Is there a match to be made between sportsbooks, lottery corps and women's sports in Canada?
A new women's soccer league is coming, the FIFA World Cup quarter-final matchups are set, and The Company Line profiles a Vancouver esports company started by a former CFL player.
In this issue:
Today’s Gaming News Canada Show a sports spectacular
A marriage of women’s sports and sportsbooks?
Putting forward the FIFA foot(y)
Chatting with Christopher Justice of Global Payments
The Company Line - ESE Entertainment
Gaming News Canada Show today: World Cup quarters, Hall of Fame Fred and Captain Clutch
We have a couple of special treats when we parleh on Twitter Spaces this afternoon. Along with the usual conversations on the industry news of the week, Room 4-4-2 host James Sharman will jump on board to tee up the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup. He’ll be followed by Bob Elliott, the dean of Canadian baseball writers honoured by the Baseball Hall of Fame, Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame (and sundry other halls of fame) who’ll make his maiden voyage on Twitter Spaces to talk about Fred McGriff’s election (and who was snubbed) to Cooperstown by the Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee. We’ll also get everyone’s opinion on Marie-Philip Poulin being honoured with the Northern Star Award (formerly the Lou Marsh Trophy) as Canada’s athlete of the year, along with the proposal for a Canadian women’s soccer league.
In case you missed it earlier this week, the latest Gaming News Canada Show podcast featured Scott Vanderwel and Nic Sulsky of PointsBet Canada along with Kindred Group’s Amanda Brewer discussing the impact of Ontario’s regulated igaming industry on employment opportunities in the province, and their reaction to the Annual Report from the Officer of the Auditor General of Ontario.
A marriage between sportsbooks and (more) women’s sports?
It’s been one whirlwind week for women’s sports in the true north, strong and free. Yesterday afternoon, as we poured our afternoon tea (Double Bergamot Earl Grey, of course), word came through the Twitterwaves that the aforementioned Poulin had been anointed Canada’s top athlete in 2022 by a collection of sports media types from across the country. That came on the heels of the breaking news Monday evening that former national women’s soccer teammates Diana Matheson and Christine Sinclair were leading a legitimate charge to launch an eight-team women’s soccer league in 2025.
Oh yes, earlier Monday the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association delivered the news that this weekend’s all-star games will be broadcast on both TSN and RDS (we remain optimistic that the PWHPA and Premier Hockey Federation will get together with the NHL to bring together the best female players on the planet). And yesterday, Canadian Women and Sport released Rally Report 2022 to call for an improved, safer sports system for girls.
One more thing: Canadian Tire, which was introduced as a sponsor of the Canadian female footy fold (say that fast five times and we’ll get you a guest appearance on Room 4-4-2), also announced that it’s on board as a founding sponsor of a campaign to raise $1 million for the Canadian women’s para hockey national team.
So, what in the name of Helen Stoumbos does all of this have to do with a twice-weekly diary on the gambling industry? Well, as we’ve seen with the advertising and marketing/sponsorship spend on television, digital and social media by incoming operators to Ontario’s regulated igaming industry - along with the provincial lottery corporations across the country which now offer a plethora of wagers on sporting events - there’s certainly money available to invest in women’s sports. And hey, Deadpool can’t sponsor every shiny new sports object in this country.
We were told this week that the PWHPA has had discussions with sportsbook operators about becoming partners without any success. The Gist is having talks right now with FanDuel to expand their partnership into next year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup. The WNBA announced in September that FanDuel was the league’s official sportsbook and daily fantasy partner. Over the past 12-months plus, the LPGA Tour has announced betting-related partnerships with BetMGM and IMG Arena. On this side of the 49th, theScore’s partnership with Golf Canada includes the CP Women’s Open while PointsBet Canada’s sponsorship deal with Curling Canada involves the women’s and men’s PointsBet Invitational which made its debut in September. Both PointsBet and Coolbet have done deals with female curling teams.
