Betting Industry Shake-up: Innovation Meets Regulation in Nigeria’s Gaming Space

Meet CEOs/MDs of companies behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports betting industry.

Gambling has actually developed significantly in Nigeria from traditional types like pool staking and Baba Ijebu to a successful sports betting industry. Historically tied to European football leagues, pool staking was a typical sight at motor parks and kiosks, where enthusiasts would wager as little as N50-N200 on matches.

Gradually, sports betting with increased internet access came virtual sports betting, which parallels international trends. The sports betting wagering market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and is projected to nearly double to $182.02 billion by 2030.

Despite economic difficulties such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting wagering sector has thrived, bring in millions, especially amongst the youthful market dealing with high joblessness rates.

Reports suggest that roughly 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively participate in sports betting, driving a market that creates an estimated annual revenue of N730 billion. The federal government has not gone undetected by this development, which is considering regulatory measures like import tax responsibilities and VAT boosts to handle the sector.

The National Lottery Act of 2005 recognized regulatory bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to guarantee reasonable operations regardless of challenges in enforcement. Issues such as insufficient age verification and advertising guideline breaches show market regulative gaps.

Despite these obstacles, sports betting companies continue to thrive through effective business models and aggressive marketing strategies, leveraging the developer influencer industry.

These efforts have added to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion gambling sector, with CEOs playing crucial roles in broadening audience reach and driving market development. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting wagering business who have actually considerably added to Nigeria’s $2 billion gambling empire through their substantial audience reach.

Constable Olaniyan – CEO Surebet247

Constable Olaniyan is the CEO of Surebet247, a sports betting book business he co-founded with Badmos Olasupo in 2011. His varied career spans different roles in the video gaming and entertainment industry, consisting of operating at one of the United Kingdom’s largest video gaming centres, The Palace Bingo Club, where he functioned as the Lead Engineer in a Bingo and Bowling Club.

Olaniyan holds a BSc in Geography from the University of Ilorin and sports betting a Master’s in Geographical Information Systems from the University of Glamorgan, Wales. Surebet247, founded in August 2011, has actually turned into a leading e-commerce business in the wagering and video gaming sector, running through online, mobile, and retail channels. The company was included in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, and has since expanded its presence, achieving over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Sam Sadi – CEO Livescorebet

Sam Sadi has more than 25 years of experience in wagering brands and sports betting media. In 2019, he ended up being the CEO of LiveScore Group, a totally incorporated ecosystem that integrates relevant sports betting material, engaging functions, and sports betting a first-rate sportsbook.

Given that taking the helm right before the pandemic, Sam has driven considerable development for LiveScore Group. The business’s employee headcount has actually increased by 29%, and annual earnings has risen from approximately ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.

Sam’s leadership and strategic vision have moved LiveScore Group’s success and helped shape the market’s instructions. LiveScoreBet has actually achieved major sports betting user engagement, sports betting with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Anthony Werkman – CEO of Betway Group

Anthony Werkman was designated CEO of Betway in November 2017, sports betting having actually formerly worked as the business’s Marketing and Operations Director given that 2015. He joined Betway in 2013 and has actually remained in the online gaming industry because 2000, holding different effective roles, consisting of General Manager of a data analytics team and Director of a digital marketing firm.

Under Werkman’s management, Betway has continued to grow its market presence and improve its offerings. The company’s app has amassed significant user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Damilare Alabi, Co-Founder, Managing Director NairaBET

Damilare Alabi has actually differentiated herself as a senior executive with a track record of transforming start-ups into institutionalized organizations. Her knowledge spans the gaming, property, sports betting and credit lending industries, where he has developed himself as a strategic and operational leader.

Damilare has actually contributed in NairaBET’s success for sports betting over 14 years. Because June 2019, she has actually worked as Managing Director and sports betting has managed the business’s development and operations in Lagos, Nigeria.

Before this, she was the Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to June 2019, pivotal in the company’s functional methods and sports betting market growth.

