The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has today signed a new agreement with sports data company Sportradar for an historic partnership in the field of integrity, specifically addressing match-fixing.

Sportradar’s Intelligence and Investigation Services will now be engaged with the AFC from the 2018 and 2019 seasons to investigate those behind the fraud on the pitch in Asia. This comes after all matches in the top two leagues and cups in the AFC Member Associations, as well as in AFC competitions, will be monitored for betting patterns as part of an existing agreement between the AFC, Sportradar and FIFA.

AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, who joined Sportradar Chief Executive Carsten Koerl at the signing, said: “In the AFC Vision and Mission, the fight against match-fixing is imperative and remains ongoing. We, at the AFC, take this threat extremely seriously and our actions during recent years demonstrate our zero-tolerance stance. But we also appreciate that times are changing, and technology is needed to combat this ever-growing threat. Sportradar’s technology and proven expertise will help us to target those corrupting our game.”

AFC General Counsel & Director of Legal Affairs Benoit Pasquier added: “Sportradar’s Intelligence & Investigation Services have played a crucial role in previous AFC cases and they provided firm support to the AFC Judicial Bodies.”

First US state-run online lottery affiliate program to be powered by the Income Access platform 

Montreal, QC. 9th January 2018 – Michigan Lottery, has launched an affiliate program with Income Access, Paysafe’s marketing technology and services provider. The affiliate program is the first of its kind for a US lottery, and will be powered through Income Access’ tracking and analytics platform.

Michigan Lottery is a strong and well-established brand. Since 1972, the Michigan Lottery has provided more than $21 billion to support public education, including more than $900 million in the 2017 fiscal year. As a state agency that generates nearly $3 billion a year, they are well-positioned to offer robust CRM and player retention programs.

In 2014, Michigan Lottery expanded their traditional sales to online game offerings. Players have the chance to win millions of dollars in prizes each week online playing both draw and instant win games including Mega Millions, Powerball, Instant Keno, Cashword, Queen of Diamonds and more. With monthly iLottery net gaming revenue figures currently at approximately $7 million, Michigan Lottery is the fastest growing iLottery program of its kind in the US.

The release of a localized version of Gambling.com is the first step of the Group’s plan to take market share in the nascent but growing, regulated US online gambling market.

With an initial focus on New Jersey, the new site version will cover regulated online gambling from all US states in the future. The Gambling.com USA site features gaming industry news and online product reviews with a particular focus on the fast-changing US gambling regulations. Unlike other Gambling.com sites, sports betting does not currently feature on the US version of the site as it is remains illegal in the country. The new site is available here: www.gambling.com/us.

Chief Operating Officer for Gambling.com Group Kevin McCrystle said “Gambling.com USA is an excellent addition to our portfolio of localized sites and will provide a functional and uniquely American experience for users looking to find top quality gambling products and bonuses in the United States”.

Charles Gillespie, Chief Executive for the Group, stated upon the site’s release: “There is great excitement in the organization about the release of Gambling.com for the American market, as this company was founded by Americans and there are more Americans on the management team than any other nationality. We have been waiting since we started in 2006 for meaningful regulation to take place in the United States and while the market is still small, we feel like now is the time to get involved. 2018 will be an exciting year with the forthcoming ruling by the Supreme Court on PASPA, which if it goes in favor of New Jersey, could result in widespread legalization of online sports betting.”

Gumpoldskirchen, 9 January 2018 – NOVOMATIC completes investment in Ainsworth, an Australian gaming supplier, following approval from regulatority authorities, including the Nevada Gaming Commission in Las Vegas, Nevada.

All the necessary international regulatory confirmations are in place, allowing NOVOMATIC to move ahead with the purchase of approximately 52% of the Australian gaming company Ainsworth Game Technology Limited (AGT). The process involved regulatory approval from multiple gaming jurisdictions, including in Australia, South America and the United States (US). One of the authorities’ main tasks was to carry out comprehensive compliance checks, not just for NOVOMATIC itself, but also for all owners, Supervisory Board and Executive Board members.

The completion of the transaction took place on 5th January 2018. NOVOMATIC is now the owner of 52% of AGT’s issued capital. Given the completion of the sale, Mr Len Ainsworth has resigned as an Executive Director of AGT effective immediately. Mr Ainsworth will continue to support AGT as a consultant for a period of 12 months.

NOVOMATIC is now one of the few European Union based companies to have passed strict compliance checks from these international authorities. For this reason, a variety of independent licensing boards undertook lengthy probity investigations and have confirmed the deal can go ahead.