Latest News
Fan Index Reveals: The MOST Popular Gaming Character of ALL TIME
The most popular gaming character is Mario, receiving a whopping 451 points from the fan index
In second place is Sonic the Hedgehog with 394 points, receiving a staggering 59,700,700 Google searches in the last year
Legend of Zelda’s Link lands third place with 377 points, holding the largest number of Reddit mentions
The least popular gaming character is Jack from BioShock with just 48 points!
We’ve spent a lot of time at home, getting to know our favourite video games more than ever before, falling even more in love with a whole range of gaming characters. However, there is plenty of debate about which characters are the nations’ favourite!
With this in mind, experts at Stashbird.com wanted to discover the most popular gaming characters of all time from the best-selling video game franchises*. To thoroughly investigate, Stashbird.com created a gaming fans’ index by analysing the following factors:
Sales of the franchise
Average worldwide searches over the past year
Number of hashtags on Instagram
Number of Reddit mentions
Gamers’ popularity score (survey)
The top 10 most popular characters
Stashbird.com can reveal that in first place, and crowned the most popular gaming character, is Mario with a massive 451 fan index points!
Mario ranked first for franchise sales with a staggering 653,000,000 worldwide copies of Mario games sold, bagging him an easy 100 points. The fun-loving character also ranked sixth for average worldwide searches with 4,606,547 (86 points) in the past year alone! Despite these results, Mario only ranked 10th for popularity, with 45% of gamers choosing him as their ultimate favourite.
Not far behind in second place is Sonic the Hedgehog with 394 points. The extraterrestrial hedgehog ranked second for worldwide searches (59,700,000), giving him 97 points! He was voted the favourite by only 21% of gamers surveyed, however bagged himself 91 points for his 94,300 Reddit mentions.
Link from The Legend of Zelda places third, accumulating 377 points! It is no surprise as the star of the Nintendo series to have ranked top for Reddit mentions (3,920,000) and popularity score (74%), receiving 100 points for both! Interestingly, he ranked lower down for search volumes, with 1,196,200 average searches over the past year.
At number four is Donkey Kong with 354 points, scoring high with 3,930,000 yearly average searches (83 points), 570,000 Instagram hashtags (77 points) and 26,400 Reddit mentions (80 points).
To complete the 10 most popular gaming characters, the results are as follows:
5. Master Chief (Halo) 323 points, Crash (Crash Bandicoot) 323 points, Sora (Kingdom Hearts) 323 points
6. Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy) 314 points
7. Pac-Man (Pac-Man) 308 points
8. Kirby (Kirby) 306 points
9. Geralt of Rivia (The Witcher) 294 points
Closing the top 10 is Ezio Auditore Da Firenze, star of four of the Assassin’s Creed games, with 291 points!
Just making the bottom 10 is Joel Miller, ranking 25th out of a possible 34 places, from the Last of Us. This is not surprising as the franchise only scored 14 points for its 24 million sales. He also scored low on Reddit searches, receiving just 29 points for his 1,670 mentions.
John Marston from Red Dead Redemption and Simon Belmont from Castlevania were both among the least popular with 94 and 74 points, respectively.
Bioshock’s Jack rounds off the bottom 10 list with measly 48 points – a staggering 403 points less than first place contender Mario.
Methodology
1. *Stashbird.com analysed the list of best-selling video game franchises that have sold at least 20 million copies and pulled the most popular/recognised character from each to compile the list of 36 most popular gaming characters of all time.
2. The team then created an index looking at several factors, including sales of the franchise, search volumes using SemRush, the number of Instagram hashtags per character and the number of mentions on Reddit.
3. Finally, to complete the index Stashbird.com surveyed 4,567 gamers worldwide to ask them to vote for their favourite from the list to give each character a popularity score.
4. Games where there is no playable main character were excluded from the list.
5. Stashbird normalised the data by using the PERCENTRANK.INC function in Excel. This function returns the rank of a value in a data set as a percentage of the data set between 0 and 1. These values were then multiplied by 100 to make the range between 0 and 100. The maximum score a character could receive was 500.This enabled the team to rank the 36 characters from most to least popular based on their total points. The data was collected on 29/02/2021 and is correct as of then.
