The $2 Billion Sports Betting War: Industry Leaders Face Islamic Clampdown as New Challenger Surfaces
Meet CEOs/MDs of business behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports wagering market.
sports betting has progressed considerably in Nigeria from traditional types like pool staking and Baba Ijebu to a flourishing sports betting wagering market. Historically tied to European football leagues, pool staking was a typical sight at motor sports betting parks and kiosks, where enthusiasts would wager as little as N50-N200 on matches.
Gradually, with increased internet gain access to came virtual sports betting, which parallels international trends. The sports betting wagering market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and is predicted to almost double to $182.02 billion by 2030.
Regardless of economic challenges such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting wagering sector sports betting has actually flourished, drawing in millions, specifically among the younger group facing high joblessness rates.
Reports suggest that approximately 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively take part in sports betting, driving a market that produces an approximated annual profits of N730 billion. The federal government has actually not gone unnoticed by this development, which is thinking about regulatory procedures like excise responsibilities and VAT boosts to manage the sector.
The National Lottery Act of 2005 recognized regulatory bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to make sure reasonable operations regardless of obstacles in enforcement. Issues such as insufficient age confirmation and advertising guideline breaches reveal market regulatory spaces.
In spite of these obstacles, sports betting companies continue to prosper through effective company designs and sports betting aggressive marketing techniques, leveraging the creator sports betting influencer market.
These efforts have contributed to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion sports betting sector, with CEOs playing important functions in expanding audience reach and driving industry growth. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting business who have substantially contributed to Nigeria’s $2 billion gaming empire through their extensive audience reach.
Sheriff Olaniyan – CEO Surebet247
Constable Olaniyan is the CEO of Surebet247, a sports betting book company he co-founded with Badmos Olasupo in 2011. His diverse profession spans various functions in the video gaming and show business, consisting of working at one of the United Kingdom’s biggest video gaming centres, The Palace Bingo Club, where he worked as the Lead Engineer in a Bingo and Bowling Club.
Olaniyan holds a BSc in Geography from the University of Ilorin and a Master’s in Geographical Information Systems from the University of Glamorgan, Wales. Surebet247, sports betting founded in August 2011, has become a leading e-commerce organization in the sports betting and sports betting video gaming sector, running through online, mobile, and retail channels. The company was incorporated in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, and has actually since expanded its existence, attaining over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Sam Sadi – CEO Livescorebet
Sam Sadi has over 25 years of experience in wagering brands and sports betting media. In 2019, he ended up being the CEO of LiveScore Group, a completely incorporated community that combines pertinent sports betting content, engaging functions, and a first-rate sportsbook.
Considering that taking the helm prior to the pandemic, Sam has actually driven significant growth for LiveScore Group. The business’s staff member headcount has actually increased by 29%, and annual profits has risen from approximately ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.
Sam’s management and tactical vision have actually moved LiveScore Group’s success and helped form the industry’s direction. LiveScoreBet has actually achieved major user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Anthony Werkman – CEO of Betway Group
Anthony Werkman was selected CEO of Betway in November 2017, having formerly acted as the company’s Marketing and Operations Director considering that 2015. He signed up with Betway in 2013 and sports betting has actually remained in the online video gaming industry considering that 2000, sports betting holding numerous effective roles, including General Manager of an information analytics group and Director of a digital marketing firm.
Under Werkman’s leadership, Betway has continued to grow its market presence and enhance its offerings. The company’s app has actually garnered substantial user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Damilare Alabi, Co-Founder, Managing Director NairaBET
Damilare Alabi has actually identified herself as a senior executive with a track record of changing start-ups into institutionalized services. Her proficiency covers the video gaming, realty, and credit financing markets, where he has established himself as a strategic and operational leader.
Damilare has been instrumental in NairaBET’s success for over 14 years. Given that June 2019, she has functioned as Managing Director sports betting and has supervised the business’s development and operations in Lagos, Nigeria.
Before this, she was the Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to June 2019, critical in the business’s functional techniques and market growth.
She founded DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), a non-profit organization empowering women-owned services. DDWIN offers frHer academic background includes a Bachelor’s degree in Geology/Earth Science from the University of Ibadan, finished in 2005.
Akin Alabi, the creator of NairaBET.com, Nigeria’s pioneering sports betting bookmaking company, established the business in 2009. While NairaBET was not the first sports betting wagering platform in Nigeria, it was the first to introduce a totally functional website, setting a criteria 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 global sports betting company based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, has actually established itself as one of the biggest bookmakers in Europe and the world. The business runs in more than 50 countries, including Nigeria, where it is fully accredited.
Under Babalola’s leadership, 1XBET Nigeria has actually expanded its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting wagering market, providing a wide range of sports betting alternatives and an easy to use platform. The 1XBET app has more than 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 endeavors, Ukanwoke has actually teamed up with African socio-economic institutions and governments to design developmental policies targeted at empowering youths. In 2015, Ernst & & Young honoured him as the Winner of the Accelerating Category– World Entrepreneur of the Year.
BetKing, sports betting established and released in Nigeria on February 22, 2018, by Byron Petzer and sports betting Adekunle Adeniji, operates under the trademark name of Lake Ventures Ltd. This pan-African sports betting wagering and sports betting entertainment company has quickly grown its presence in Nigeria, with outlets in major cities and over 500,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
In 2020, BetKing entered into a partnership with the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, producing over 100,000 tasks, the variety of which is increasing yearly. In the same year, MultiChoice broadcaster purchased a 20% stake in BetKing, sports betting which was increased to 49% in 2021.
