Latest News
Southampton FC India Fan Club Members Get VR Matchday Experience From Sportsbet.io Fund
Dedicated Southampton super fans in countries across the world enjoyed a first-of-its-kind virtual reality matchday experience during the Saints’ fixture against Liverpool on the 12th of November, thanks to the Crypto Fan Fund from Southampton’s Main Club Partner Sportsbet.io.
Pioneering a New Matchday Experience with VR
Using Pico virtual reality headsets, fans from the Southampton India fan club were immersed in an authentic Southampton pre-match experience at the Saints Social Club – the brand-new official Southampton fan pub at The Northam, which opened in late August. Fan pubs are a key part of British football culture, and the VR experience was designed to allow Southampton fans to experience that atmosphere, wherever they are in the world.
The VR experience let the Southampton India fans be a fly-on-the-wall during the opening day of the Saints Social Club and included listening in to an informal ‘pub chat’ with Southampton legends Nigel Adkins and Franny Benali, as well as a live performance from the Saints Brass band.
Speaking about the experience, Southampton India member Srijan Pathak said: “Trying the headsets was absolutely incredible, it really felt like we were there in the Club! We all grew up watching Southampton and the Premier League on our TVs, but never really felt part of it, so to be able to properly immerse yourself in the atmosphere and feel what it’s really like to be in a pub with other fans ahead of the match, it helped us feel connected to the club in a way that we just haven’t before. We’ll definitely be using it before the other matches we watch to get ourselves pumped before kick-off!”
The Crypto Fan Fund
The creation of the Saints Social Club and the VR experience was made possible by the Crypto Fan Fund. At the start of the 2021/22 season, Sportsbet.io donated two Bitcoins to Southampton fans, to be used for a fan-led initiative. The club and Sportsbet.io worked with the leading supporters’ group, Saints Voice, to decide how the donation would be spent, with fans voting in March to turn the Northam Social Club – an iconic Southampton pub just a stone’s throw from St. Mary’s Stadium – into the ultimate Southampton FC fan bar.
Helen Edwards, Head of Responsible Gambling at Sportsbet.io said: “It’s been a privilege to work with Saints Voice, Southampton India, and the Southampton fans throughout this process, and we’re so excited to see the Saints Social Club come to fruition this summer. Through the Crypto Fan Fund, we wanted to show how crypto can be used to genuinely support fans and help them deliver the initiatives that they want to see, and with the help of Southampton FC and Saints Voice we’re delighted to have been able to do exactly that.”
Sarah Batters, Director of Marketing & Partnerships at Southampton FC, said: “It’s been brilliant to work in close collaboration with the representatives of our Saints Voice panel and to find out what really matters to them in order to bring the best matchday experiences for our fans, both at home and across the globe. The new Saints Social Club will provide a wonderful opportunity to bring our fans together, and we’re delighted that we’re able to include our incredible supporters in India as well.”
The donation consolidates Sportsbet.io’s ongoing commitment as the main club sponsor of Southampton Football Club and as a leader in the crypto community. The initiative is part of Sportsbet.io’s ‘Believe the Hype’ campaign, encouraging Saints to believe the hype around their club and around cryptocurrency.
The Saints Road Back to The Prem
The Saints were founding members of the Premier League in 1992/1993 and were ever-present until their relegation at the end of the 2004/2005 season. After falling on troubled times, which included a further relegation to League 1, they returned to the Premier League for the 2012/2013 season and haven’t looked back since.
They have enjoyed top-half finishes in recent years, including a sixth-place finish in the 2015/2016 season which secured Europa League football. In 2016/2017, they reached the final of the League Cup but narrowly missed out on silverware after a 3-2 defeat by Manchester United. They ended the 2019/2020 season with a seven-game unbeaten streak to finish 11th with a tally of 52 points.
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Industry News
Flutter receives formal approval of its science-based targets
Flutter Entertainment Plc announced that the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has formally approved its near and long-term science-based emissions reduction targets. The SBTi has also verified Flutter’s net-zero science-based target by 2035.
Flutter’s net-zero target conforms with the SBTi Corporate Net Zero Standard and has been classified to be in line with a 1.5°C trajectory, aligning to the levels required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Scope 1, 2 and 3 targets approved by the SBTi are as follows:
Overall Net-Zero Target:Flutter commits to reach net-zero greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions across the value chain by 2035. This is broken down as follows:
Near-Term Targets: Flutter commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 45% by 2030 from a 2022 base year. Flutter also commits to reduce absolute scope 3 GHG emissions 45% within the same timeframe.
Long-Term Targets: Flutter commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 90% by 2035 from a 2022 base year. Flutter also commits to reduce absolute scope 3 GHG emissions 90% within the same timeframe.
Flutter will provide regular reporting on progress against these targets, in addition to the approach to managing climate-related risk and opportunities.
