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Leicester Riders announce Ygam as Charity of the Year in groundbreaking British Basketball partnership
- Leicester Riders announce partnership with Ygam, a charity with a mission to prevent children and young people from experiencing gaming and gambling harms.
- Ygam has been appointed Leicester Riders ‘Charity of the Year’ for the forthcoming 24/25 season, alongside the Riders Foundation.
- This is the first partnership of its kind for any team in the history of professional British basketball.
- The partnership will involve key home games dedicated to Ygam and the charity’s work, with awareness raising and fundraising events throughout the season, alongside delivering Ygam’s City & Guilds Assured CPD training to all coaches and staff associated with the club.
Leicester Riders, the UK’s oldest professional basketball club, have announced a new partnership with Ygam, a charity with a mission to prevent children and young people from experiencing gaming and gambling harms.
This collaboration, a first for any team in British basketball, signifies a major stride in the Riders’ commitment to the digital safeguarding of all children and young people associated with the Club.
Through its Foundation’s Academy and partnerships with Charnwood College and Loughborough University, the Riders organisation’s commitment to young people extends beyond the basketball court. Collaborating with Ygam further enhances the organisation’s capacity to safeguard and equip young people with essential skills and knowledge to thrive in later life.
Ygam has been appointed Leicester Riders ‘Charity of the Year’ for the forthcoming 24/25 season, alongside the Riders Foundation.
The latest report from the Gambling Commission revealed that 40% of 11- to 17-year-olds have had some experience of gambling over the last 12 months. 1 in 4 have spent their own money on gambling in the past 12 months and 35% of young people have encountered gambling advertisements at sports events. Research from the Bristol Hub for Gambling Harms revealed that basketball has one of the highest gambling participation rates for young people aged 18-24 in the UK, compared to other popular betting sports like football, horse racing, and MMA.
A recent Mumsnet survey, commissioned by Ygam, revealed that children spend an average of 16.9 hours a week playing video games: more than half the amount of time they spend in school each week. Boys aged 11 to 17 are gaming the most with an average of almost a day a week (23.4 hours) spent playing video games.
Basketball is a growing sport at grass roots level in the UK, with nearly 1.25 million children and young people playing the sport at least once a week, and over 1200 licensed coaches nationwide. Popularity of professional basketball in the UK has also seen immense growth over recent years, where viewership of live and on-demand games across YouTube and Sky Sports has jumped from 1.4 million to over 20 million since the 2022/23 season.
This partnership aims to build greater awareness and educate more children and young people about the potential risks associated with gaming and gambling, both within a sporting context and beyond.
Simon Winfield, Interim CEO of Leicester Riders, said: “We’re excited to be working with Ygam. We have a deep admiration for their efforts in promoting gaming and gambling awareness among the youth of today.
“The Riders organisation takes seriously its responsibility to the young people who have entrusted us with their futures, both at Charnwood College and Loughborough University. A large part of that responsibility is ensuring that they are well set up for life beyond the Riders. Through Ygam’s education on the potential risks and dangers associated with gaming and gambling, we are fulfilling our commitment to ensuring their well-being and long-term success.
“We’re also excited at the prospect of helping to educate thousands of young people across Leicestershire, who we work closely with through the Leicester Riders Foundation. Through this partnership, we uphold the Club’s dedication to its local community, ensuring that we leave a lasting, positive influence on the lives of generations to come.”
Sacha Kent, Programme Lead for Education, Sports, and Youth at Ygam, said: “We are honoured to partner with Leicester Riders for the upcoming season and extend our reach within the sport of basketball. With gaming and gambling so heavily intertwined with professional sports, it is vital that we are doing all we can to safeguard all young people who participate in the sport they love.
“Leicester Riders do fantastic work in surrounding communities, including one of the country’s largest Basketball Apprentice schemes at Charnwood College, and a partnership with Loughborough University. The club’s community programmes also reach nearly 20,000 young people from across the city and wider county, and we are excited to use sport as a vehicle to make a real difference in the lives of young people, helping them navigate the digital world safely and responsibly.”
The partnership will involve key home games dedicated to Ygam and the charity’s work, with awareness raising and fundraising events throughout the season, alongside delivering Ygam’s City & Guilds Assured CPD training to all coaches and staff associated with the club.
More details about the partnership and the initiatives planned for the upcoming season will be announced soon.
The post Leicester Riders announce Ygam as Charity of the Year in groundbreaking British Basketball partnership appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Gaming in Europe is pleased to announce that the 2025 Gaming in Germany Conference will take place on November 11, 2025, in Berlin.
The Gaming in Germany Conference is an annual event for everyone who is professionally involved in Germany’s regulated online gambling industry. The conference will cover topics such as regulatory developments, (black) market growth, player protection, marketing, compliance, and much more.
