Industry Changers: How Islamic Crackdowns and Tech Innovation are Transforming Nigeria’s Betting Landscape
Meet CEOs/MDs of business behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports wagering market.
Gambling has developed significantly in Nigeria from traditional forms like pool staking and Baba Ijebu to a successful sports betting market. Historically tied to European football leagues, pool staking was a common sight at motor parks and kiosks, where enthusiasts would bet as low as N50-N200 on matches.
Slowly, with increased web access came virtual sports betting, which parallels global 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.
Despite economic challenges such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting sector has actually prospered, attracting millions, sports betting especially among the youthful demographic facing high joblessness rates.
Reports indicate that around 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively take part in sports betting wagering, driving an industry that creates a projected yearly income of N730 billion. The federal government has actually not gone undetected by this growth, sports betting which is considering regulative measures like excise tasks and VAT increases to handle the sector.
The National Lottery Act of 2005 recognized regulative bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to ensure reasonable operations in spite of challenges in enforcement. Concerns such as insufficient age confirmation and marketing guideline breaches reveal industry regulative spaces.
Regardless of these challenges, sports betting business continue to flourish through efficient company designs and aggressive marketing techniques, leveraging the creator influencer market.
These efforts have contributed to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion gambling sector, with CEOs playing important roles in expanding audience reach and driving market growth. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting wagering companies who have considerably contributed to Nigeria’s $2 billion gaming empire through their comprehensive audience reach.
Constable Olaniyan – CEO Surebet247
Constable Olaniyan is the CEO of Surebet247, a sports betting book company he co-founded with Badmos Olasupo in 2011. His varied profession covers various functions in the gaming and show business, including working at one of the United Kingdom’s largest 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 a Master’s in Geographical Information Systems from the University of Glamorgan, Wales. Surebet247, founded in August 2011, has actually become a leading e-commerce organization in the wagering and gaming sector, operating through online, mobile, and retail channels. The company was included in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, and has considering that expanded its existence, achieving over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Sam Sadi – CEO Livescorebet
Sam Sadi has over 25 years of experience in wagering brand names and sports betting media. In 2019, he became the CEO of LiveScore Group, a fully incorporated environment that integrates relevant sports betting material, engaging features, and a world-class sportsbook.
Considering that taking the helm just before the pandemic, Sam has driven substantial development for LiveScore Group. The company’s staff member headcount has actually increased by 29%, and yearly profits has actually surged from around ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.
Sam’s management and strategic vision have propelled LiveScore Group’s success and helped form the industry’s instructions. LiveScoreBet has actually accomplished major user engagement, 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, having previously functioned as the company’s Marketing and Operations Director because 2015. He signed up with Betway in 2013 and has remained in the online gaming market considering that 2000, holding numerous effective functions, consisting of General Manager of an information analytics group and Director of a digital marketing firm.
Under Werkman’s management, Betway has actually continued to grow its market presence and enhance its offerings. The business’s app has actually amassed substantial user engagement, sports betting 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 transforming start-ups into institutionalized services. Her expertise spans the gaming, property, and credit lending markets, where he has actually developed himself as a tactical and functional leader.
Damilare has contributed in NairaBET’s success for over 14 years. Considering that June 2019, she has functioned as Managing Director and has managed the company’s growth and operations in Lagos, Nigeria.
Before this, she was the Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to June 2019, sports betting pivotal in the company’s functional methods and market growth.
She founded DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), a non-profit organization empowering women-owned businesses. DDWIN provides frHer educational 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, developed the business in 2009. While NairaBET was not the first sports betting wagering platform in Nigeria, it was the first to release a totally practical website, sports betting setting a standard in the industry.
Femi Babalola- General Manager of 1Xbet Nigeria Limited
Femi Babalola is the Managing Director sports betting of 1XBET Nigeria Limited, a franchise of the worldwide sports betting wagering business based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, has developed itself as one of the biggest bookies in Europe and the world. The company runs in more than 50 nations, including Nigeria, where it is completely accredited.
Under Babalola’s leadership, 1XBET Nigeria has expanded its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting wagering market, offering a vast array of wagering alternatives and an user-friendly 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 of KingMakers, and Chairman of Vend Capital. In addition to leading these endeavors, Ukanwoke has actually worked together with African socio-economic organizations and governments to create developmental policies aimed at empowering youths. In 2015, Ernst & & Young honoured him as the Winner of the Accelerating Category– World Entrepreneur of the Year.
BetKing, founded and released in Nigeria on February 22, 2018, sports betting by Byron Petzer and Adekunle Adeniji, runs under the trademark name of Lake Ventures Ltd. This pan-African sports betting wagering and entertainment business has rapidly grown its existence in Nigeria, with outlets in major cities and over 500,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
In 2020, BetKing participated in a partnership with the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, producing over 100,000 jobs, sports betting the number of which is increasing annually. In the very same year, MultiChoice broadcaster purchased 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 creator, majority shareholder, and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online sports betting business she established in 2000. Bet365.com was launched in 2001 as an online wagering website and has actually since turned into one of the world’s largest online sports betting business.