Writing a cheque for organizations like the PWHPA and a new soccer league present some challenges for sportsbooks looking to parlay those partnerships into customers and money. That said, tying your brand to Poulin, Kia Nurse, Sinclair, Kadeisha Buchanan and other elite-level athletes - as brand ambassadors or through league/team partnerships - who shine brightly on both the domestic and international stages would appear to make sense. They also present an opportunity for sportsbooks, lottery corps and other stakeholders to improve their messaging around responsible gambling.
We’ll discuss on today’s Gaming News Canada Show with Dr. Cheri Bradish, who oversees the Future of Sport Lab and Sport Initiatives at Toronto Metropolitan University.
Putting forward the FIFA foot(y)
FIFA’s Integrity Task Force announced this morning that it hasn’t seen any suspicious betting or threats of match fixing through the first 56 games of the tournament.
Despite taking place at the same spot on the sports calendar as the NFL, NBA and NHL regular seasons along with the heavy slate of U.S. college football and basketball games, the World Cup has had a significant impact on the business of betting in the U.S. of A.
The chair of the Betting & Gaming Council is firing back at critics of sportsbook operators in the UK doing business around Qatar 2022.
Analysts at Barclays are . . . umm. . . banking on $35 billion being spent on wagering for this year’s tournament.
Thanks to the World Cup, crypto betting volume is surprisingly on the rise these days.
A bettor turned a $90,000 wager into $1 million-plus by banking on Morocco to reach the quarter-finals. Darren Rovell reports t’was an elementary school teacher in New York who scored big.
A few words from Global Payments boss Justice
From the Department of Emptying our Notepad, we spent some time with Global Payments Gaming Solutions grand poobah Christopher Justice at the Global Gaming Expo this fall. A few snippets from our conversation at the booth of the international software and technology company:
On the growth of igaming across North America: “This thing is blowing and going,” Justice told Gaming News Canada. “Whether it’s G2E or the innovations we’ve deployed, we’re bringing in people at a greater rate.’
On its Canadian presence (Global Payments has a Toronto office): “We’ve been in this industry for 25 years and in Canada for years, including Niagara Falls with the casinos there. Global Payments is No. 3 in the country behind TD and Moneris.”
On the company’s raison d’etre: “We’re really the integrated portion of the ecosystem. We’re the intel inside the computer. What we’re doing with mobility allows you to connect financial accounts with your favourite games. It allows people to move their winnings from playing games to buying dinner at Wolfgang Puck, buying tickets for Cirque du Soleil, or funding your sportsbook.”
On cashless payments and responsible gambling: “With cashless payments, casinos can implement a more individual approach versus blank rules. With mobile payments, casinos can also personalize the control specific to the player.”
The Company Line
We present an extended edition of TCL this week with our profile of ESE Entertainment and the highlights of our conversation with company founder - and former CFL player - Konrad Wasiela.
Birthdate: 2019
Home Base: Vancouver
Founder: Konrad Wasiela
Raison D’Etre: Your glass-half-full chronicler is a sucker for a feel-good story, especially if there’s a sporting slant. So. . . .
As a child, Wasiela came to Canada from Poland with his family. He played high school football with TSN’s Farhan Lalji as one of his coaches, studied real estate at the University of British Columbia and landed a job with the B.C. Lions as an undrafted free agent. He’d spend parts of the following two seasons in Saskatchewan and Montreal before calling it a career and focusing on building ESE - a global entertainment and tech company focused on gaming and esports that includes ownership of its esports teams.
“I was blessed to be coached by Wally Buono, Ken Miller and Marc Trestman,” Wasiela told Gaming News Canada over the Google Meets last month. “Being around successful teams and great coaches helped mold my personality going into the business world.”
And working as a translator of financial reports for a company whose clients included gaming behemoths such as EA Sports and Flutter Entertainment helped steer Wasiela towards tech and gaming.
“Translating those reports turned on a light bulb,” said the 37-year-old, whose company includes a tech hub in the Montreal suburb of Verdun and three European offices including Warsaw. “I saw esports coming on really strong and thought ‘this is my moment’. The synergies between traditional sports and esports are identical; they’re both highly competitive.
