Press Releases
Orange holds first Pan-African football tournaments enabling youth to be actors of positive change, to tackle plastic waste, via their passion for football
Orange, a major partner of African football since 2008, is the official sponsor of the AFCON for the 7th time in a row
The Total Energies Africa Cup of Nations Cameroon 2021 is a major event on the continent and this year’s edition is eagerly awaited following its postponement in 2021 due to the Covid crisis. In the lead up to the big event and as official sponsor, Orange (www.Orange.com) has held a series of ‘Orange Sponsors Change’ regional football tournaments across its footprint enabling 12-13-year-olds to play football and collect plastic waste in exchange for rewards and the chance to be celebrated during the AFCON final on February 6th. All the regional tournament winners will then be invited to the International final of ‘Orange Sponsors Change’ next spring for an unforgettable experience.
The competition, running from 9th January to 6th February 2022, will be held in six stadiums in five cities across the country. Out of the 24 teams that have qualified, 11 belong to a country where Orange is present: Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Egypt, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone, Mali, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia.
Passion with a purpose – the genesis of “Orange Sponsors Change”
The Total Energies Africa Cup of Nations Cameroon 2021 provides Orange with an opportunity to reiterate its environmental commitments. Plastic waste is now one of the world’s biggest problems and Orange believes it can play a role in combating this issue.
“Orange Sponsors Change” is a unique program which was first launched 2018 in Liberia and Cameroon and then successfully extended in 2019 to Egypt and Tunisia. With fans’ passion for football and a participative approach at its core, ‘Orange Sponsors Change’ gives all football fans and young players the opportunity to enjoy their passion for football whilst having a positive impact on their communities and the planet. Fans are encouraged to collect and recycle their plastic waste via recycling bins during the tournaments, and in return for their recycling efforts, Orange works with local companies to recycle the plastic collected and return them to fans and their communities in the form of soccer jerseys, balls and even soccer fields constructed exclusively from recyclable materials.
“Orange Sponsors Change,” a pan-African program premiere
This year, Orange wanted to take advantage of its partnership with the largest African sporting event to extend and promote Orange Sponsors Change in 12 countries on the continent (Morocco, Sierra Leone, Mali, Liberia, Cameroon, Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Burkina Faso, CAR, DRC) and give it a new pan-African dimension.
This first Pan-African edition encouraged 12-13 year-olds to participate in local qualifying tournaments while collecting plastic waste, and the first local tournaments mobilized thousands of young people and their families and achieved tonnes of plastic waste collection, for example:
- In Cameroon, football players who participated in Orange Sponsors Change joined forces with the Orange “Clean Your City” initiative to collect waste in seven cities across the country. In total, 1,300 volunteers roamed the streets to collect 14 tonnes of plastic which will be transformed into football equipment and redistributed to football academies in Cameroon.
- In Côte d’Ivoire, 500 players from 50 different clubs across the country took part in the competition, collecting over 19 tonnes of plastic that will be transformed into construction equipment.
During the AFCON
The stadiums will be filled with Orange tap-taps enabling fans to support their team and share their passion. This year all the tap-taps will no longer be made of plastic but recycled biodegradable potato starch, reflecting Orange’s commitment to the reduction of plastic waste. In addition, Orange will be providing young players across it’s footprint with 20,000 balls made from recycled rubber, so they can continue to enjoy their passion for football long after the big event.
Béatrice Mandine, Executive Director of Communication, Brand and Engagement said: “At Orange, we support major sporting events in the countries where we operate by placing the focus of our strategy on the fans: we offer them the means to enjoy their passion. “Orange sponsors change” adds another brick to this promise: combining passion for football and commitment to the environment. It is a great action that will leave a positive legacy”.
Alioune Ndiaye, CEO of Orange Africa and the Middle East, explains: “Africans are very passionate about football. Orange Sponsors Change helps raise awareness among young people about environmental issues through football; this is a great proof of the Orange Group’s commitment to society and the planet.”
Source: Orange
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Summer is here and it is time for Slotsoo’s signature celebration of the iGaming industry. The Slotsoo Casino Awards return for its third edition, continuing the tradition of highlighting operators who excel in delivering a top-tier player experience. This year also marks an exciting expansion with the inaugural Slotsoo Game Provider Awards, giving long-overdue recognition to the creators of great slots.
The New Game Provider Awards and the Winners
Game providers are sometimes overshadowed by casinos, but in reality, both are equally important to the online casino experience. That’s why Slotsoo is proud to shine a spotlight on the studios behind the reels. The winners of Slotsoo’s first provider-focused awards were announced on 24 July 2025, and the honors went to:
- The Machine MVP – Pragmatic Play
- Bonus Buyer – Bullshark Games
- Volatility Virtuoso – Wazdan
- Jackpot Jumbo – Mancala Gaming
- Symphony Spinner – Gamzix
- Reel Renegade – Nolimit City
- Promising Prodigy – Slammer Studios
Please visit the Slotsoo Game Provider Awards page for detailed descriptions of each trophy and the motivations behind the winners.
