Latest News
Online Gambling in the Past Few Months: How it was Affected by the Pandemic

This year has been tough for many people, businesses, and industries. The COVID-19 pandemic has made many governments around the world impose lockdowns. Many people were forced to self-isolate and people had to distance themselves from one another. Some businesses had to temporarily close and everyone is just really doing their ways to help contain the virus.
And since people were staying at home, many had to find ways to entertain themselves with social distancing. Luckily, the internet has plenty of things to offer including online gambling. However, during the start of the pandemic, the sports betting sector has struggled due to a lack of sports events.
Because people didn’t have a lot of sports to wager on in March to May, these were the months when many online casinos have reported a spike in their traffic. It was likely that regular sports punters turned to the best USA online casinos to still be able to gamble.
Based on statistics, sports bets did drop at 57.08 percent while plenty of major sports events hit the pause button. Meanwhile, online casinos saw an increase in search volume that is around 76 percent. Online casino operators saw a mix of customers when the pandemic started. Some new customers didn’t gamble at all and there were new ones who have previously gambled on sports.
However, luckily for many sports fans, major sports leagues were still able to make a comeback before the year ends. In May, the German Bundesliga proceeded with its season and the English Premier League was also able to come back in June. Since then, many other sports leagues like the NBA, the IPL, and the Champions League announced their returns.
This means that sports betting also came back and the UKGC did report that the return of live sports has driven an increase in the sports betting revenue. UKGC said in a statement, “The seven waves of the YouGov survey conducted from 16 April to 18 June show past-four-week gambling participation has remained relatively stable, within a range of 28-32%.
“There has, however, been a notable recovery in sports betting participation, which fell to 1% in wave 9 (6-7 May) but has now risen to 5% in the latest wave (17-18 June). This corresponds with the return of more elite-level sport, including Premier League football.”
The UKGC report in July said, however, that they recorded a decrease in the number of overall active player accounts across the UK. The report included, “Operator data on overall active player accounts indicate a further 1.2% decrease between April and May 2020, with the number of active players down across each of the verticals, excluding real event betting, where the number increased by 13% between April and May.
Online operator data shows that except for real event betting, there has been a fall in the number of active players for each vertical. Although some of the decreases are relatively small in percentage terms, this is not the case for virtual betting which saw a spike due to the Virtual Grand National in April.”
Overall, the UKGC made it clear that sports betting is on its way to recovery. However, there has been plenty of recent reports of new COVID-19 cases. With this, a new lockdown is effective in England that will last until December 2. What this means is that many businesses in England will be closed including land casinos.
This prompts the UKGC to ask the online casino and betting operators in the country to conduct their business responsibly. In the statement, the UKGC outlined that the lockdown and closure of many businesses will mean that many more people will be spending a lot of time at home. This means that some of them could be vulnerable to the risks of online gambling due to personal, employment, or financial circumstances.
The UKGC Chief Executive Neil McArthur has said in the statement, “It is vital that all operators play their part in keeping their customers safe and we will be continuing to conduct our compliance assessments during this month-long lockdown.”
He also acknowledged that the Gambling Commission will continue to collaborate with the government and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS). Any update on the gambling guidelines in the country will be provided if necessary.
The Gambling Commission said that consumer protection must be paramount. They expect that the operators will take a mindful approach that customers may be vulnerable or are experiencing financial uncertainty.
Gaming
Football Manager and Wordle Amongst 2022’s Top 10 Fastest-Growing Mobile Games, Study Reveals