“We started with an esports team to learn the community and see how the whole industry works. We started to see the opportunity to implement certain technologies to help companies. (Now), we’re really hyper-focused on tech and big data.”
ESE’s clients include Electronic Arts, Riot Games, CD Projext and Opera GX. Wasiela, however, hasn’t lost touch with what got him into the game.
“People are underestimating how many young pro athletes are gamers,” he said. “I’m good friends with (Vancouver Canucks star) Elias Pettersson. During the week, he’s in his room with his game headset on.
“Kyler Murray and LeBron James’s son Bronny were on the cover of Sports Illustrated for gaming.
If you’d like to have your company featured in this section to profile the players in the Canadian gaming space, please drop us a note at steve@theparleh.com.
On the Home Front
Vancouver-based FansUnite Entertainment is looking for a new president after this week’s announcement that Darius Eghdami is stepping down as of Tuesday. Eghdami is also leaving his director’s position although he’ll continue to be involved with the company as an advisor.
Gaming lawyer Jack Tadman keyboarded a quartet of takeaways from last week’s AGCO-imposed ban on UFC betting.
OLG, after taking some flak last week from Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk for not doing enough on responsible gambling, has released its three-year strategic plan for playing responsibly.
Jose Colorado at Play Canada dug a little deeper into a recent University of Guelph study into gambling addiction.
Count the Toronto Star’s Martin Regg Cohn as among the folks who are unimpressed by the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario hiring an undercover team to expose money laundering at casinos across the province as part and parcel of the office’s annual report.
The POTP was also POd at the AG.
Entain CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen was in our home and native land this week to meet with the Sports Interaction gang. A pity she didn’t stop by to say hi while she was in the neighourhood. . . .
Because a significant number of our loyal subscribers are knowledgeable observers of the Canadian sporting scene, past and present, we thought it appropriate to note the Canada Sports Hall of Fame is accepting nominations for the Class of 2023.
Finally, courtesy of Woodbine Entertainment, we re-present. . . The King’s Plate.
Let’s Get Together
Enthusiast Gaming let it be known yesterday that Xbox and Verizon have come on board as media sponsors for the NFL Tuesday Night Gaming championship week.
PokerStars has a new dance partner from the National Hockey League. . . . rhymes with Dead Things. . . .
PS also has a new partnership with Push Gaming.
Jay Z’s Roc Nation will represent Caesars and SL Green in their bid for a gaming venue at Times Square in NYC.
USA Today will be using Data Skrive to increase the volume of sports betting content distributed to digital media outlets.
SimWin Sports has recruited sports analyst Emmanuel Acho, Sara (Lovestyle) Hood and Edward Madongorere to its team of content creators and entrepreneurs.
Enthusiast Gaming is doing the partnership thing with Netflix.
Ohio-bound Gold Rush Gaming Partners is getting a helping hand from U.S. Integrity.
DAZN is partnering with BetClass Italia on a new sportsbook service in Italy.
PointsBet is integrating IMG ARENA’s Golf Event Centre into its app as it continues to expand its golf product, especially around live betting.
AEG Presents is getting together with Tipico on a sponsorship deal around its music venues.
IGT and SuperBook are taking their technology partnership to Tennessee.
Gaming Innovation Group announced last week a multi-faceted agreement with News Corp UK and Ireland.
Chalkline is joining forces with Optimove to improve customer acquisition and retention.
Playson has reached a content integration agreement with Ontario supplier licensee SkillOnNet.
Belgium-based StarCasino is getting together with Gaming Innovation Group to expand its business into Espana.
SCCG Management and 7Ball Run are now doing business together.
Matters of M&A
Could MGM Resorts be looking at acquiring Entain?
Robert Fletcher of igamingbusiness.com reported yesterday that IMG Arena has made a deal to acquire virtual sports and casino games provider Leap Games.
Quarter(s) Pole
Charles Gillespie, the founder and CEO of Gambling.com Group, appeared on The Watch List to talk about the company’s latest results.
