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The future of influencer marketing in the igaming industry

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Author: Anna Zhukova, Team Lead (iGaming vertical) of Famesters agency 

 

Influencer marketing is no longer a way to promote a new mascara. Today, it is a dominating strategy for complex brands, products, and platforms. From 2016 to 2022, the average annual growth rate of the influencer marketing industry was 46.9%.

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9 of 10 iGaming industry players use this channel permanently as a powerful way to connect and engage with their target audiences. It is easy to explain: smart leveraging the power of influencers can bring tremendous results already during the test launch.

Why use influencer marketing for iGaming?

By partnering with influencers who have a large and engaged audience in the iGaming community, brands can tap into a highly motivated audience that is more likely to respond positively to their marketing messages. Additionally, influencers provide a level of authenticity and trust that is difficult to achieve via traditional advertising channels, especially for those products that are not easy to promote due to legal risks. Finally, iGaming brands can leverage influencer marketing to stand out from competitors and stay on top of mind with consumers in a skyrocketing competitive market: the iGaming industry, comprising online gambling, sports betting, and casino games, has experienced rapid expansion in recent years. In 2021, the industry was estimated to be worth $61 billion annually, and has projections of an 86% growth rate by 2028. 

Current situation and upcoming trends

As the iGaming industry evolves year by year, brands build their communication and expand the audience with content creators. According to the BuzzGuru research, 89% of the marketers admit that ROI from influencer marketing is higher than from other channels.

Year by year, by allocating influencer marketing budgets, iGaming brands gain the ability to expand their reach to new audiences and improve performance among existing ones. This advantage enables iGaming industry players to skyrocket. Today, we observe the rise of brands’ collaborations with micro-influencers: 77% of the brands prefer working with this type of creators. It is easy to explain: collaborations with niche creators usually bring better performance. Micro-influencers are seen as more authentic and engaging than larger influencers, that is why they can help build a more loyal and engaged customer base.

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The trends in influencer marketing shaping the future of the industry are: 

1. Diving deep

Influencer marketing is evolving towards a more comprehensive approach where content creators are deeply involved in promoting products. This approach goes far beyond traditional CPA deals, where influencers are paid based on the results they deliver. Today, we see creators who use iGaming products they promote regularly and at the same time express genuine excitement towards them becoming brand ambassadors. This leads to more genuine promotions because the creators provide not just the basic product information, benefits and bonuses the platform prepared for new users, but also their own unique experience. As a result, the promotions become more authentic and resonate better with the audience.

2. Long-term partnerships

More and more iGaming brands prefer to build long-lasting relationships with influencers, rather than one-off campaigns. This approach kills two birds with one stone: brands build more authentic and loyal relationships both with influencers and their audience, thus enlarge their own and attract new users. A successful approach is to build long-term relations for iGaming brand is to collaborate with influencers who already performed well and seek out content creators who are alike. Niche creators often form small communities, so partnering with such influencers can help broaden your brand’s reach by tapping into their audience. 

3. Transparent messages

There is a growing emphasis on the transparency of ads. Simple promotions of casinos and betting platforms on YouTube and Instagram are forbidden, that is why the ad messages should be native and transparent. Tell about the benefits of your platform, its USP, and bonuses new users get after registration. At the same time, be clear in calls for action and use simple ones, such as ‘click here’, ‘register now’, ‘use a promo code’, and others.

Opportunities and challenges

Promotion of betting platforms and online casinos through influencers unlocks new possibilities for brands to expand their existing audience, including the opportunity to target new geos, build brand awareness and trust, and, finally, attract new players. 

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Let’s see how it works: an influencer showcases a bet slip or a feature they find impressive in an iGaming app or platform, along with a hyperlink in their post that  leads to a casino lobby or a betting platform. This provides the audience with a clear and understandable picture of what they can expect from the app or a platform from a trustworthy creator they follow.

The success of an influencer marketing campaign highly depends on certain factors: creatives’ quality, relevant creators and their audiences. It is crucial to find influencers who have a strong performance and whose values align with those of your brand. One key aspect to consider is the relevance of your product to the content produced by the influencer. For example, at Famesters when planning integrations for betting platforms, we prefer working with influencers who create sports or entertaining content – they usually bring the best performance. 

