Industry Players and Prayer Police: The Future of Sports Betting in Nigeria
Meet CEOs/MDs of business behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports wagering industry.
Gambling has evolved considerably in Nigeria from conventional forms like pool staking and Baba Ijebu to a growing sports betting industry. Historically tied to European football leagues, swimming pool staking was a typical sight at motor parks and kiosks, where lovers would wager as low as N50-N200 on matches.
Gradually, with increased internet access came virtual sports betting, which parallels global trends. The sports betting wagering market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and is forecasted to nearly double to $182.02 billion by 2030.
Despite economic obstacles such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting wagering sector has actually grown, attracting millions, specifically among the youthful demographic dealing with high unemployment rates.
Reports show that approximately 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively engage in sports betting, driving a market that generates an estimated annual earnings of N730 billion. The federal government has not gone unnoticed by this growth, sports betting which is considering regulative procedures like import tax tasks and sports betting VAT increases to manage the sector.
The National Lottery Act of 2005 established regulative bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to guarantee reasonable operations in spite of difficulties in enforcement. Concerns such as insufficient age confirmation and marketing guideline breaches reveal industry regulative gaps.
Regardless of these obstacles, sports betting wagering business continue to prosper through effective business designs and aggressive marketing methods, leveraging the developer influencer market.
These efforts have actually contributed to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion gambling sector, with CEOs playing crucial functions in broadening audience reach and driving market development. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting wagering business who have considerably contributed to Nigeria’s $2 billion gambling empire through their extensive 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 diverse profession covers numerous roles in the gaming and show business, consisting of operating at among the United Kingdom’s gaming centres, sports betting 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 turned into a leading e-commerce organization in the wagering and video gaming sector, running through online, mobile, and retail channels. The business was included in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, and has actually considering that broadened its presence, attaining over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Sam Sadi – CEO Livescorebet
Sam Sadi has more than 25 years of experience in sports betting brands and sports betting media. In 2019, he ended up being the CEO of LiveScore Group, a completely incorporated community that integrates appropriate sports betting material, engaging features, and a world-class sportsbook.
Given that taking the helm right before the pandemic, Sam has actually driven substantial development for LiveScore Group. The company’s employee headcount has increased by 29%, and yearly profits has actually surged from around ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.
Sam’s leadership and tactical vision have actually moved LiveScore Group’s success and assisted 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 designated CEO of Betway in November 2017, having formerly acted as the company’s Marketing and sports betting Operations Director since 2015. He signed up with Betway in 2013 and has been in the online gaming industry given that 2000, holding numerous successful functions, consisting of General Manager of a data analytics group and Director of a digital marketing agency.
Under Werkman’s management, Betway has continued to grow its market presence and improve its offerings. The business’s app has actually amassed 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 transforming start-ups into institutionalized organizations. Her proficiency spans the video gaming, real estate, and credit lending markets, where he has actually established himself as a strategic and functional leader.
Damilare has actually been instrumental in NairaBET’s success for sports betting over 14 years. Because June 2019, she has actually served as Managing Director and has actually overseen 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 company’s operational strategies and market expansion.
She founded DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), sports betting a non-profit organization empowering women-owned organizations. DDWIN supplies frHer academic 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 very first sports betting platform in Nigeria, it was the very first to introduce a completely practical website, 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 business based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, has actually established itself as one of the largest bookmakers in Europe and the world. The business operates in more than 50 countries, consisting of Nigeria, where it is totally certified.
Under Babalola’s leadership, 1XBET Nigeria has broadened its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting market, offering a vast array of wagering options 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, sports betting Managing Director of KingMakers, and sports betting Chairman of Vend Capital. In addition to leading these ventures, Ukanwoke has actually worked together with African socio-economic institutions and governments to design developmental policies targeted at empowering youths. In 2015, sports betting Ernst & & Young honoured him as the Winner of the Accelerating Category– World Entrepreneur of the Year.
BetKing, established and released 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 quickly grown its existence in Nigeria, with outlets in significant cities and over 500,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
In 2020, BetKing entered into a collaboration with the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, developing over 100,000 tasks, the number of which is increasing every 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, sports betting the creator, majority shareholder, and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online gambling company she established in 2000. Bet365.com was introduced in 2001 as an online sports betting site and has actually considering that grown into one of the world’s biggest online sports betting companies.
By 2016, Bet365 created $2 billion in incomes and assisted in $45 billion in annual bets. The business also holds a bulk stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has actually gathered 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 business in Nigeria, developed together with business person 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 asset management company that creates financial investment returns and uses distinct financial investment insights and sports betting services to both private and institutional customers.
Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, Bet9ja has actually rapidly grown in appeal, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store. Under Ojuroye’s leadership, Bet9ja has become a considerable player in the Nigerian sports betting wagering industry.
Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet
Fikayo Ogunfuye is an experienced professional in the sports betting industry. He has actually been working as the Country Director for sports betting 22BET in Nigeria considering that June 2021. In this role, he has actually added to the company’s growth through partnerships, company technique, and new organization advancement.
Fikayo’s experience includes functions such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, where he managed item development and client experience, and Country Manager at 22BET, sports betting concentrating on marketing technique and sports betting spending plan management. Before 22BET, he led marketing efforts at LuckyBet.NG and sports betting held numerous digital marketing roles at Laclic Services and Betty Bingo.
His profession began at Jumia Group, where he operated 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 a Master of Science (MS) in Business Administration, Management, sports betting and Operations from ESTG University in Cotonou, Benin Republic.
22Bet is an online sports betting platform that provides sports betting wagering, casino video games, and live dealer video games. It was launched 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 also 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 business he established in 2013.
SportyBet is a global sports betting wagering and sports betting real-money gaming operator known for providing an omni-channel entertainment experience in managed emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s leadership, SportyBet has ended up being a considerable gamer in the industry, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.
In addition to his function at SportyBet, Sudeep is an active investor in fintech and mobile payments and a strong supporter for the growing African internet environment. His financial investments show his commitment to fostering innovation and development within the region.
On April 30, 2024, Sudeep Ramnani invested in Chowdeck, taking part in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.
The firm is set to interrupt the sports wagering industry.
Sunbet Sporting International Limited has said it is concentrated on changing how millions of Africans engage with sports betting. In a market worth over $1.5 billion annual, sports betting with double-digit development forecast in the coming years, sports betting according to reports from the African Sports Betting Association and PwC, the firm intends to leverage innovative technology and a commitment to accountable gambling to revolutionise the sector.
Backed by the monetary power of 4 prominent African billionaires, sports betting Sunbet, which will release in the very first quarter of 2025, aims to be the continent’s largest and most innovative sports betting wagering platform.
At a press instruction, the company’s spokesperson, Akin Babatunde, said that the increase in Internet penetration, mobile use, and the continent’s deep passion for sports betting, sports betting especially football, has set the stage for Sunbet’s enthusiastic entry. He added that the firm’s robust financial backing and sports betting professional group will enable it to scale and control the market rapidly.
Islamic authorities raid wagering shops in northern Nigeria
Islamic police in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have actually begun shutting down sports betting stores, which they state are running unlawfully.
“As you know, sports betting is forbidden in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police force, sports betting called the Hisbah, told the BBC.
Complaints from community leaders and moms and dads prompted the crackdown, worried about the growing variety of sports betting addicts, he stated.
On the very first day of raids, 30 stores were closed in one suburb alone, and sports betting their owners were sent out home with a warning, the Sharia officer stated.
But Mr Aminudeen warned that now that the public knew that the Hisbah was clamping down on sports betting, those flouting the guidelines would be apprehended.
Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a bulk Muslim population and operates the Islamic legal system – Sharia – alongside nonreligious law.
Bookmakers and bars tend to be enabled to operate in Kano’s Christian neighbourhoods, though they too can face action if the Hisbah believes Muslims are frequenting them.
Nevertheless, the existing crackdown is concentrated on Muslim areas of Kano, a sprawling city and the economic center of northern Nigeria.
sports betting wagering shops can be found all over the city. A lot of have television screens, and customers watch the outcome of international football matches or horse races on which they have staked money.
Mr Aminudeen stated such bookmakers had been able to operate under the radar as they had actually opened under false pretenses.
“They don’t have licences to run as they were permitted to run video games centres, which they later converted to wagering stores,” he stated.
The sports betting industry has broadened drastically across West Africa in recent years. The area is roughly divided between a primarily Muslim north and a mainly Christian south.
Lots of people go to bookmakers to take pleasure in the friendship of other bettors, though mobile apps are also popular for sports betting on the result of events and teams.
Nigeria’s crippling recession has actually likewise indicated individuals are willing to run the risk of a percentage in the hope of winning big.
But this had resulted in extensive addiction, sports betting and parents were even complaining that children were dropping out of school to gamble, Mr Aminudeen stated.
“These economic concerns we are facing in Nigeria is God telling us to alter our ways 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 recommending those running those sports betting shops to either closed down or we’ll jail them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen stated.
It is uncertain what penalty they would deal with – typically, such infringements bring a fine.
Sharia was presented in Kano in 2000 – as it was in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, sports betting gaming and the consumption of alcohol were banned.
