In this week’s Calling The Clock, partypoker and PokerStars announce plans to host two of the most significant online and live events in 2018; a round-up of live tournament results from across the globe, and much more.
It’s not easy being a poker writer this time of the year. Trying to find print worthy stories is as tricky as trying to explain to your other half that your genital wart is a birthmark.
But this week was different.
Very different.
RIGA/LATVIA: Softgamings, an online casino platform provider and gaming systems aggregator, has finished integration of 1X2 Network’s products into SoftGamings platform. From now on, casino operators will be able to add virtual sports, general fixed adds games and casino games from 1X2 Network to their portfolios.
Within the framework of this cooperation, SoftGamings and 1X2 Network plan to leverage the performance of 1X2 Network products and provide players exciting player experience.
Across the 3 ‘platform’ brands of the 1X2 Network (1X2gaming, Iron Dog Studio and Leap Gaming) 1X2 Network has a vast portfolio on offer. Highlights include 24 titles of virtual sports, including football, tennis, racing, velodrome, World Cup and African Cup, to name just a few. Casino games are represented with a further 24 titles made up of Cribbage, Astro Roulette, Three Card Poker, Craps, Blackjack, Baccarat and more. Slots collection is composed of 40 games, each of them dedicated to a popular theme, such as Ancient Rome, Aztecs, robots, Halloween, underwater, cats, sports, classic fruits etc. 1X2 Network also provides Bingo/Keno games, Instant Wins and Mini games, with the total number of titles exceeding 100.
Being the pioneer of virtual football, 1X2 Network offers football betting every 90 seconds. The range of football betting markets of the company is the widest. The company’s software is reliable and tested by major industry institutions and certified by the UK Gambling Commission.
PokerStars is going all Willy Wonka with the news that 19 Platinum Passes worth $570,000 will be distributed online and live at events like the Winter Online Series, the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, and PokerStars Festival London.
Mihai Manole has been competing in PokerStars live events for as many years as I have been writing about them. But he’s never bubbled one until the PokerStars Championship Prague.
The action was on the stone bubble spot when Manole found himself in the big blind with only two bigs. As he sat there, like a frightened child seated in a dental waiting room for a prebooked root canal without anaesthesia, Thomas Mercier put him all-in from the button. Manole flipped open his cards revealing A4 – not bad, but not as good as Mercier’s AJ, and five cards later Manole was out.
Doom.
A look ahead at three critical ties in the English Premier League this weekend including Liverpool and Arsenal battling it out for Champions League points, and Swansea/Crystal Palace and Stoke/West Brom partaking in relegation six-pointers.
Arsenal v Liverpool
Arsenal +140
Esports betting platforms X-Bet and UltraPlay have withdrawn sponsorship from the ProDotaCup after the latest in a string of match-fixing and betting irregularities come to light.
You accrue wisdom by avoiding the wart on your arse ugliness of instant gratification, and that’s a shame because if you’re young and impressionable, you haven’t accrued the wisdom to understand this.
Esports data analysts, NewZoo, has an optimistic view that the esports industry could be worth $2.4bn by 2020 if they can follow this six-point plan:
Critical Success Factors
EDITEC, a leading sports betting, lottery and gaming operator in Africa, with a strong presence in twenty countries as well as offices across Europe and the Middle East, signs a partnership agreement with the multinational iGaming platform and Sportsbook provider BtoBet.
Online, EDITEC operates under the renowned brands of Premier Bet, SBA, Guinee Games, and R&S Betting and is one of the fastest growing online operators in a number of regions in Africa, already with a well-established retail estate and network of agents.
Alex Rutherford, EDITEC Head of Online, stated:
‘We were extremely impressed by the flexibility and functionality of the BtoBet platform and look forward to an incredible partnership which will push EDITEC’s brands to the next level and give our customers a truly exciting betting experience’.
NetEnt, leading provider of digital gaming solutions, has revealed a total of 321 jackpots were paid out during 2017 – amounting to €78.3 million.
Mega Fortune™, Mega Fortune Dreams™, Arabian Nights™ and Hall of Gods™ are NetEnt’s four global accumulative jackpot games. Together they give operators access to the largest online jackpots in the iGaming world, allowing them to promote to their players the dream of a truly life-changing win.
Earlier this month, two Mega Fortune Dreams players ensured they had the perfect Christmas present after claiming a staggering €3.3m, and €3.5m respectively. Both players enjoyed the excitement playing on mobile.
Mega Fortune Dreams alone has paid out a whopping €30.4 million in 2017. It was also the most popular choice, with the highest number of unique players and rounds played.
Bet90.com (“Bet90”), a fast growing betting operator in the global market, has underlined its South American ambitions by putting pen to paper on a strategic partnership with one of the biggest and most popular football associations in Brazil, the Paulista Football Federation (FPF). Under the terms of the partnership, Bet90 will be visible across all Paulista A1, A2 and Copa Sao Paulo pitchside advertising, and the operator will hold naming and logo rights, man of the match presenting rights, further activation rights in and around the stadium as well as tickets. In addition, the partnership will see the two work together across a range of digital activations and integrations.
The two were brought together by Sportradar’s Ad Products & Technologies unit, who saw the synergy that the company’s Integrity Partner the FPF could develop with Bet90, a client of the company on the Betradar side of the business.