Confirmed speakers
Although the 2025 Gaming in Germany Conference is still some time away, we have already confirmed the following speakers:
- Dr. Jörg Hofmann, Senior Partner, Melchers Law
- Senior GGL representative
- Mathias Dahms, President, DSWV
- Dr. Dirk Quermann, President, DOCV
- Christian Heins, Director iGaming, Tipico
- Josh Hodgson, COO, H2 Gambling Capital
Don’t miss it. Save the date!
Willem van Oort, founder of Gaming in Germany said: “We are very happy that we have received commitments from major stakeholders in Germany’s regulated gambling market to speak at our event. As always, we aim to connect the industry with regulatory and social stakeholders, and vice versa. This year, major topics of discussion will be the true size of Germany’s regulated market, the increasing popularity of the black market, as well as the upcoming evaluation of the 2021 State Gambling Treaty. I am certain there will be plenty to discuss.”
Call for speakers
If you would like to share your insights, success story, innovation, or cautionary tale, please consider applying for a speaker slot at the 2025 Gaming in Germany Conference by sending an email to [email protected].
Your voice matters, and we can’t wait to hear from you!
The post Gaming in Germany Conference returns to Berlin November 11, 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
BETBY, a premium provider of innovative sportsbook solutions, has once again demonstrated its growing influence in the global betting industry following a highly successful appearance at iGB Live 2025, one of Europe’s premier iGaming gatherings.
The event, hosted in London, brought together thousands of industry leaders, innovators, and decision-makers from across the globe. BETBY’s team was at the heart of the action, engaging with partners, operators, and stakeholders to share the latest advancements in its AI-driven sportsbook solution, proprietary esports offering, and tailored content capabilities.
Discussions centered around BETBY’s comprehensive sportsbook ecosystem, which provides operators with the tools to deliver localized and engaging betting experiences. From AI Labs, BETBY’s advanced suite of AI tools designed to enhance operational efficiency and real-time personalization, to Betby.Games, its exclusive esports feed delivering 24/7 engagement, BETBY’s portfolio enables sportsbooks to adapt faster to evolving player demands.
Crowning the successful week, BETBY was honored for the second consecutive year with the Innovation in Sports Betting Software award at the prestigious EGR B2B Awards. This achievement reflects the company’s ongoing efforts to push the boundaries of sportsbook technology, delivering flexible, data-driven, and market-responsive solutions for its partners.
“Our participation at iGB Live in London this year was about building meaningful connections, sharing our vision for the future of sports betting, and showing how our solution is helping operators succeed in an increasingly competitive market,” said Leonid Pertsovskiy, BETBY’s Chief Executive Officer. “Winning the EGR B2B Award for Innovation in Sports Betting Software is an incredible honor, but our focus remains on pushing boundaries and delivering real value to our partners every day.”
The EGR recognition adds to a remarkable list of industry awards collected by BETBY in the past three months, further cementing its reputation as a leading force in the betting sector. Earlier this year, at SiGMA Americas, BETBY received the award for Best Esports Product. The company’s success continued at SiGMA Asia, where it was named Best Esports Provider. Meanwhile, the MiGEA Awards turned into a showcase of BETBY’s excellence, with the company taking home Best Sportsbook Provider, Best AI Sportsbook – Innovation of the Year, and Best B2B Marketing Campaign.
To find out more about BETBY, visit: https://betby.com/
The post BETBY CELEBRATES iGB LIVE SUCCESS WITH EGR B2B AWARD appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has urged the sport to collectively lobby the Government to back British racing and axe the Treasury’s proposal to hike tax on horserace betting by bringing existing online betting duties into one single rate.
The call comes ahead of the launch of “Axe the Racing Tax”, a BHA-led public campaign against the proposal which will be rolled out over the summer.
A tax hike for bookmakers in the Autumn Budget would be the third leg of a triple whammy of financial threats caused by Government policies which jeopardise the future of the sport in Britain.
Economic analysis commissioned by the BHA shows that aligning the current 15% tax rate paid by bookmakers on racing with that of online games of chance – currently taxed at 21% – by harmonising all remote gambling duties, could hit racing’s finances to the tune of £66m in lost income via the Levy, media rights and sponsorship. This is because operators are likely to seek to mitigate significant tax rises through cutting bonuses, reducing advertising and marketing budgets and increasing prices.
Should the Treasury seek to raise the proposed single duty rate further to help balance the books, the impact on racing’s finances would be devastating, with a projected £97m loss at a tax rate of 25%, a £126m loss at 30% and a £160m loss at 40%.
Brant Dunshea, Acting Chief Executive of the British Horseracing Authority, said: “It is vital that everyone working in racing, the media and bettors fully support and promote this campaign.
“The Government’s consultation on harmonising online betting duties, if followed through, poses one of the gravest risks to racing the sport has ever seen.
“It will punch a huge hole in racing’s finances, risk thousands of jobs across Britain and threaten the future of the country’s second most-popular sport and a cherished national institution.
“From now until the Budget we will be hammering home a very simple message to MPs, Peers and the Government on behalf of millions of racing fans. It’s time for the Government to back British racing and axe the racing tax.”
The post BHA Initiates Campaign Against Tax Hike appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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