MAY JUN 2025
Editor's Letter
Revenue can mean everything to a business. Despite there being so many other metrics to measure financial performance, the one that headlines so many quarterly reports is revenue. And, in the case of brands like FanDuel and DraftKings, investors seem to value revenue – and revenue growth – far more than profitability (still, several years in...).
Revenue, after all, demonstrates the market's appetite for your product. Indeed, it is such a powerful metric, even for a firm losing money, that in today's sector, most sizeable organisations have a Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). When I joined Gambling Insider, the industry had very few CROs. Fast forward to 2025 and a wide range of gambling's biggest players have a CRO that is front and centre of their brand.
It is not just in gambling, either. This is a trend that has grown year-on-year (the magic phrase CROs themselves will love to hear). Some suggest it is just another title for traditional roles like Chief Sales Officer or Head of Sales. But, for a number of reasons, we can't escape the fact that CROs today are a hot commodity.
We look into those reasons in the cover feature of this magazine, speaking to several high-profile CROs for their musings on what defines the role, and how their day-to-day duties impact the company. Elsewhere in this issue, we give the 'CRO' title a 360-degree focus, as regular contributor Paul Sculpher looks into the role of the Chief Risk Officer. He is joined by another regular contributor Gustaf Hoffstedt, who once again updates us on the latest developments in Sweden, while we also have several new LatAm-focused contributors we are excited to unveil this issue.
Fresh off our attendance of the Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention in San Diego, Gambling Insider also brings you content from interviews with leading tribal gaming figures from California and Oklahoma. In the US, intriguingly, both tribal and commercial entities are feeling under threat from new rivals such as sweepstakes casinos, daily fantasy sports operators, crypto casinos and, most of all right now, predictions markets. While these companies will argue they are only using disruptive innovation to generate revenue (the key word again), tribes and other licensees within regulated markets believe legal loopholes have been exploited to gain an unfair – and unlawful – advantage.
Beyond our IGA content, more of which you can also find in our sister Gaming America magazine, we finish up our edition with staple features including our Roundtable, Insiders columns and Product Reviews. This means there is no shortage of content this issue and, whether you are reading online, at a trade show or in your head office, we thank you as always for your readership!
TP, Editor
Facing facts: FY revenue figures reflect a turbulent '24
Who soared high and who fell behind in 2024? Gambling Insider checks out FY24 revenue from the industry’s biggest names, in keeping with our CRO main theme.
Taking stock: Moving through to Q2
Gambling Insider tracks online casino operator and supplier prices. Stock prices are taken across a six-month period (November 2024 to April 2025) – and from the close of the first available date of the month.
Preview: This year's Global Gaming Awards Asia-Pacific and Americas
It’s that time of year once again, as the Global Gaming Awards Asia-Pacific returns to Manila to celebrate the best achievements of the last 12 months in the region’s gaming industry. The Americas Awards, meanwhile, await in October...
Costa Rica: Effective regulation is the industry's path forward
Gambling Insider Senior Staff Writer Beth Turner spoke with Betsul CEO Fernando Garita on the gaming market in Costa Rica, and how it may be affected by developing LatAm regulation.
Betting on influence: What can Mexico learn from Brazil's boom?
Alfredo Lazcano and Andrea Avedillo Builla, Chair and Head of Legal at Mexican gaming law firm Lazcano Sámano, analyse what Mexico could learn from the boom in Brazil’s gaming market.
How Puerto Rico's market can help operators break the mould
Former Puerto Rico Gaming Commission Executive Director, Jaime Rivera, discusses why the nation’s slot machine market presents an opportunity for suppliers, manufacturers and vendors.
In corporate fashion: Behind the CRO curtain
The role of Chief Revenue Officer may well be the most fashionable executive position of the 2020s – yet it is one that poses a number of questions. Gambling Insider explores the intricacies of the CRO role, with contributions from executives across the industry.
What's going on with Stake in California and the rest of the US?
Stake is now being contested in the state of California, after already withdrawing from several more. Gambling Insider Content Writer Megan Elswyth investigates…
Gustaf Hoffstedt: Is fragmentation undermining the EU market?
Gustaf Hoffstedt, regular Gambling Insider contributor and General Secretary of the Swedish Trade Association for Online Gambling, looks at the fragmented regulation of gambling monopolies in the EU...
Pragmatic Play: Uncovering the nuances of a shifting global market
Gambling Insider speaks with Gareth Crook, SVP of Sports at Pragmatic Play, to discuss reliable sports betting data, greyhound racing and more.
Worth the risk: Analysing the role of Chief Risk Officer in gaming
Regular Gambling Insider contributor Paul Sculpher, Director of GRS Recruitment, enlists the help of Josie Preston, Andrea Lazenby and David Mills to assess Chief Risk Officer role – and how it can be supported by external consultants.
Novomatic: Growth and opportunity in the Asian gaming industry
Michael Barsin, Novomatic Sales Asia-Pacific, analyses Asia’s biggest and emerging markets.
The insider threat: Change starts from within
Mark Courtney, Chief Product Officer at Cifas, breaks down ‘insider threat’ in the gaming industry and how firms can try and fight against it.
IGA show review: The industry threats among us
During a tense atmosphere at IGA in San Diego, California Nations Indian Gaming Association (CNIGA) Chairman James Siva spoke with Gambling Insider on the threats currently challenging Indian gaming.
IGA show review: The digital age of problem gambling
California Council on Problem Gambling Executive Director Robert Jacobson speaks on how challenges with gambling addiction have begun shifting toward the online space.
IGA show review: Unpacking recent regulatory updates in Oklahoma
Gambling Insider Editor Tim Poole is joined by Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association Chairman Matthew Morgan to discuss recent updates within the state and look ahead to the OIGA conference.
Roundtable: Taking a deep dive into sports aggregators
Industry experts provide Gambling Insider with their insights and predictions for the sports aggregator market, including Odds88, GR8 Tech, Fincore and AIOdds.
Interblock: Exploring sources for alternative entertainment
Interblock Global CEO John Connelly discusses its upcoming Amuse game segment.
GambleAware: Changing the neurodivergence narrative in gambling
GambleAware’s Director of Evidence and Insights, Haroon Chowdry, speaks with Gambling Insider to discuss the organisation’s latest study into the link between neurodivergence and problem gambling.
Sportsbook affiliate marketing: Navigating a changing landscape
MediaTroopers CEO Shmulik Segal explains to Gambling Insider why the US market is moving into a new era of sportsbook affiliate marketing.
Pushing for growth: Diversification in all the right places
Gambling Insider speaks with Vsevolod Lapin, Deputy CEO at Playson, to discuss LatAm, compliance, gameplay mechanics and more…
Elantil: Changing the goalposts with a reimagined set-up
Nadiya Attard, Elantil CCO, speaks with Gambling Insider about its plans as one of the industry's new kids on the block, as well as compliance, crypto, AI and much more.
Final word: Understanding the changing payments ecosystem
Neosurf Global CEO Andrea McGeachin sits down with Gambling Insider to discuss non-fiat payments, global compliance, future innovation and more.
Rising to the Brazilian gaming challenge
Mattos Filho Partner Fabio F. Kujawski and Senior Associate Isabela Fernandes Pereira unpick the key challenges for operators within the fast-developing Brazilian gaming sector.