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Andrew Cochrane Chief Commercial Officer at Soft2Bet
Soft2Bet Powers NEXT Summit: New York as Headline Partner for Third Consecutive Year
NEXT.io, the World’s iGaming Community, Soft2Bet as Headline Partner for NEXT Summit: New York 2026, marking the third consecutive year of partnership between the two organisations.
Taking place on 10–11 March 2026 at Convene, Brookfield Place, NEXT Summit: New York has become the definitive US-focused iGaming and sports betting event on the East Coast.
As one of the first major industry gatherings of the year, the Summit brings together senior leaders shaping the future of regulated gambling in North America and beyond.
Now entering its third year, the Soft2Bet – NEXT collaboration has evolved into a long-term strategic alliance, reflecting shared growth, stability, and a commitment to advancing meaningful industry dialogue. What began as headline sponsorship has developed into an ongoing partnership that has helped scale the event’s seniority, relevance, and commercial impact year after year.
Overall NEXT Summit: New York 2026 is expected to welcome over 1,500 industry professionals, with a highly curated audience dominated by C-level executives, founders, and directors. The agenda will focus on regulation, market entry, M&A, player engagement, brand trust, and long-term value creation in regulated markets.
As Headline Partner, Soft2Bet’s collaboration with NEXT.io is designed to create a collaborative environment for sharing market intelligence and strengthening professional ties within the iGaming community.
Additionally, Soft2Bet will have key senior executives participate in in various keynote and panel sessions including:
Andrew Cochrane, Chief Commercial Officer at Soft2Bet, will deliver a keynote session, drawing on more than two decades of leadership experience across regulated markets, international expansion, and large-scale commercial transformation.
David Yatom Hay, General Counsel at Soft2Bet, will join a panel discussion exploring the evolving dynamics of player engagement, bringing legal and regulatory perspective to one of the industry’s most commercially critical challenges.
“Reaching a third year with Soft2Bet as our Partner says a lot about the strength and stability of this relationship,” said Pierre Lindh Co-Founder and Managing Director of NEXT.io. “We’ve grown together, we’ve scaled together, and we share the same belief that meaningful industry progress comes from collaboration, not just visibility. Soft2Bet consistently shows up with insight, ambition, and a genuine commitment to moving the industry forward, which is exactly what NEXT Summit: New York stands for.”
“Our partnership with NEXT.io is built on alignment, not just sponsorship. We share a belief that sustainable growth in regulated markets comes from open dialogue, transparency and collaboration across the ecosystem. Supporting NEXT Summit: New York for a third consecutive year reflects our commitment to contributing to the industry’s long-term development — bringing operators, suppliers and regulators into the same room to exchange insight and raise standards together.” said Andrew Cochrane, Chief Commercial Officer at Soft2Bet.
Soft2Bet is widely recognised for its innovative approach to iGaming product development, including its proprietary Motivational Engineering Gaming Application (MEGA), as well as its expanding presence across regulated global markets. Its continued headline partnership reinforces both the company’s long-term commitment to North America and its role in shaping the industry’s most important strategic conversations.
NEXT Summit: New York 2026 will also be supported by a dedicated side event, NEXT Focus: Emerging Verticals, alongside an expanded programme designed to maximise senior-level networking, deal-making, and knowledge exchange.
The post Soft2Bet Powers NEXT Summit: New York as Headline Partner for Third Consecutive Year appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
Latest News
NdP INTERAZAR 2026 – Participación de Melilla en Interazar
Interazar reunirá de nuevo a Operadores, empresas y administraciones en Madrid los próximos días 28 y 29 de abril
Interazar volverá a ser el gran escaparate donde se mide el pulso real de la industria nacional, y en esta nueva edición contará nuevamente con la participación activa de la Ciudad Autónoma de Melilla, que refuerza así su compromiso con un Sector clave para su estrategia de crecimiento económico y tecnológico.
En este contexto, Melilla llega a la Feria Española del Juego los próximos días 28 y 29 de abril con la intención de seguir ganando visibilidad como destino atractivo para el Juego online y para las empresas tecnológicas que orbitan en torno al Sector. La ciudad ha ido construyendo un entorno competitivo basado en un marco fiscal favorable, acompañamiento institucional y una apuesta clara por la innovación aplicada al Juego.