She established DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), sports betting a non-profit company empowering women-owned organizations. DDWIN supplies frHer instructional background consists of a Bachelor’s degree in Geology/Earth Science from the University of Ibadan, completed in 2005.

Akin Alabi, the founder of NairaBET.com, Nigeria’s pioneering sports betting bookmaking business, established business in 2009. While NairaBET was not the first sports betting platform in Nigeria, it was the first to release a fully functional website, setting a standard in the industry.

Femi Babalola- General Manager of 1Xbet Nigeria Limited

Femi Babalola is the Managing Director of 1XBET Nigeria Limited, a franchise of the worldwide sports betting wagering company based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, has established itself as one of the biggest bookmakers in Europe and the world. The company runs in more than 50 nations, including Nigeria, where it is totally accredited.

Under Babalola’s management, 1XBET Nigeria has broadened its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting wagering market, using a wide variety of sports betting options and an user-friendly platform. The 1XBET app has over 500,000 downloads on the Play Store.

Gossy Ukanwoke – CEO of Betking Nigeria

Gossy Ukanwoke is the CEO of BetKing, Managing Director sports betting of KingMakers, and Chairman of Vend Capital. In addition to leading these ventures, Ukanwoke has collaborated with African socio-economic institutions and sports betting federal governments to design developmental policies targeted at empowering young people. In 2015, sports betting Ernst & & Young honoured him as the Winner of the Accelerating Category– World Entrepreneur of the Year.

BetKing, established and launched in Nigeria on February 22, 2018, by Byron Petzer and Adekunle Adeniji, runs under the brand name of Lake Ventures Ltd. This pan-African sports betting wagering and entertainment business has actually quickly grown its existence in Nigeria, with outlets in major cities and over 500,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

In 2020, BetKing entered into a collaboration with the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, producing over 100,000 jobs, the variety of which is increasing each year. In the same year, sports betting MultiChoice broadcaster bought a 20% stake in BetKing, which was increased to 49% in 2021.

Denise Coates – CEO Bet 365

Denise Coates is a British billionaire businesswoman, the founder, sports betting bulk investor, and sports betting joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online sports betting company she developed in 2000. Bet365.com was launched in 2001 as an online sports betting website and has actually since grown into among the world’s largest online sports betting companies.

By 2016, Bet365 produced $2 billion in revenues and facilitated $45 billion in yearly bets. The company also holds a bulk stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has actually gathered substantial user engagement, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.

Ayo Ojuroye – CEO/Cofounder Bet9ja

Ayo Ojuroye is the CEO and co-founder of Bet9ja, a leading sports betting wagering business in Nigeria, established alongside business owner Kunle Soname, who also owns Portuguese club CD Feirense and Nigerian club Remo Stars.

Ojuroye is also the Chairman of Mango Asset Management, an independent Nigerian possession management company that produces financial investment returns and uses special investment insights and options to both individual and institutional customers.

Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, Bet9ja has rapidly grown in appeal, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store. Under Ojuroye’s leadership, Bet9ja has become a substantial player in the Nigerian sports betting industry.

Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet

Fikayo Ogunfuye is a skilled professional in the sports betting market. He has actually been working as the Country Director for 22BET in Nigeria since June 2021. In this function, he has added to the company’s development through collaborations, service technique, sports betting and sports betting new service development.

Fikayo’s experience includes roles such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, where he handled item advancement and consumer experience, and Country Manager at 22BET, focusing on marketing technique and budget plan management. Before 22BET, he led marketing efforts at LuckyBet.NG and held numerous digital marketing roles at Laclic Services and Betty Bingo.

His profession began at Jumia Group, where he operated in SEO, CRM, and sports betting content management. Fikayo also served as a Human Resource Officer at SIFAX Group.

He holds a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) in Management and Accounting from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology and a Master of Science (MS) in Business Administration, Management, and Operations from ESTG University in Cotonou, Benin Republic.