By 2016, Bet365 created $2 billion in earnings and sports betting assisted in $45 billion in annual bets. The company also holds a majority stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has actually gathered considerable 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 person Kunle Soname, who also owns Portuguese club CD Feirense and Nigerian club Remo Stars.
Ojuroye is likewise the Chairman of Mango Asset Management, an independent Nigerian possession management company that produces financial investment returns and provides distinct investment insights and options to both private and sports betting institutional customers.
Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, Bet9ja has actually quickly grown in popularity, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store. Under Ojuroye’s management, sports betting Bet9ja has actually ended up being a substantial gamer in the Nigerian sports betting wagering industry.
Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet
Fikayo Ogunfuye is a skilled specialist in the sports betting industry. He has been functioning as the Country Director for 22BET in Nigeria because June 2021. In this role, sports betting he has contributed to the company’s development through partnerships, business strategy, and brand-new service advancement.
Fikayo’s experience includes roles such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, where he handled item development and customer experience, sports betting and Country Manager at 22BET, concentrating on marketing strategy 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 started at Jumia Group, sports betting where he operated in SEO, CRM, sports betting and content management. Fikayo likewise served as a Human Resource Officer at SIFAX Group.
He holds a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) in Management and sports betting Accounting from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology and a Master of Science (MS) in Business Administration, Management, and sports betting Operations from ESTG University in Cotonou, Benin Republic.
22Bet is an online gaming platform that offers sports betting wagering, gambling establishment video games, and sports betting live dealership games. It was released in 2017 and is owned and sports betting operated by Marikit Holdings Ltd, a business signed up 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 established in 2013.
SportyBet is a worldwide sports betting and real-money gaming operator understood for sports betting providing an omni-channel home entertainment experience in regulated emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s leadership, sports betting SportyBet has ended up being a significant gamer in the market, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.
In addition to his role at SportyBet, Sudeep is an active investor in fintech and mobile payments and sports betting a strong advocate for the growing African internet community. His investments reflect his commitment to promoting innovation and advancement within the area.
On April 30, sports betting 2024, Sudeep Ramnani invested in Chowdeck, participating in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.
The firm is set to interfere with the sports betting market.
Sunbet Sporting International Limited has said it is focused on changing how countless Africans engage with sports betting. In a market worth over $1.5 billion annual, with double-digit development projection in the coming years, according to reports from the African Sports Betting Association and PwC, the company aims to take advantage of advanced technology and sports betting a dedication to accountable gambling to change the sector.
Backed by the financial power of four prominent African billionaires, Sunbet, which will launch in the very first quarter of 2025, aims to be the continent’s biggest and most ingenious sports betting wagering platform.
At a press instruction, the business’s spokesperson, Akin Babatunde, stated that the rise in Internet penetration, mobile usage, and the continent’s deep passion for sports betting, particularly football, has actually set the stage for Sunbet’s ambitious entry. He included that the firm’s robust sponsorship and sports betting professional group will enable it to scale and control the market rapidly.
Islamic cops raid betting stores in northern Nigeria
Islamic cops in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have begun shutting down sports betting shops, which they say are running illegally.
“As you know, sports betting is forbidden in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police, called the Hisbah, informed the BBC.
Complaints from community leaders and moms and dads prompted the crackdown, stressed over the growing number of gambling addicts, he stated.
On the first day of raids, 30 shops were closed in one suburb alone, and their owners were sent out home with a warning, the Sharia officer stated.
However Mr Aminudeen cautioned that now that the general public was aware that the Hisbah was clamping down on gambling, sports betting those flouting the guidelines would be jailed.
Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a majority Muslim population and runs the Islamic legal system – Sharia – along with secular law.
Bookies and bars tend to be to operate in Kano’s Christian areas, though they too can face action if the Hisbah believes Muslims are frequenting them.
Nevertheless, the existing crackdown is focused on Muslim locations of Kano, sports betting a vast city and the financial hub of northern Nigeria.
sports betting wagering stores can be discovered all over the city. A lot of have tv screens, and customers view the result of worldwide football matches or horse races on which they have staked cash.
Mr Aminudeen said such bookies had had the ability to run under the radar as they had opened under false pretenses.
“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 stated.
The sports betting wagering market has broadened drastically throughout West Africa recently. The area is roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and a predominantly Christian south.
Lots of people go to bookmakers to enjoy the friendship of other gamblers, sports betting though mobile apps are likewise popular for sports betting wagering on the result of occasions and teams.
Nigeria’s crippling economic crisis has likewise indicated people are willing to risk a small amount in the hope of winning big.
But this had caused widespread addiction, and moms and dads were even grumbling that kids were dropping out of school to bet, Mr Aminudeen said.
“These financial problems we are facing in Nigeria is God telling us to alter our ways by stopping sins,” he said.
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 advising those running those sports betting stores to either closed down or we’ll apprehend them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen stated.
It is uncertain what penalty they would face – typically, such violations carry a fine.
Sharia was presented in Kano in 2000 – as it remained in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, sports betting and the usage of alcohol were banned.