States Side Stories
The business of Penn Entertainment, Barstool Media and Barstool Sports was a topic of much back and forth during Tuesday’s public meeting of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, writes SBC’s Jessica Welman. Heather Fletcher at Bonus.com weighed in on the Dave Portnoy/Penn/Barstool relationship and why it’s set off alarm bells with the MGC.The very succinct summary from the recent Harris Poll: sports betting good, sports betting advertising bad.
Ryan Butler at iGaming Next writes that more than a dozen operators will be ready to roll when Ohio’s online sports betting industry opens New Year’s Day.
A sports betting industry insider told ESPN’s David Purdum last week that the FBI is now involved in the investigation into cyberattacks on digital sportsbooks.
Speaking of the cyberattacks, Jeff Edelstein at US Bets believes the sportsbooks dropped the ball when it came to communicating with its customers.
Mattress Mack will lay down the first wager at a new hotel and casino in Westlake, Louisiana, on Monday.
Miriam Gotffried of the Wall Street Journal had the scoop Tuesday on Fanatics raising another $700 million (U.S. dollars) and pushing the company’s valuation to 31 billion bucks. And thanks to Sportico’s Lev Akabas for the below graphic:
Mixed martial arts coach James Krause has been banned by another organization as he’s investigated for suspicious betting.
Sports Handle’s Jill Dorson asks if a more open sports betting industry in Arizona is hitting the state’s Indigenous communities in their wallets, digital and otherwise.
Good reading from Corey Sharp of PlayPennsylvania.com on sportsbooks, social media and responsible gambling.
Forbes contributor Marc Edelman wrote about unlicensed sportsbooks pretending to operate as fantasy sports enterprises.
There’s a proposal afoot for legal sports wagering in Vermont.
In his latest op-ed for CDC Gaming Reports, Jake Pollard does some keyboarding on gambling’s black market south of the border in the aftermath of the NY Times series and the latest report by the American Gaming Association.
New York state Senator Pete Harckham is taking aim at bonuses offered by sports betting operators.
A former elected official in Ohio is being accused of participating in a sports betting pay-to-play operation.
There appears to be a clear path to sports betting happening inside Massachusetts casinos.
Sports wagering handle saw an 85 per cent YOY increase in Arizona for September.
Igaming is coming to Indigenous communities in the state of North Dakota.
One proposal for legal gambling in Texas won’t include online sports betting, Robert Linnehan of Saturday Down South reported. However, one group is confident that sports betting will become legal in the Lone Star State next year.
Richard Velotta of the Las Vegas Review-Journal wondered how long it will take for proponents of legal online sports betting in California to regroup.
It appears the race to legalize online sports betting in Arizona was to the detriment of the state’s coffers.
Velotta also reports on the boom being experienced by gaming equipment manufacturers such as Light & Wonder.
John Brokopp of CDC Gaming Reports sat down with IGT executive Joe Asher to discuss the company’s dealings with tribal casinos on sports wagering.
This fell between the cracks last week, so ICYMI, ESPN isn’t doing a deal with a sports betting deal any time soon.
Russell Karp and Kevin Twitchell interviewed NASCAR sports betting manager Ray Koch about the organization’s integration of wagering into the fan experience.
Revenue from casinos in Maryland topped $163 million in November.
Finally, both PointsBet and Drew Brees faced some flak for a social media post about the retired NFL QB being struck by lightning last week.
Across the Pond
New UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wants to push forward with extensive reforms to the business of online gambling.
Gavin Wilson, Harry Wilson and Ann Choi wrote for Bloomberg on the explosion in online gambling across the UK.
The government of India has told Google to cease displaying ads of overseas betting businesses.
The European Betting & Gaming Association last week responded to the publication of Ireland’s Gambling Regulation Bill. The new bill could include a total ban on promos.
GBG has issued a report on the igaming landscape in Latin America.
Kindred Group’s Unibet brand is facing a very stiff fine from gambling regulators in Poland.
Gambling operators in Australia are being accused of targeting children with their advertising campaigns.
Meanwhile, the country’s Alliance for Gambling Reform is once again calling for greater measures to reduce gambling harm.