22Bet is an online sports betting platform that offers sports betting wagering, casino video games, and live dealer games. It was launched in 2017 and is owned and operated by Marikit Holdings Ltd, a company registered in Cyprus and a subsidiary of Orakum N.V.. They are likewise the owners of Betwinner and a chain of gambling establishments worldwide.

Sudeep Ramnani– CEO Sportybet Group

Sudeep Ramnani is the Founder and CEO of SportyBet, a company he developed in 2013.

SportyBet is a global sports betting wagering and sports betting real-money gaming operator sports betting understood for delivering an omni-channel home entertainment experience in managed emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s management, SportyBet has become a significant player in the market, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.

In addition to his function at SportyBet, Sudeep is an active financier in fintech and mobile payments and a strong advocate for sports betting the growing African internet community. His investments reflect his commitment to fostering innovation and advancement within the region.

On April 30, sports betting 2024, Sudeep Ramnani invested in Chowdeck, taking part in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.

The firm is set to interfere with the sports betting industry.

Sunbet Sporting International Limited has said it is concentrated on revolutionising how countless Africans engage with sports betting. In a market worth over $1.5 billion annual, with double-digit growth forecast in the coming years, according to reports from the African Sports Betting Association and PwC, sports betting the company aims to leverage innovative technology and a commitment to responsible gambling to change the sector.

Backed by the financial power of four prominent African billionaires, Sunbet, sports betting which will launch in the very first quarter of 2025, intends to be the continent’s largest and most ingenious sports betting platform.

At a press instruction, the company’s spokesperson, Akin Babatunde, said that the rise in Internet penetration, mobile usage, sports betting and the continent’s deep enthusiasm for sports betting, sports betting particularly football, has set the stage for Sunbet’s enthusiastic entry. He added that the firm’s robust financial backing and specialist group will enable it to scale and control the marketplace rapidly.

Islamic police raid wagering stores in northern Nigeria

Islamic cops in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have begun closing down sports betting stores, which they state are running unlawfully.

“As you know, wagering is prohibited in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police force, known as the Hisbah, told the BBC.

Grievances from neighborhood leaders and moms and dads triggered the crackdown, fretted about the growing number of sports betting addicts, sports betting he stated.

On the first day of raids, 30 stores were closed in one suburban area alone, and their owners were sent out home with a warning, the Sharia officer said.

But Mr Aminudeen cautioned that now that the public was aware that the Hisbah was clamping down on sports betting, those flouting the rules would be jailed.

Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a majority Muslim population and operates the Islamic legal system – Sharia – alongside nonreligious law.

and bars tend to be allowed to operate in Kano’s Christian areas, though they too can deal with action if the Hisbah believes Muslims are frequenting them.

However, sports betting the existing crackdown is concentrated on Muslim locations of Kano, a vast city and the economic hub of northern Nigeria.

Sports betting stores can be discovered all over the city. A lot of have tv screens, and customers view the outcome of global football matches or horse races on which they have staked cash.

Mr Aminudeen stated such bookies had actually had the ability to operate under the radar as they had actually opened under false pretences.

“They don’t have licences to run as they were allowed to run computer game centres, which they later converted to sports betting shops,” he said.

The sports betting market has actually expanded significantly across West Africa over the last few years. The area is roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and sports betting a predominantly Christian south.

Many individuals go to bookies to enjoy the camaraderie of other gamblers, though mobile apps are likewise popular for wagering on the outcome of events and sports betting groups.

Nigeria’s debilitating recession has also suggested people want to risk a percentage in the hope of winning big.

However this had led to prevalent addiction, and parents were even complaining that kids were dropping out of school to bet, Mr Aminudeen said.

“These economic concerns we are facing in Nigeria is God informing us to change our methods by stopping sins,” he said.

The raids on Tuesday concentrated on Munjibir, thought about a resort area in the northeast of the city– visitors flock there at weekends.

“I am advising those running those sports betting stores to either shut down or we’ll jail them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen stated.

It is uncertain what punishment they would deal with – frequently, such infringements carry a fine.

Sharia was presented in Kano in 2000 – as it remained in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, gaming and sports betting the consumption of alcohol were banned.