Bet90 director Iosif Galea said: “A company with a growth trajectory like ours is always looking to find the perfect partners to help us enter new markets and enter them with impact. This partnership is absolutely on point and we are delighted our friends at Sportradar could help us put this together. They saw the opportunity and we could not be more excited to become a part of the story of Brazilian football.”
Speaking about this partnership, Dominik Beier, Global Head of Advertising & Sponsorship at Sportradar added: “We are really enjoying working as matchmaker in Sportradar. We have such a strong list of partners, clients and friends in both the betting world and in the sports world and it is truly rewarding to identify which of those will work well together and will help deliver mutual value. The Bet90-FPF partnership is such a great case study and we are in no doubt that the relationship will flourish”.
KamaGames is excited to announce the further expansion of our leading social casino game with the launch of the all new player vs. dealer game titled Set Poker.
Based on the casino favorite 3 Card Poker, Set Poker brings a whole new dimension to the classic card game where players are taking on the dealer while seated at the same table and there is also the additional thrill of side bets being available to boost the action even further. Players can make parallel bets on either side of the main deal. These side bets (named “Lucky 3” and “Lucky 6”) each have a set of winning combinations.
To help players get to grips with the game quickly, they are told when they’re holding a good hand and are able to instantly consult instructions and a list of combinations while playing. This accelerates the learning curve and helps players to enjoy the nuances and depth that Set Poker has to offer.
To learn more about Set Poker, check out the video below.
Collected should get another shot at Gun Runner in the Jan. 27 Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) at Gulfstream Park, but first comes the Dec. 26 prep at Santa Anita Park, in the $300,000 San Antonio Stakes (G2).
Graded stakes winner Big Score aims to close out his 2017 season on a high note when he heads a field of eight entered for the $200,000 Mathis Brothers Mile Stakes (G2T) at Santa Anita Park Dec. 26.
How valuable is leading scorer Stephen Curry to the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors? Bettors will find out on Christmas Day when the Warriors host the Cleveland Cavaliers in an NBA Finals rematch. Golden State and Cleveland have met in each of the last three league championship series, with the former winning twice.
Warriors-Cavaliers will be the second game to tip off on Christmas, preceded by the Philadelphia 76ers visiting the New York Knicks in an Atlantic Division clash. Later in the day, the Boston Celtics will host the Washington Wizards, the Houston Rockets will visit the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Minnesota Timberwolves will travel to Los Angeles to take on the Lakers in a prime-time matchup to close out the action.
Curry (26.3 points per game) has been sidelined with an ankle injury since early December, but Golden State has not missed a beat in his absence, reeling off six straight wins heading into Friday’s nationally televised meeting with the Lakers. The Warriors have won 10 of the past 13 regular-season games against the Cavs, who have covered five of the last eight after going 0-8 against the spread in the previous eight.
Surprisingly, the 76ers and Knicks will be squaring off for the first time this season. The teams split four meetings a year ago that were decided by a combined six points, with Philly going 4-0 ATS. The home team won all four, with the under cashing three times.
Three New York leading sires will stand for $7,500 in 2018 at Becky Thomas’ Sequel Stallions New York.
The new head of the group representing owners and trainers at New York Racing Association tracks says the plan to relocate the NHL’s New York Islanders to Belmont Park could boost interest in Thoroughbred horse racing.
After opening presents on Christmas Day, head over to the nearest theater for the premier of poker’s newest movie, “Molly’s Game,” a true story about the life of Molly Bloom, […]
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Don’t look now, but the operator of the Goa floating casino that ran aground earlier this year has struck a deal to set sail on another vessel.
This week, the Times of India reported that Golden Globe Hotels Pvt Ltd would be transferring its gaming operations from the currently unseaworthy MV Lucky 7 to the MV San Domino, a vessel that has been moored for the last eight years awaiting a casino license.
If you’re just joining us, the MV Lucky 7 ran aground in July after Golden Globe ignored warnings about launching the vessel during monsoon season. Goa officials had only just approved the MV Lucky 7’s license in March, allowing it to join the other floating casinos plying their trade on the Mandovi River.
It took several months, but the MV Lucky 7 was finally shifted from its sandbar and is currently under repair. Rather than let its license sit idle, Golden Globe has applied to shift its operations to the MV San Domino.
Unique Bella and Paradise Woods will put their raw ability to test against six other rivals in the Dec. 26 La Brea Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita Park.
Thoroughbred Charities of America will honor Dan Rosenberg with the Allaire du Pont Leadership Award and Caribbean Thoroughbred Aftercare with the Ellen and Herb Moelis Industry Service Award at the 28th annual Stallion Season Auction & Celebration.
The lightly raced City Zip colt has done nothing wrong in three starts, and will try stakes competition for the first time.
US regional casino operator Boyd Gaming has made its second major deal this week by acquiring the Valley Forge Casino Resort in Pennsylvania.
On Thursday, Boyd announced that it had reached a deal with Valley Forge Convention Center Partners L.P. to acquire the casino in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania for $280.5m in cash.
The purchase price represents an implied multiple of 7x EBITDA, and Boyd expects the deal to be immediately accretive to its earnings. Boyd will use incremental debt financing to fund the deal, which the company expects will close in Q3 2018.
Valley Forge currently offers 600 slot machines, 50 table games and nearly 500 hotel rooms, but the property plans to add around 250 more slots early in the new year, thanks to the new wiggle room afforded Category 3 license holders like Valley Forge in the wide-ranging gambling expansion bill the state approved last month.