Denise Coates – CEO Bet 365
Denise Coates is a British billionaire businesswoman, the founder, bulk shareholder, and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online gaming company she developed in 2000. Bet365.com was launched in 2001 as an online sports betting website and has given that become one of the world’s biggest online sports betting business.
By 2016, Bet365 generated $2 billion in incomes and facilitated $45 billion in annual bets. The business also holds a majority stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has actually amassed significant 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, developed along with business person Kunle Soname, who likewise owns Portuguese club CD Feirense and Nigerian club Remo Stars.
Ojuroye is also the Chairman of Mango Asset Management, an independent Nigerian asset management business that creates investment returns and sports betting offers special financial investment insights and solutions to both private and institutional customers.
Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, Bet9ja has actually rapidly grown in popularity, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store. Under Ojuroye’s leadership, Bet9ja has ended up being a substantial gamer in the Nigerian sports betting wagering industry.
Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet
Fikayo Ogunfuye is a seasoned specialist in the sports betting wagering industry. He has actually been functioning as the Country Director for 22BET in Nigeria considering that June 2021. In this function, he has added to the business’s development through partnerships, business strategy, and sports betting brand-new service advancement.
Fikayo’s experience includes roles such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, where he handled item advancement and customer experience, and sports betting Country Manager at 22BET, focusing on marketing method and sports betting 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 career started at Jumia Group, where he worked in SEO, CRM, and content management. Fikayo likewise functioned 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 sports betting 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, casino video games, and live dealership video games. It was released in 2017 and is owned and run 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 casinos worldwide.
Sudeep Ramnani– CEO Sportybet Group
Sudeep Ramnani is the Founder and CEO of SportyBet, a company he developed in 2013.
SportyBet is an international sports betting wagering and sports betting real-money gaming operator sports betting known for delivering an omni-channel home entertainment experience in managed emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s leadership, sports betting SportyBet has actually become a substantial gamer in the industry, with over 1 million downloads on the Store.
In addition to his role at SportyBet, Sudeep is an active financier in fintech and mobile payments and a strong supporter for the growing African internet community. His financial investments reflect his commitment to cultivating development and advancement within the area.
On April 30, 2024, Sudeep Ramnani purchased Chowdeck, participating in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.
The company is set to disrupt the sports betting industry.
Sunbet Sporting International Limited has stated it is concentrated on revolutionising how millions of Africans engage with sports betting. In a market worth over $1.5 billion annual, with double-digit development forecast in the coming years, according to reports from the African Sports Betting Association and PwC, the firm intends to take advantage of advanced innovation and a dedication to accountable gambling to change the sector.
Backed by the financial power of four prominent African billionaires, Sunbet, which will introduce in the first quarter of 2025, aims to be the continent’s biggest and most innovative sports betting wagering platform.
At a press briefing, the company’s spokesperson, Akin Babatunde, stated that the rise in Internet penetration, mobile usage, and sports betting the continent’s deep passion for sports betting, particularly football, has actually set the stage for Sunbet’s enthusiastic entry. He added that the company’s robust financial backing and specialist group will allow it to scale and dominate the market rapidly.
Islamic police raid wagering stores in northern Nigeria
Islamic police in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have actually started closing down sports betting wagering shops, which they state are operating unlawfully.
“As you know, wagering is prohibited in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police force, known as the Hisbah, sports betting told the BBC.
Problems from community leaders and parents prompted the crackdown, stressed over the growing number of sports betting addicts, he stated.
On the first day of raids, sports betting 30 shops were closed in one suburban area alone, and their owners were sent out home with a caution, the Sharia officer said.
However Mr Aminudeen warned that now that the public knew that the Hisbah was clamping down on sports betting, those flouting the guidelines would be arrested.
Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a majority Muslim population and runs the Islamic legal system – Sharia – alongside secular law.
Bookies and bars tend to be permitted to operate in Kano’s Christian areas, though they too can face action if the Hisbah thinks Muslims are frequenting them.
However, the existing crackdown is concentrated on Muslim locations of Kano, a vast city and the economic center of northern Nigeria.
sports betting wagering stores can be found all over the city. Most have tv screens, and sports betting customers see the outcome of worldwide football matches or horse races on which they have staked cash.
Mr Aminudeen said such bookmakers had had the ability to run under the radar as they had opened under false pretences.
“They don’t have licences to operate as they were permitted to run computer game centres, which they later on transformed to sports betting stores,” he said.
The sports betting market has broadened dramatically throughout West Africa in the last few years. The region is approximately divided in between a generally Muslim north and sports betting a predominantly Christian south.
Many people go to bookmakers to delight in the camaraderie of other bettors, though mobile apps are likewise popular for sports betting wagering on the outcome of events and groups.
Nigeria’s crippling economic crisis has likewise meant individuals want to risk a small amount in the hope of winning big.
But this had led to prevalent addiction, sports betting and parents were even complaining that children were leaving of school to gamble, Mr Aminudeen said.
“These financial concerns we are facing in Nigeria is God telling us to change our methods by stopping sins,” he stated.
The raids on Tuesday focused on Munjibir, thought about a resort area in the northeast of the city– visitors flock there at weekends.
“I am encouraging those running those sports betting stores to either closed down or we’ll jail them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen stated.
It is uncertain what punishment they would face – frequently, sports betting such violations carry a fine.
Sharia was presented in Kano in 2000 – as it was in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, gambling and the intake of alcohol were banned.