, they create an immersive experience where attendees don’t just learn about championship-level technology—they feel first-hand what it takes to be a champion.
Visit GR8 Tech at booth 5028-2, SiGMA Central Europe 2025 in Rome, November 3–6.
The post GR8 Tech Brings Behind The Gloves Boxing Experience to SiGMA Central Europe 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
1001 Nights of Riches
SlotMatrix spins a tale of treasures with 1001 Nights of Riches release
Reading Time: < 1 minute
The post SlotMatrix spins a tale of treasures with 1001 Nights of Riches release appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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