Esports Reports
Fashion shops Harry Rosen and Nobis got on board a recent Call of Duty event bringing together Toronto Ultra players and esports fans.
Rege Behe at CDC Gaming Reports delivered the news last night that Sports Info Solutions will be providing esports betting products to Bet365 for its non-tournament esports offerings in New Jersey.
Esport Canada has announced a partnership with Amar-VR Law and appointed Amar Sidhu as senior legal counsel.
Rivalry is getting together with Filipino esports group Blacklist International to put a team into the 2023 Dota Pro Circuit.
Entain is giving Unikrn a complete makeover before relaunching the business it acquired in 2021.
Esports platform Gankster has raised more than $4 million in a seed round. That’ll buy a lot of Xboxes, PS5s . . . . or whatever the kids are using these days.
The “Esports Awards” make their debut in Las Vegas next week.
Esports Insider has released its list of the top Movers and Shakers over the past 11-plus months.
Peter Lynch at Gambling Insider did the Q and A thing with GG.Bet CEO Dmitry Voshkarin on the growth of esports, plus other matters.
Ivan Simic of Esports Insider reported that last weekend’s Call of Duty Stage 1 Media Qualifiers was a huge hit on Twitch.
British esports business Fnatic has a new partner and investor.
SBC’s Erin-Marie Gallagher spoke with BETER CEO Gal Ehrlich about the company’s increasing focus on esports wagering.
Premier League club Newcastle United plans to build its esports presence through a new partnership with VOV Gaming.
Esports media business Jaxon is shutting down.
Also closing its doors is German esports organization Cowana Gaming.
Shadow Esports head of sales Bonnie Leyser spoke about the power of content in esports betting.
Media Musings
CBC’s Cost of Living program with Paul Haavardsrud delved into . . . you guessed it. . . . the avalanche of ads by sports betting operators.
FanDuel TV’s coverage now includes martial arts thanks to a new partnership with ONE Championship.
In his latest My Other Passion podcast, Ernest Baker of Legal Sports Report had a chin wag with FanDuel TV’s Kay Adams about media, football, Pat McAfee and life in general.
Sportradar’s Mike Falconer joined SportsPro’s StreamTime podcast to discuss the potential impact on sports broadcasting from the convergence of content, sports betting and business.
Quick Hits
Sports Business Journal has released its top 10 Most Innovative Sports Tech Companies of 2022.
Entain this week launched an NFT auction that blends blockchain with responsible gambling policy.
Sports Handle’s Bennett Conlin did some typing about the connection between social media and betting on sports.
UFC fighters trained by a suspended coach won’t be able to compete while a probe into suspicious betting activity is being investigated.
SBC business journalist Mollie Chapman interviewed Wondr Nation president and CEO Anika Howard on how the company looks at gaming entertainment.
Tallysight co-founder and CEO Matt Peterson is Jesse Learmonth’s guest on the latest Betting Startups Podcast.
By the by, Tony Bitonti passed along the most popular sporting events among ProLine players last week (Bills-Patriots, Brazil-South Korea, Colts-Cowboys, Japan-Croatia, and England-Senegal).
People on the Move
Kim Barker Lee is leaving IGT after 12 years, the last four as VP, Diversity & Inclusion to join Bally’s as Executive VP and Chief Legal Officer.
U.S. government affairs veteran John Pappas has been appointed Senior VP of Government and Public Affairs by GeoComply.
888 Holdings has appointed Anna Barsby as its new Chief Product & Technology Officer.
Hero Gaming is promoting Sarah Stellini to CEO.
James Schultz, a White House advisor during Don Trump’s presidency, has joined Scientific Games as Executive VP of Global Policy and Government Affairs.
Guy Harding is leaving his gig as Commercial Strategy and Safer Gambling Director at Oddschecker to join LC Interactive as Commercial Director.
Cindy Fiocca-Bloom has left Fubo Gaming as Head of Compliance to become the new Executive Director for the Illinois Casino Gaming Association.
Tyrone Waite is the new CEO of the Grey Eagle Resort & Casino for Tsuut’ina Nation.
