Africa
Sports Gambling Booms in Africa
The popularity of gambling in Africa has risen over the past few years with the advent of mobile applications to make betting easier and a proliferation of betting joints.
Ghanaian Efutu Member of Parliament Afenyo Markin is a vehement opponent of gambling centers in Ghana. Earlier this year, he spoke to DW, accusing the Chinese who mainly own and run most of the gambling centers, of taking advantage of young people. He said, “Those Chinese who have come with their raffle joints, I want to tell them we will encourage the police to close these joints down,” before adding, “There are lot of raffle joints in Winneba. Properties are getting stolen because somebody wants money to go raffle.”
The popularity of gambling in Africa has risen over the past few years with the advent of mobile applications to make betting easier and a proliferation of betting joints. In Kenya, SportPesa which was launched in 2013, now has over one million registered.
While it sounds like a “man problem,” reports from South Africa prove women have also been ensnared by the allure of quick money. Heidi Sinclair, treatment and counselling manager at the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation says, “…the reality is that as many as 51 percent of all South African women gamble; what’s more, female problem gamblers are likely to be more severely affected by the condition.” While the practice has its advantages like boosting State revenue, the cost is sometimes too great to ignore.
Mobile Phones – the African Las Vegas
The 2014-2018 Gambling Outlook by PriceWaterhouseCoopers examined the extent of the gambling industry in South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. Gambling in these three countries will be an industry worth $37 billion. Geopoll says, “Most youth (54%) in SSA (Sub Saharan Africa) have tried their hand at gambling. Kenya has the highest number of youth who have participated in gambling or betting in the past at 76% followed by Uganda at 57%. Ghana has the least number at 42%.”
It also says most young people are using mobile phones to gamble with 75% of those who bet using their phones. Kenya has the highest usage of mobile phones for gambling at 96% while South Africa has the lowest at 48%. In effect, as Geopoll rightly states, mobile phones have become Africa’s Las Vegas.
Fictitious gains, Real losses
The Digital Skills Observatory report says, gambling provides participants with a false and risky sense of “better days”. The contention was that people know it is risky but have an impression of winning which is often untrue. A participant in the research, Mark, said he furnished his house through winnings from gambling. However, according to DSO data, “55% of participants believe they win most of the time, but our data shows that more than 50% have spent more on gambling than they have gained.” While gambling has created employment, and taken youths off the streets in some cases, it has also trapped a lot of participants in compulsive “problem gambling”.
A good number of gamblers want to stop but they simply cannot. Families are being affected. Mental health is at risk. The desire to make more has become an adversary. Quartz reports that, “Kampala schools have reported an increase in dropouts with gambling students unable to pay fees, while several communities, including Uganda’s second largest city Gulu in November, have sought to ban betting amid claims of mounting crime and underage involvement.”
Many countries are struggling with regulating gambling in their countries and appealing to the humanity of business people making profits from gambling is foolhardy. They make gains from the losses of the people and they cannot be expected to cut down their source of revenue. They cash in on the chaotic realities of the largely unemployed young people.
It is sad that it has come to this: Youths who should be in full-time jobs and school are now resorting to chance to make a living. Leaders should feel challenged by the festering rot in our midst. Gambling can be tolerated when it is recreational but when whole populations pin their livelihoods on it, there is a fundamental error in the system.
Africa
Hub88 partners with LiveGames to enhance content offering
Hub88 has partnered with live casino supplier LiveGames, further strengthening its product offering by adding a unique range of content to its platform.
LiveGames provides fully customisable online live dealer games and branded tables including the first vertical roulette table in the sector, along with crash games and the widely played Tombola.
The supplier delivers experiences with a player-focused design, easy to use mobile interface, and high-resolution broadcasts.
The partnership will support LiveGames’ goal to further expand in international markets, including Africa, Asia, and Latin America where Hub88 has a strong presence.
The deal showcases Hub88’s commitment to grow its ecosystem of partners, offering a diverse portfolio of products and content.
Ollie Castleman, Head of Hub88, said: “We’re thrilled to unveil this strategic partnership with LiveGames which sees us add a great provider to our platform, one that utilises modern technology to offer bespoke and personalised gaming experiences to players.
“We are looking forward to collaborating and strengthening our content library with their diverse games.”
The LiveGames Team said: “Our journey started in a small studio and as a team, we are excited about now expanding to every corner of the world together with Hub88 and their extensive operator network.
“We are committed to promoting innovation in the industry and this partnership will support us on that mission.”
Africa
NE Group powers 888bets launch in Angola
NE Group, a leading B2B iGaming software supplier, has teamed up with online gambling operator 888 to launch 888bets for the Angolan market.
888Africa was originally set up to operate 888 brands in online betting and gaming markets across hand-picked regulated countries within Africa. Angolan sports bettors will now have seamless access to online sports betting through 888bets.co.ao
NE Group specialises in offering innovative, lightweight front-end solutions for best-in-class iGaming experiences. An extensive localised knowledge is the inspiration behind a platform that is renowned for flexibility and adaptation for unique African preferences. Together with 888, the platform delivers smooth gameplay across diverse data speed environments – essential for broad accessibility in Africa.
For the first time in the country, Angolan bettors will have the opportunity to experience the acclaimed Aviator crash-game on the platform. Additionally, the new site incorporates built-in features and tools for Responsible Gaming teams to monitor and support safe gaming practices
NE Group CEO Imran Bukhari said: “It’s brilliant to see the 888bets sportsbook launch in Angola to bring sports betting fans an experience they deserve. Our specialised sports betting platform and lightweight frontend solution for Africa allows 888bets to quickly scale.”
888bets added: “As a country with huge potential, we expect big things from our launch in Angola. Working with NE Group has enabled us to deliver an experience that sports bettors will love and that is enriched with engaging products.”
Africa
KingMakers’ Nigerian operating business, BetKing, selects Genius Sports to power growth with in-play trading services
New partnership sees KingMakers’ BetKing business benefit from Genius Sports’ leading portfolio of in-play content in Nigeria, including football, tennis and basketball
Genius Sports Limited has today announced a new agreement to supply KingMakers, one of the fastest-growing group of betting operators in Africa, with a range of in-play trading services.
The deal sees BetKing power its live betting product with ultra-fast venue content for the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, English Football League, FIBA basketball and every other major European and South American football league.
Genius Sports will also provide BetKing with its market-leading trading services which include modelled odds feeds for major football competitions.
With in-play sports betting growing rapidly across Africa, fast and accurate odds are vital to maximising revenues by increasing the availability of betting markets.
Tim Smeets, Trading Director at Kingmakers said “We’re thrilled to announce our new partnership with Genius Sports. Their trusted trading solutions, including low-latency in-play content on crucial football leagues like the Premier League, will enable us to offer market-leading betting experiences for BetKing users in Nigeria.”
Will Westcott, Head of Business Development at Genius Sports said “Every year, we continue to invest in delivering the highest-quality trading services for the African market. With the value of in-play betting growing across Africa, we’re excited to help BetKing execute its online sports betting vision in Nigeria, by providing it with the fastest, most reliable live content on the market for major sports.”
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