However, alongside opportunities come challenges. First, it can be difficult to find influencers that are experienced in the iGaming industry and are ready to take the risks: if a creator is caught in promoting iGaming, they get a strike from a platform, after 3 strikes the platform bans their account. Second, it is better to make sure you target the right audience. So it is better to identify them first. The ‘golden’ and the most desirable audience for iGaming brands is usually solvent males above 20. As for creatives, it’s essential to highlight any unique information or bonuses your platform provides. It’s also crucial to emphasize the expected action several times, at the same time this call-to-action should be clear and easy to understand.

Emerging technologies and their use for iGaming brands

The development of technologies does not stand still. One of the technologies to use for influencer marketing of iGaming brands is virtual and augmented reality: create immersive experiences for the audience, allowing them to see the creator in a ‘real-world’ casino or sportsbook. This can be especially effective for online casinos, which often struggle to replicate the excitement and atmosphere of a physical casino.

Another technology to be used is artificial intelligence (AI). On the one hand, AI could analyze data about the influencers’ account, including audience, the engagement rate, number of comments and others. Some AI, like BuzzGuru, help get a clear picture of competitors’ influencer marketing strategies, including paid and organic mentions, lists of influencers involved, videos links released and budgets spent. 

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On the other hand, AI can assist in creating more engaging ad messages for the audiences, as well as developing tasks and briefs for creators, diversifying scripts and thus making every single launch unique. 

The importance of analytics in influencer marketing

As an agency, we stake on a deep analysis of current campaigns. This approach  always helps understand the key audience and provide recommendations for further launches – by cutting off non-working solutions, we easily increase the performance on the go. By going deeper into creators’ analytics such as audience data, engagement rates, average views and reach, in addition to previous launches’ performance for the similar products, we are able to make a clear estimation in order to squeeze the maximum possible outcomes. 

Besides, the industry is growing very fast and we’re always learning. The reality shows that even small changes in strategy can affect the whole launch significantly and only a proper analytics and the ability to overview things from the subtle side gives the luxury to absorb the newly came information.

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Esports to make its mark at Khelo India Youth Games 2025 with BGMI, Street Fighter 6, Chess, and eFootball

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For the first time in the history of the Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG), esports will be stepping into the spotlight as a demonstration event. Scheduled to be held in Bihar from May 4 to 14, KIYG 2025 will host its esports competitions from May 6 to 7 at the Patliputra Sports Complex, featuring popular titles such as Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), Street Fighter 6, Chess, and eFootball on both mobile and console.

Featuring titles that span mobile, console, and strategy-based formats like chess, the esports lineup at KIYG 2025 reflects a deliberate effort to cater to diverse gaming audiences. This move also signals a broader national recognition of esports as a legitimate sporting pursuit, on par with traditional disciplines, a direction that India has been moving toward with increased pace.

While BGMI remains the most popular esports title in India, Chess stands out as a particularly noteworthy addition to KIYG 2025. Once considered a purely traditional sport, Chess has increasingly found a home in the esports world, most recently as part of the Esports World Cup (EWC) 2025, which boasts a prize pool of $1.5 million (INR 12.6 crore) for the title. NODWIN Gaming, a leader in South Asia’s esports and gaming ecosystem, has been one of the pioneers of this shift in India. In 2021, the company organised the Chess Super League, featuring national and international stars and also hosted Chess tournaments at DreamHack India 2024 across rapid and blitz formats.

“The inclusion of titles like BGMI, Street Fighter 6, Chess, and eFootball in the Khelo India Youth Games 2025 signals a big step forward for grassroots esports in India,” says Akshat Rathee, Co-founder and Managing Director of NODWIN Gaming. “It’s encouraging to see esports standing shoulder to shoulder with traditional sports, and the addition of Chess – bridging classical and digital strategy shows how in tune this initiative is with global trends. But this isn’t just about tournaments. It’s about creating real opportunities to discover talent from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, places that have been overlooked for too long, thus building the foundation for a future where Indian gamers don’t just participate, they dominate on the world stage.”

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Further underscoring the growing stature of Indian Chess in esports, S8UL, a global force in esports and gaming content, has signed Grandmasters Aravindh Chithambaram and Nihal Sarin to compete at the EWC 2025. In addition to Chess, S8UL will also field players in Street Fighter 6, as well as EAFC25, Call of Duty Warzone, Tekken 8, and Apex Legends at the prestigious tournament.