Robbie Middlestadt, formerly of Parleh Media Group, has joined theScore as a Marketing Operations Associate. Jaydeen Allen has also come on board as Senior Betting Social Media Editor.
Cody Luongo reported in his Sharpr newsletter Tuesday that the board of directors at Esports Entertainment Group has given CEO Grant Johnson the boot.
Jean Major is leaving as CEO of the Bermuda Gaming Commission and will be replaced by Charmaine Smith.
Genesis Global co-founder and CEO Ariel Reem is leaving the company after an eight-year run.
Vlad Marinescu has been re-elected president of the International Esports Federation.
The fledgling XFL has promoted Erica Muhleman to Chief Revenue Officer and hired Brooke Campbell as Senior VP, Team Services.
Mike Kelly is stepping down as CEO of Golf Ontario after a 17-year run with the organization to join the Southern California Golf Association as its new Executive Director, effective March 2023.
Panda Global CEO Alan Bunnay has stepped down from his position.
Chelsea McDermott has been promoted to Director, Marketing by the Ottawa Senators.
Shawn Small has been named the new President of RISE Integrated Sports + Entertainment.
Bianca Bertelli has been promoted to Manager, Partnership Marketing at Canucks Sports & Entertainment.
Former CFL executive Kevin McDonald has been hired by Ontario Basketball as Senior Director, Business Operations.
Former Hockey Canada Coordinator, Partnerships Mike Cathcart is joining OverActive Media as Manager, Global Partnerships.
Neil Hegde has been promoted by the NBA Players’ Association to Senior Director of Player Marketing and I.D.E.A. Lab.
Lori Lancaster is the new Executive Director at Basketball Nova Scotia.
Classified (Jobs) Information
Wanted by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation: a Director, Commercial Sponsorship.
PointsBet Canada has an opening for a Director of Brand Marketing, and is also in the market for a Technical Lead.
BetMGM’s Canadian operation is beating the bushes for a Marketing Promotions Manager.
The Responsible Gambling Council is hiring an Education & Prevention Coordinator.
iGaming Next has an opening for a Conference Producer in Malta.
The International Tennis Integrity Association has four positions to fill.
The University of Toronto is looking for an Associate Professor/Professor - Sport Analytics.
TheScore has an opening for an Engineering Manager - Platform.
Bally’s Interactive is hiring a Senior Android Developer for its Toronto office.
California-based Pivot has a remote opportunity for a Director, Gaming & Esports.
Canada-based Gamelancer Media is on the lookout for a Global Head of Sales & Partnerships.
LiveSpins is hiring a Sales Director - Malta.
Our friends at The Gist are looking for a College Sports Newsletter Producer.
ClutchPoints - Canada is seeking an Associate Editor, All Sports.
iGaming Next has an opening for a Junior Social Media Editor.
The Vancouver Whitecaps are advertising for a VP, Corporate Partnerships.
Tennis Canada is hiring a Stadium Sales Representative for the Toronto-based National Bank Open.
Woodbine Entertainment is searching for a Data Architect/Modeler.
Coming soon to a screen/town near you
Today is the deadline to apply for the opportunity to compete in Pitch Ice 2023.
The U.S. National Council on Problem Gambling is hosting a webinar this afternoon on the new Ontario market, featuring AGCO chief strategy officer Liz Yeigh and George Sweny, the VP of regulatory affairs for Flutter Entertainment.
Eilers & Krejcik Gaming will hold its annual awards show at the Aria Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on Thursday, Feb. 23. Tickets are now available.
The (registration) doors are now open for the May 2023 SBC Summit North America in Secaucus, NJ.
You can book your spot now to attend the 2023 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.
About the Numbers
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is down its final eight teams as the quarter-finals kicks off on Friday, with the favourites Brazil still looking like the team to beat.
However, the Room 4-4-2 crew believes that their South American counterparts, Argentina, will draw most of the attention during this weekend’s slate of matches, as Friday’s quarter-final vs. the Netherlands could potentially be Lionel Messi’s final World Cup match. The pressure is on for the Albicelestes.
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