Every year, the AskGamblers Awards bring together the leading minds of the iGaming world to spotlight the most impactful brands and standout professionals in the industry. Held in Belgrade, the 2025 edition once again celebrated innovation, growth, and excellence across the affiliate and online casino space.

Among the winners was Kristina Shkredova, Affiliate Team Lead at Boomerang Partners. She was named Best Affiliate Manager by the AskGamblers expert jury — a title awarded to standout leaders who deliver results and put partners first.

The Role of Personality

Kristina’s victory in the prestigious Best Affiliate Manager 2025 award confirms the axiom that the importance of personalities in the success of iGaming brands is undeniable. She has been with Boomerang Partners since its inception as a marketing agency and has become one of the brightest personalities in the industry.

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Kristina Shkredova: “I am thrilled to receive the Best Affiliate Manager award and would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to Nikola, the AskGambler’s account manager assigned to me, as well as to the entire AskGamblers team. This accolade is not just a professional achievement but a testament to our beautiful partnership, founded on shared values, aspirations, and a mutual sense of humor.

Having been with Boomerang Partners since the very beginning, I feel profound and deep love for our affiliate marketing agency and am honored to be a part of this incredible journey. I am immensely proud of the work we have done and eagerly anticipate the new peaks we are set to conquer.”

Successful Cases

Industry experts know that the affiliate marketing sector is highly competitive. That’s why many people opt for tried-and-tested strategies, even though they don’t guarantee success. However, Kristina’s experience shows that the willingness to take risks and set ambitious goals — ones that might initially seem unrealistic — can pay off.

Her portfolio includes several instances of partnering with affiliates who had no prior experience with sports traffic. These partners recognized the risk of venturing into an unfamiliar area. Yet, the strong partnership with Kristina and the backing from Boomerang Partners persuaded them that it was worth the attempt.

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The outcome? These partners are now generating significant volumes of sports traffic, having tapped into a vast ocean of opportunities. They have no regrets about leaping.

Trends and Development of the Affiliate Marketing Industry

The development of modern technologies has a profound impact on the industry and the competitiveness of brands. Kristina’s work clearly shows that it is not only technology and a variety of offers that contribute to success. She believes that the key trend is maximum sincerity and openness in communication with partners. This enables the establishment of long-term, trusting working relationships and fosters a loyal base of partners.

Speaking of loyal partners, Kristina highlights another interesting trend. She notes that companies in the industry are now demonstrating greater creativity in organizing joint activities with their partners. These activities include, for example, joint retreats, trips, and dinners that are transformed into spectacular shows. This helps bring the parties closer together.

Boomerang Partners, by the way, has its own unique initiative that fosters an exceptional approach to partners: the annual global traffic tournament, the Golden Boomerang Awards.

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From February to May 2025, Boomerang Partners hosted the second season of the Golden Boomerang Awards. Compared to the first season, the number of participating teams from around the world increased from 226 to over 400. Awards were presented in 11 categories, and the award ceremony took place at the iconic San Siro Stadium in Milan, thanks to Boomerang’s strategic partnership with the renowned AC Milan. For affiliates, this event was truly unforgettable, as the ceremony was combined with a networking event.

Kristina predicts a significant surge in the demand for sports traffic. Many brands in Boomerang Partners’ portfolio are already focusing on it, and the agency is open to collaboration opportunities in this space.

In 2024, Boomerang Partners saw a remarkable +194% growth in sports traffic across its affiliate ecosystem, along with a +120% year-over-year increase in new affiliate sign-ups. The agency’s effectiveness is undeniable, and Kristina plays a crucial role in driving these successes.

The Role of the Team and the Boomerang Partners’ Culture

It’s essential to note that Kristina’s victory is not solely a result of her personal qualities, but also the environment in which she works. Boomerang Partners fosters a culture that encourages the development of strong industry knowledge in affiliate managers and nurtures their leadership skills. Each team member can rely on internal support, flexibility in problem-solving and goal-setting, as well as active involvement in business processes. This collaborative environment contributes to efficient work and tangible results.

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What’s Next

Kristina is honored to receive the Best Affiliate Manager 2025 award from AskGamblers, but she recognizes that there is still much work to be done. Boomerang Partners regularly participates in major industry events, showcasing its presence with a dedicated booth. Kristina actively attends these events, always prepared to engage with potential partners. She’s now focused on new partnerships and strategic moves that will help Boomerang Partners stay ahead as a top-tier sports affiliate program.

Health and Social Care practitioners saw a 72% increase in their ability to recognise gaming and gambling harms in children and young people after completing Ygam’s training, an independent evaluation has revealed.

The independent evaluation, conducted by Rocket Science, highlights the ‘vital role’ of Ygam’s programme in equipping practitioners with the knowledge and tools to recognise, support, and signpost those at risk. It emphasises the importance of Ygam’s work as many practitioners initially have limited awareness of the risks that gaming and gambling can pose to children and young people.

The report reveals data that shows that, in 2024, Ygam not only frequently met, but also exceeded, its monthly targets in relation to the children and young people reach of trained delegates, achieving an overall reach of 166% of the intended target. Ygam trained 1,957 practitioners reaching an estimated 199,467 children and young people. Key deliveries of the training included clinical and non-clinical staff at Alder Hey Children’s and frontline teams at the children’s mental health charity Place2Be.

The evaluation provides strong evidence that Ygam’s training is highly effective and well-suited for Health and Social Care practitioners. Participants reported significantly increased knowledge of gaming and gambling harms after completing the training. The findings also indicate that the programme enhances practitioners’ ability to recognise the signs of harm in children and young people, as well as their confidence in signposting and offering appropriate support when concerns arise.

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Data collect from pre, and post workshop surveys showed their knowledge of gaming and gambling harms increased from 14.8% to 95.1%. There was also strong evidence to suggest their confidence in communicating with children and young people about gaming and gambling had increased (from 20.4% to 91.9%), as well as their ability to signpost and support those who may be experiencing harm (from 18.5% to 92.8%).

The evidence also suggests that the increase in knowledge is enduring insofar as most respondents reported high levels of knowledge regarding gambling and gaming in children and young people at both three months (57.8%) and six months (75.0%) following the workshop.

The evaluation also presented Ygam with some recommendations to enhance the reach and effectiveness of the programme. These include expanding training access to a wider range of frontline professionals, integrating content into existing safeguarding and mental health frameworks, and developing tailored resources for specific practitioner groups.

Sandy Thompson, Programme Lead for Health and Social care at Ygam, said:

“Being evidence-led is at the heart of everything we do. This evaluation does not just depict our impact but emphasises our heightened focus on reflection and improvement. Over the past year, we’ve embedded rigorous evaluation into every stage of programme delivery to ensure our work is both effective and responsive to the needs of health care practitioners and the young people they support.

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“These insights have shaped our approach, informed our partnerships, and strengthened our commitment to continuous growth. As we look ahead, this evidence base will continue to guide our efforts to scale impact and drive meaningful change in the prevention of gaming and gambling harms.”