Flutter’s Group Director of Sustainability and Regulatory Affairs, Sue Albion, said: “At Flutter, we are committed to playing our part in moving toward environmental sustainability, for the health of our planet and the future success of our business. Around the world, our brands are taking steps to track their carbon footprint and reduce emissions, and we’re collaborating with partners across our supply chain to support them to do the same. Setting clear, science-based targets and holding ourselves accountable to deliver against them is a key part of this journey.”
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Latest News
Bragg Gaming Launches Metric Gaming Sportsbook with Betnation in The Netherlands
Bragg Gaming Group announced the launch of the Betnation sportsbook, utilising technology developed by Metric Gaming across the Dutch market for the first time.
Under the terms of the extension agreement, Bragg provides access to Metric’s sportsbook technology through its existing relationship with the developer, with Bragg working to integrate this technology into Betnation’s current set up.
The integration benefits Betnation further through access to Bragg’s in-house regulatory reporting tools, as well as access to cutting-edge marketing and promotional tools available through Bragg’s Fuze toolset.
The agreement marks the first usage of Metric’s sportsbook technology via Bragg Gaming Group to a Bragg client, with similar launches with other Bragg clients set to follow.
This relationship aims to allow an operator to have all the autonomy and control of an in-house developed sportsbook but through an outsourced solution which is more cost effective for the operator, making it easier for operators to focus on customers.
The launch follows the award of a sports betting license to Betnation by the Dutch Gambling Regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) last month, following an extensive application review process and building on Betnation’s prior iGaming license award.
The sportsbook debut comes at a crucial time in the sporting calendar, with the UEFA European Championship Football tournament kicking off in Germany on June 14, 2024, and with the Paris 2024 Olympics beginning a month later in July.
Betnation are a long standing client of Bragg Gaming, first agreeing a turnkey technology, content aggregation and managed services deal covering the Dutch market in April 2022.
Betnation currently utilizes Bragg’s constantly updated, cutting-edge Player Account Management (PAM) platform in the Dutch market, as well as Bragg’s iGaming content aggregation services, which include casino content from multiple in-house studios as well as exclusive content from multiple studio partners.
Betnation also uses the Fuze customer engagement toolset in its iGaming, benefitting from market leading tools proven to increase user engagement through enabling automated, real-time in-game gamification, conversion and retention mechanisms.
Tools available to iGaming operators under the Fuze toolset include an AI-powered Game Recommendation System, Game-based leaderboards, tournaments and quests.
Matevž Mazij, Chief Executive Officer at Bragg, commented: “We’re delighted to help Betnation expand their existing iCasino offering into sportsbook for the first time, in this first-of-its kind agreement.
“We hope that this arrangement with Metric Gaming will offer our operator clients a unique, game-changing way to offer sports betting but in a way which removes many of the associated financial and operational concerns.”
Robert Schouten, Chief Executive Officer at Betnation, commented: “We’re grateful to the KSA for granting us a sports betting licence, and we’re looking forward to launching our debut sportsbook offering with Bragg and Metric.
The upcoming summer of sporting events will undoubtedly be a busy one for Dutch bettors and we’re looking forward to being able to offer a wide range of betting opportunities for our customers.”
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eSports
Kambi and Abios Join ESIC as Anti-Corruption Supporters
The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) has announced Kambi and Abios, its esports data subsidiary, as new ESIC Anti-Corruption Supporters. This partnership signals the alignment of Kambi’s longstanding commitment to corporate probity and sports integrity with ESIC’s ongoing battle against match-fixing and corruption in esports.
Kambi and Abios join a distinguished class of other Anti-Corruption Supporter stakeholders who have historically worked with ESIC to ensure that attacks against the competitive integrity of esports competition are appropriately reported and dealt with. Anti-Corruption Supporters assist ESIC in investigating suspicious betting activity, supporting ESIC’s broader mission to combat cheating and betting fraud in the esports industry. Kambi and Abios’ entrance into the Anti-Corruption Supporter class will see the entities actively work with ESIC to assist in ESIC’s mission to disrupt, prevent, investigate and prosecute all attempts to compromise competitive integrity in esport competition.
Abios’ Managing Director and Founder, Anton Janér, commented: “Our mission at Abios has always been to enable the sustainable growth of esports. As such, we’re incredibly excited to join ESIC in their mission to future-proof esports through combatting match-fixing and other integrity-related malpractices. Fair play is a crucial component in ensuring the viability of esports as a long-term community and investment and we hope to be able to support the industry together with ESIC going forward.”
Stephen Hanna, ESIC’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We are pleased to welcome Kambi and Abios as Anti-Corruption Supporters. Kambi and Abios are well trusted and recognised operators in their respective industries, and their entrance into the Anti-Corruption Supporter class of ESIC membership emphasises their shared commitment to upholding the highest standards of integrity and fair play within the esports industry.”
The post Kambi and Abios Join ESIC as Anti-Corruption Supporters appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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