SBC Betting on Football Conference, on its third year, is back at the home of Arsenal FC Emirates Stadium on April 21st.

Football and betting is as inevitable as peanut butter and jelly as football remains the world’s most bet-on sport. Any sports book knows that the key to having a successful sports betting operation is to understand the nuances of the sport, on and off the pitch. Which is why this year, more than 500 industry professionals are expected to attend the event in preparation to one of the biggest sporting events in the world, the 2016 UEFA European Championship.

Euro 2016 will be held from June 10 to July 10 in France. And this year, there for the first time it will be contested by 24 teams, having been expanded from the 16-team format. For the bettors, that means more choices from.

The championship was played every four years since 1960 and Germany and Spain has been the most successful teams to date in the championship with three gold medals each. The latter has won the two latest tournaments in Schweiz/Austria and Poland/Ukraine.

Macau casino operators have join forces to promote a first-of-its-kind campaign by offering its world-class non-gaming facilities to local residents.

The campaign “Macau Loves Locals” was launched on Wednesday at the World Trade Center. This will give the city’s residents, both permanent and non-permanent, the opportunity to enjoy the non-gaming facilities operated by Galaxy Entertainment, Melco Crown, MGM China, Sands China, Sociedade de Jogos de Macau (SJM) and Wynn Macau.

The promotions include 28 hotel brands, 18 spas and gyms, and 186 restaurants.

The event was attended by representatives of six Macau casinos along with Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong and the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau director Paulo Martins Chan.

Just about all London-based commuters have noticed the Las Vegas ads in the Tube, informing the English their accent is an “aphrodisiac” in Sin City.  Clearly the Vegas brand reaches far beyond the American borders and now casinos in the UK have the opportunity to partner with myVEGAS, a selection of social casino apps offering rewards to casino resort customers.

myVEGAS apps are available on Facebook, mobile and tablet, operated by PLAYSTUDIOS and funded by MGM Resorts.  By engaging with myVEGAS apps, casino resort customers earn loyalty points and can “buy” rewards including complimentary cocktails, comped hotel rooms and even controlling the Bellagio fountains to a requested song.

Tom Galanis, a consultant for PLAYSTUDIOS & myVEGAS, has brought the myVEGAS offering to the UK by adding Hippodrome Casino and Resorts World Birmingham as rewards partners.  Monday, February 22nd marked the official launch party date of myVEGAS’s debut in the UK and Galanis appropriately hosted guests in the Hippodome’s Matcham Room.

“The night was designed to balance educating those new to our game portfolio and the concept of earning real world rewards through social gaming, with meeting some of our VIP UK players who have been enjoying Las Vegas rewards for years, and with all the fun that the Hippodrome’s take on Las Vegas can bring”, Galanis shared.

Just about all London-based commuters have noticed the Las Vegas ads in the Tube, informing the English their accent is an “aphrodisiac” in Sin City.  Clearly the Vegas brand reaches far beyond the American borders and now casinos in the UK have the opportunity to partner with myVEGAS, a selection of social casino apps offering rewards to casino resort customers.

myVEGAS apps are available on Facebook, mobile and tablet, operated by PLAYSTUDIOS and funded by MGM Resorts.  By engaging with myVEGAS apps, casino resort customers earn loyalty points and can “buy” rewards including complimentary cocktails, comped hotel rooms and even controlling the Bellagio fountains to a requested song.

Tom Galanis, a consultant for PLAYSTUDIOS & myVEGAS, has brought the myVEGAS offering to the UK by adding Hippodrome Casino and Resorts World Birmingham as rewards partners.  Monday, February 22nd marked the official launch party date of myVEGAS’s debut in the UK and Galanis appropriately hosted guests in the Hippodome’s Matcham Room.

“The night was designed to balance educating those new to our game portfolio and the concept of earning real world rewards through social gaming, with meeting some of our VIP UK players who have been enjoying Las Vegas rewards for years, and with all the fun that the Hippodrome’s take on Las Vegas can bring”, Galanis shared.

Racing, casino and social gaming operator Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI) generated record revenue in 2015 following a full year’s contribution from its Big Fish Games division.

CDI reported revenue of $1.21b in 2015, 49% more than in 2014, while earnings rose two-thirds to $335.6m and net income spiked 42% to $65.2m. For the three months ending Dec. 31, CDI’s overall revenue rose 62% to $272.4m, while the company netted a $7.5m profit versus a $13.8m loss in Q4 2014.

Big Fish Games’ social and mobile games offering was the undisputed Q4 star, generating revenue of $113.7m and earnings of $28.5m. Big Fish Casino led the way with $48.1m, although this was up a mere $1.2m year-on-year. Average bookings per paying user rose 15% but this was offset by an 11% decline in average paying users.

Big Fish’s Casual Free-to-Play division was the real star, nearly tripling year-on-year to $47.4m. Average paying user ranks rose 132% and average bookings per paying user rose 26%, which the company credited to the continued success of its Gummy Drop! title and the late Q3 launch of Dungeon Boss.

Racing, casino and social gaming operator Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI) generated record revenue in 2015 following a full year’s contribution from its Big Fish Games division.

CDI reported revenue of $1.21b in 2015, 49% more than in 2014, while earnings rose two-thirds to $335.6m and net income spiked 42% to $65.2m. For the three months ending Dec. 31, CDI’s overall revenue rose 62% to $272.4m, while the company netted a $7.5m profit versus a $13.8m loss in Q4 2014.

Big Fish Games’ social and mobile games offering was the undisputed Q4 star, generating revenue of $113.7m and earnings of $28.5m. Big Fish Casino led the way with $48.1m, although this was up a mere $1.2m year-on-year. Average bookings per paying user rose 15% but this was offset by an 11% decline in average paying users.

Big Fish’s Casual Free-to-Play division was the real star, nearly tripling year-on-year to $47.4m. Average paying user ranks rose 132% and average bookings per paying user rose 26%, which the company credited to the continued success of its Gummy Drop! title and the late Q3 launch of Dungeon Boss.

The casino gaming device supply business got a little more concentrated this week after Austria’s Novomatic announced a deal to acquire a majority stake in Australian rival Ainsworth Game Technology (AGT).

The sale came after AGT founder and principal shareholder Len Ainsworth (pictured) decided to sell his 172.1m shares in the company, which amounted to 53% of AGT’s share capital, at a price of $2.75 apiece, for a total consideration of around $473m.

AGT will hold an extraordinary general meeting within the next three months to seek formal approval of the deal. Assuming shareholders and regulators find no reason to block the sale, Ainsworth will stay on with AGT as chairman, and AGT’s existing board and management teams also aren’t going anywhere.

In its H1 earnings report covering the six months ending Dec. 31, 2015, the ASX-listed AGT reported revenue of AU $142m, up 27% year-on-year. AGT has a strong position in Australasia and the Americas, with the latter markets a chief engine of AGT’s growth. North America accounted for $43m of AGT’s H1 revenue and Latin America added $37m, representing year-on-year gains of 42% and 64%, respectively.