A new study from Mozillion has revealed the mobile phone apps which are the fastest growing in 2022 so far, as well as those which have decreased in popularity most since 2021. Researchers from the mobile phone marketplace analysed data for more than 500 of the most popular apps currently on the market, to reveal which have shot up (or down) in popularity with mobile phone users. The study also revealed the mobile gaming apps which have increased and decreased in popularity most over the past six months.
The top 20 fastest growing mobile games in 2022
Delivery game Deliver It 3D was the mobile game which has shot up the charts most, increasing by 997 positions in the App Store over the past six months. Hugely popular mobile games including Angry Bird, Football Manager, Wordle and HeadsUp! also featured in the top ten fastest growing mobile games in 2022 so far.
Rank | Mobile Game | Increase in App Store Chart Position (Oct ’21 – Apr ’22) |
1 | Deliver It 3D | 997 |
2 | Rovio Classics: Angry Bird | 996 |
3 | Football Manager 2022 Mobile | 994 |
4 | Fill The Fridge | 991 |
5 | Wordle | 986 |
6 | Heads Up! | 983 |
7 | Football Manager 2021 Mobile | 983 |
8 | Tall Man Run | 973 |
9 | Total War: MEDIEVAL II | 971 |
10 | Poppy Playtime Chapter 1 | 959 |
11 | Arcadia – Arcade Watch Games | 958 |
12 | Super Goal – Soccer Sticman | 955 |
13 | Coffee Inc 2 | 953 |
14 | Worms3 | 950 |
15 | Labyrinth City | 949 |
16 | Convenience Stories | 947 |
17 | Fishdom | 942 |
18 | Coloring Match | 940 |
19 | Papa’s Cluckeria | 939 |
20 | Slay the Spire | 938 |
The top 20 mobile games that have decreased in popularity most in 2022
Once-popular games Traffic Cop 3D and Paper Fold were found to be amongst the apps that have seen the biggest decreases in popularity in 2022 so far, dropping between 996 and 999 spots on the App Store charts since 2021.
Rank | Mobile Game | Decrease in App Store Chart Position (Oct ’21 – Apr ’22) |
1 | Traffic Cop 3D | -999 |
2 | Retro Bowl | -998 |
3 | Paper Fold | -996 |
4 | Moon Pioneer | -994 |
5 | Flex Run 3D | -985 |
6 | Candy Challenge 3D | -983 |
7 | Watersort Puzzle | -978 |
8 | Youtubers Life | -977 |
9 | MAD FUT 22 Draft & Pack | -977 |
10 | Shot Factor | -976 |
11 | Turn Left!! | -975 |
12 | Keyboard Art | -972 |
13 | Zen Match | -966 |
14 | Water Sort Puzzle | -964 |
15 | Stacky Dash | -951 |
16 | Call of Duty | -950 |
17 | Magic Tiles 3 | -950 |
18 | Stone Miner | -946 |
19 | The Cube | -941 |
20 | Survival Challenge 3D | -939 |
The most consistent mobile games of 2022
While some apps are only destined to spend a short time ruling the top positions of the App Store charts, others have remained consistent as we transitioned into the new year of 2022. Hugely popular mobile gaming app Minecraft remained in the top five of the charts over the six-month period, as did popular pizza game Papa’s Pizzeria.
Mobile Game | Increase/Decrease in App Store Chart Position (Oct ’21 – Apr ’22) |
Minecraft | 0 |
Papa’s Pizzeria | 0 |
Founder at Mozillion, Len Leeson comments:
“Apps are a huge part of everyday life for mobile phone owners in 2022. From tracking fitness and nutrition, mobile gaming or social networking with friends and family, checking the weather – or even finding your life partner! Apps are becoming more technologically advanced and user-friendly every year, allowing our mobile phones to help us become more efficient and connected in our day-to-day lives.
Our research has shown that while some apps are just fleeting trends, others are very clearly here to stay and remain firm favourites amongst mobile phone users, year after year.
There’s an amazing choice of apps that are out there now, and alongside the fun ones, some are increasingly important and useful. With this in mind, we recommend you look for at least 128GB or even 256GB of storage when buying a new phone, so that the capacity keeps pace with the (many) apps you may want to download.”
To view the full list of the apps growing and decreasing in popularity in 2022, visit: https://www.mozillion.com/resources/the-mozillion-app-trends-report-2022/
Asia
React Gaming to Offer LOOT.BET Esports Wagering Skin via HHRP in the Philippines

Generationz Gaming Entertainment, a subsidiary of the React Gaming Group, has signed a white label revenue sharing agreement with HHRP Inc to operate LOOT.BET’s esports wagering platform in the Philippines, pending successful certification of the LOOT.BET platform by Gaming Laboratories International.
“We are thrilled to have HHRP as a partner for the Philippines market, HHRP being one of only four companies holding online gaming licences in a country of more than 109 million people,” Laurent Benezra, President and CEO of React Gaming, said.
“This agreement is part of our two-pronged growth strategy to expand LOOT.BET’s reach into the B2C and B2B markets. The advantage of the B2B market is that LOOT.BET’s platform will be offered to established customer bases, thus involving no customer acquisition cost on our part. Our partner will offer our white-label platform as its own to its customers and we will receive a portion of the revenue generated when those customers use the platform. The more popular our platform, the more revenue it will generate. The great thing about this model is that we can replicate it in multiple markets and with multiple online gaming providers at minimal cost,” Laurent Benezra added.
Latest News
PRAGMATIC PLAY JOINS FORCES WITH VERSUS IN SPAIN

Pragmatic Play, a leading content provider to the iGaming industry, has further expanded its footprint in Spain, having partnered with VERSUS, the sports betting and online casino brand of Orenes Group.
The agreement will see the provider’s complete slots portfolio go live on this casino brand, which has operated in the Spanish market since 2011. Its multi-channel presence ensures it possesses a powerful reach across the country.
VERSUS customers will be able to enjoy leading slots from Pragmatic Play, including latest launch Fire Strike 2™ and Barn Festival™, as well as the multi-award-winning titles Gates of Olympus™ and Wolf Gold™.
The deal follows a number of key commercial agreements signed by Pragmatic Play in recent weeks, including with Stake, Begame and Hollywoodbets, as the supplier continues its impressive commercial momentum.
Yossi Barzely, Chief Business Development Officer at Pragmatic Play, said: “Spain is a leading regulated market in Europe, and we’re delighted to partner with a company as established as VERSUS in the territory.
“VERSUS is a leading brand, and we are excited to bring our expansive slot offering to its players as we continue to collaborate with prominent operators, which aligns with our ethos of developing and delivering premium entertainment to users globally.”
Juan José López, Sports Betting and Online Gambling Director at VERSUS, added: “Pragmatic Play’s impressive slot portfolio brings vibrant titles, retro hits and forward-looking mechanics together to deliver incredible player experiences.
“It is an exciting moment for us as we broaden our potential player base with the world-class supplier’s content.”
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