Interazar se presenta, así, como un escenario natural para seguir avanzando en esta estrategia. La participación de Melilla refleja una estrategia continuada, con resultados visibles, que busca afianzar su posición como uno de los polos emergentes del Juego online y la innovación en España.
The post NdP INTERAZAR 2026 – Participación de Melilla en Interazar appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
Conferences
SportsGrid to return to NEXT NYC 2026
Tuesday 3rd March 2026 – SportsGrid has confirmed its renewed media partnership with NEXT.io and will attend NEXT Summit: New York to cover key discussions and insights from North America’s premier iGaming and sports betting event. The content will be syndicated across SportsGrid’s streaming and digital platforms.
NEXT Summit: New York, in partnership with Morgan Stanley, will take place from 10–11 March at Convene 225 Liberty Street, bringing together 1,400 senior-level delegates for two days of high-impact content and networking.
This year, Emerging Verticals will accompany NEXT Summit: New York, providing a dedicated focus on the fast-growing sectors reshaping the industry — including sweepstakes, micro-markets, crypto, esports, new betting formats, and the evolving intersection of technology and capital.
Now in its fifth edition, the Summit continues to deliver insider knowledge, high-level networking, and direct access to the latest innovations shaping the future of the industry.
Across the two days, leaders from the most influential operators, investment firms, regulators, and technology providers will take to the stage.
Confirmed speakers include:
- Adam Greenblatt, CEO of BetMGM;
- Adam Rosenberg, Senior Advisor, Gaming & Leisure at Blackstone;
- Benjie Cherniak, Principal at Avenue H Capital;
- Lloyd Danzig, Managing Partner at Sharp Alpha Advisors;
- Roger Ehrenberg, Managing Partner at Eberg Capital;
- Ramy Ibrahim, Managing Director at Moelis & Company;
- Joey Levy, Founder and CEO of Betr;
- and Gavin Isaacs, Former CEO of Entain.
The programme will also feature voices from across the regulatory, legal and association landscape including:
- Tres York, VP of Government Relations at the American Gaming Association;
- Paul Burns, President & CEO of the Canadian Gaming Association;
- Kelci S. Binau, Gaming Law Attorney at McDonald Carano;
- and Katie Lever, General Counsel, Chief Privacy Officer & Corporate Secretary at Great Canadian Gaming Corporation.
From the casino floor to emerging tech and capital markets, sessions will also include:
- Brooke Hilton, Head of Casino at PointsBet Canada;
- Chris Garrow, Director of Gaming at Prairie Band Casino & Resort;
- Davis Catlin, Managing Partner at Discerning Capital;
- Jeffrey Haas, Venture Partner at DreamCraft VC;
- Jamison Selby, CEO of Rubystone;
- Desiree Dickerson, Founder of THNDR;
- Kevin Scott, Chief Technology Officer at PGA of America;
- and Darren Woodson, Former NFL Player.
“NEXT Summit: New York continues to set the standard as North America’s premier meeting point for senior leaders in online sports betting and iGaming. With Emerging Verticals joining the Summit this year, the conversations are expanding into some of the most disruptive and fast-moving areas of the industry. We’re excited to once again partner with NEXT.io and bring on-the-ground coverage of the event’s most important discussions to a wider audience across SportsGrid’s streaming and digital platforms,” commented Jeremy Stein, CEO, SportsGrid, Inc.
“NEXT Summit: New York is where the industry’s biggest names come together to define the future of online gaming and sports betting,” said Pierre Lindh, Co-Founder & Managing Director at NEXT.io. “With Emerging Verticals accompanying the Summit this year, and more than 1,400 senior decision-makers attending, having SportsGrid on-site strengthens our mission to share critical insights and discussions with the broader iGaming community.”
SportsGrid will be on the ground at NEXT Summit: New York, covering conference sessions, interviews, and key discussions. Content from the event will be syndicated across its streaming video network and relevant media channels, extending the reach of discussions to a broader audience.
This initiative marks the continuation of a long-term collaboration between SportsGrid and NEXT.io, with plans to provide rich, curated content exploring the latest trends, innovations, and developments shaping the global gaming industry.
For more information on NEXT Summit: New York and to register for the event, visit: next.io/summits/newyork/
The post SportsGrid to return to NEXT NYC 2026 appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
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