The Anatomy of Slotsoo’s Trophies: Where Fun Meets Serious Recognition
At Slotsoo, each trophy is whimsical by design but grounded in real player values, making the Slotsoo Awards both entertaining and insightful. Every category has a clear purpose, recognizing what truly matters in iGaming today.
At the core of each awards lineup is a main trophy: The Gambling GOAT honors the top-performing casino operator, while The Machine MVP celebrates the best overall game provider. Surrounding these main awards are a collection of supporting trophies, spotlighting specific areas of excellence, from fast withdrawals and fun bonuses to volatility and winning potential.
These award categories offer a chance for actors who crush it in a certain area to be recognized, even if they don’t dominate across the board. Just like other iGaming awards, Slotsoo includes a category for newcomers, encouraging fresh talent and pushing established names to keep innovating.
The timing of the awards is also a deliberate choice. Markus Björk, head writer at Slotsoo, explains the team’s reasoning:
“After a hectic Winter and Spring packed with iGaming events, June and July offer a rare chance for the industry to slow down and reflect on the year so far. Let’s enjoy the cucumber season and appreciate what’s been achieved. This is when you can harvest the rewards of your hard work before autumn arrives with new challenges and opportunities.”
The Winning Casino Operators 2025
The Slotsoo Casino Awards 2025 took place in June, and these were the seven winners:
- The Gambling GOAT – Betizy
- The Bonus Buff – Sugarino
- The Loyalty Lord – Wisho
- The Withdrawal Wizard – Vauhdikas
- The Gamification Guru – Arctic Casino
- The Payout Professor – Wolfy Casino
- The Noisy Newcomer – Lunar Spins
This was the third time Slotsoo held the casino awards for its English-language site targeting the EU market in general. During the same period, the dedicated awards for the Finnish market, Slotsoo Kasinogaala 2025, celebrated its second year. These awards consist of seven trophies equivalent to the English ones, plus an eighth trophy dedicated to the casino operator with the best slot streaming offering.
The Nordic country is undergoing big changes, with a new gambling legislation and a licensing system planned to be introduced by 1 January 2027. The future will tell how this will affect the structure and categories of the awards.
The post Slotsoo Awards 2025: Celebrating Excellence Across Casinos and Game Providers appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
SOFTSWISS, a global tech provider with over 15 years of iGaming expertise, proudly announces the launch of its major South African project with Mzansibet. It marks the first project in the country to utilise both the SOFTSWISS Sportsbook and the SOFTSWISS Casino Platform.
According to the recently released South Africa: iGaming Market Overview 2025 by SOFTSWISS, the country’s iGaming sector is growing at an impressive annual rate of 20–25%, driven by increasing mobile penetration. In line with this trend and evolving player needs, SOFTSWISS strongly focuses on mobile optimisation across its platforms, enabling seamless and enjoyable gaming experiences for Mzansibet players.
The launch in South Africa, ensuring full compliance with local technical standards, required meticulous preparation. SOFTSWISS products – including its sports betting software and online casino platform – underwent rigorous certification with Gaming Laboratories International (GLI), one of the most reputable and globally recognised independent testing laboratories in the iGaming industry. Following this process, the solutions were officially approved for local operation by the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board – a respected and influential regulator in the region – affirming the high quality and compliance of SOFTSWISS software.
Max Trafimovich, International Non-Executive Director at SOFTSWISS, shares: “Mzansibet entered the market with a bold ambition to become a top-tier brand – and we are not only proud to support that vision from day one, but also well-equipped to ensure its sustainable growth. Leveraging our global and local expertise, we provide the technical, business, and service tools necessary for a smooth launch and scalable development. This is made possible thanks to our robust and stable architecture with 99.999% uptime and a flexible platform ecosystem. In addition, the brand launched a nationwide TV advertising campaign and has already attracted tens of thousands of players across the country – a powerful testament to its growing presence and trust.”
In addition to backend certification, the SOFTSWISS team invested heavily in frontend localisation to align with the partner’s vision and market requirements. The Mzansibet project has been fully adapted to meet South African player behaviour and betting patterns.
About SOFTSWISS
SOFTSWISS is an international technology company with over 15 years of experience developing innovative solutions for the iGaming industry. SOFTSWISS provides comprehensive software for managing iGaming projects. The company’s product portfolio includes the Online Casino Platform, the Game Aggregator with over 35,000 casino games, the Affilka Affiliate Platform, the Sportsbook Software and the Jackpot Aggregator. In 2013, SOFTSWISS revolutionised the industry by introducing the world’s first Bitcoin-optimised online casino solution. The expert team counts over 2,000 employees.
The post SOFTSWISS Launches First South African Project with Mzansibet appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
The post Lee Hills Joins the International Association of Gaming Advisors appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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