Animesh Agarwal, Co-founder and CEO of S8UL believes that the inclusion of titles like Street Fighter 6, Chess, and eFootball console in KIYG 2025 reflects a thoughtful push to diversify beyond mobile gaming and build a more well-rounded competitive ecosystem. “It is especially encouraging to see Street Fighter 6 and Chess recognised through a government-led initiative, at a time when S8UL will be representing India in these very titles at the upcoming Esports World Cup. This development is crucial for identifying and nurturing talent across a range of platforms and genres from the grassroots level.  Such proactive support from the authorities is a strong indicator of the growing legitimacy of esports in India and a positive sign for the industry’s future,” he adds.

The roots of esports entering the mainstream have already been visible across various states. Before its inclusion in KIYG 2025, the state of Bihar actively embraced the esports movement by organising the Bihar State Esports Open Championship and the Bihar Inter School and College Esports Championship over the past year. States like Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Nagaland have also taken proactive steps to support and formalise grassroots esports programs.

Mikhail Bhuta, Co-Founder & Tech Lead, Dirtcube Interactive LLP remarked, “Including esports in the Khelo India Youth Games is a practical step toward building a grassroots ecosystem for new-age sports. We believe that through this program, we’ll soon see national esports heroes rise from across the country and bolster India’s representation on the global stage. With this being the inaugural season, we envision having Made-in-India esports-based games be part of KIYG’s future seasons.”

With S8UL participating in Chess and Street Fighter at the EWC 2025, India has already been making waves on the international stage in eFootball, with Pavan Kampelli winning the bronze medal at the 2024 Asian Esports Games in Bangkok.

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Esports will be an official medal sport at the 2026 Asian Games, and the first-ever Olympic Esports Games is scheduled to debut in 2027. These developments mark a global shift toward legitimising esports within mainstream sporting culture.

KIYG 2025 featuring esports will help identify, nurture, and empower gaming talent from the ground up. With both state and national bodies supporting the push, the future of Indian esports looks brighter than ever.

The post Esports to make its mark at Khelo India Youth Games 2025 with BGMI, Street Fighter 6, Chess, and eFootball appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Leadership, Culture & Innovation Conversations – Itai Zak Joins NEXT.io Valletta

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Digicode is pleased to announce that Itai Zak, Executive Director of iGaming at Digicode, will participate as a speaker at the highly anticipated NEXT.io Summit in Valletta 2025, taking place from May 5 to 8.

Itai Zak will contribute to the panel discussion titled “Blood or Business?”, part of the summit’s dedicated Personal Development Hub, which focuses on leadership, mental wellbeing, and workplace culture across the iGaming industry.

Moderated by Emily Leeb, CEO of Saroca, the panel will address the complexities of professional relationships within the sector, examining how genuine leadership can foster healthy environments while maintaining essential boundaries. Zak will be joined by other prominent industry figures, including Peter Grech (CEO & Founder, BRND WGN), Claire Adamou (VP of Development, Saroca), and Fiona Ewins Brown (Executive Coach, Mondial Coaching).

Itai Zak will share insights into how evolving leadership styles can shape a safer, more sustainable industry, while promoting genuine care without compromising professionalism.

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“The iGaming industry moves quickly, and leadership needs to keep pace – not just with innovation, but also with how we support our people. It’s time for real conversations about what a healthy, high-performing workplace looks like. I’m excited to be part of this important discussion at NEXT.io”, Zak added.

This year’s NEXT.io Summit is expected to attract over 6,000 participants, making it one of the largest and most impactful events on the global iGaming calendar. The event will feature open discussions, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities, bringing together the industry’s top minds to tackle its most pressing challenges.

Digicode’s involvement in the summit underlines the company’s commitment to industry leadership, innovation, and the advancement of positive workplace practices.

The post Leadership, Culture & Innovation Conversations – Itai Zak Joins NEXT.io Valletta appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Springbok Casino Honours South Africa’s Strongest Mother’s in the Wild and Gives Away 25 Free Spins

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The post Springbok Casino Honours South Africa’s Strongest Mother’s in the Wild and Gives Away 25 Free Spins appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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