Market Innovation Meets Moral Policing: Nigeria’s Sports Betting Industry at a Crossroads
Meet CEOs/MDs of business behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports wagering market.
Gambling has actually progressed significantly in Nigeria from traditional forms like pool staking and sports betting Baba Ijebu to a flourishing sports betting wagering industry. Historically connected to European football leagues, pool staking was a typical sight at motor parks and kiosks, where lovers would bet just N50-N200 on matches.
Slowly, with increased internet access came virtual sports betting, which parallels worldwide patterns. The sports betting wagering market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and is predicted to nearly double to $182.02 billion by 2030.
Regardless of economic obstacles such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting sector has actually flourished, sports betting drawing in millions, specifically amongst the younger group dealing with high joblessness rates.
Reports suggest that approximately 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively take part in sports betting wagering, driving an industry that creates an estimated yearly profits of N730 billion. The federal government has actually not gone unnoticed by this growth, which is thinking about regulatory measures like import tax tasks and VAT boosts to manage the sector.
The National Lottery Act of 2005 established regulatory bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to guarantee fair operations despite difficulties in enforcement. Problems such as inadequate age verification and marketing guideline breaches show industry regulative gaps.
In spite of these obstacles, sports betting wagering business continue to grow through reliable company models and aggressive marketing techniques, leveraging the developer influencer market.
These efforts have added to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion gambling sector, with CEOs playing essential roles in expanding audience reach and driving industry growth. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting business who have considerably added to Nigeria’s $2 billion sports betting empire through their extensive audience reach.
Constable Olaniyan – CEO Surebet247
Sheriff Olaniyan is the CEO of Surebet247, a sports betting book company he co-founded with Badmos Olasupo in 2011. His diverse profession spans various roles in the video gaming and sports betting entertainment industry, sports betting including operating at one of the United Kingdom’s biggest 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 a Master’s in Geographical Information Systems from the University of Glamorgan, Wales. Surebet247, founded in August 2011, has grown into a leading e-commerce organization in the sports betting and video gaming sector, operating through online, mobile, and retail channels. The business was integrated in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, sports betting and has given that expanded its presence, accomplishing over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Sam Sadi – CEO Livescorebet
Sam Sadi has more than 25 years of experience in wagering brand names and sports betting media. In 2019, he ended up being the CEO of LiveScore Group, a completely integrated environment that combines appropriate sports betting content, engaging features, and a world-class sportsbook.
Since taking the helm right before the pandemic, Sam has actually driven significant development for LiveScore Group. The business’s worker headcount has increased by 29%, and sports betting annual earnings has actually risen from roughly ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.
Sam’s management and tactical vision have actually moved LiveScore Group’s success and sports betting assisted shape the market’s direction. LiveScoreBet has accomplished 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 worked as the business’s Marketing and Operations Director because 2015. He signed up with Betway in 2013 and has been in the online gaming industry given that 2000, holding numerous effective functions, consisting of General Manager of a data analytics group and Director of a digital marketing company.
Under Werkman’s management, sports betting Betway has actually continued to grow its market presence and improve its offerings. The business’s app has gathered substantial user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Damilare Alabi, Co-Founder, Managing Director NairaBET
Damilare Alabi has differentiated herself as a senior executive with a track record of transforming start-ups into institutionalized organizations. Her competence spans the video gaming, property, and sports betting credit financing markets, where he has actually developed himself as a tactical and operational leader.
Damilare has actually been instrumental in NairaBET’s success for over 14 years. Because June 2019, she has acted as Managing Director and has actually managed the company’s development and operations in Lagos, Nigeria.
Before this, she was the Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to June 2019, essential in the business’s functional techniques and sports betting market expansion.
She established DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), a non-profit organization empowering women-owned companies. DDWIN provides frHer academic background includes a Bachelor’s degree in Geology/Earth Science from the University of Ibadan, finished in 2005.
Akin Alabi, the founder of NairaBET.com, Nigeria’s pioneering sports betting bookmaking company, developed the business in 2009. While NairaBET was not the first sports betting wagering platform in Nigeria, it was the first to introduce a completely practical website, setting a benchmark in the market.
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 actually established itself as one of the largest bookmakers in Europe and the world. The business operates in more than 50 nations, consisting of Nigeria, where it is completely certified.
Under Babalola’s leadership, 1XBET Nigeria has broadened its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting market, using a wide variety of sports betting 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, sports betting Ukanwoke has teamed up with African socio-economic institutions and federal governments to develop 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 launched in Nigeria on February 22, 2018, 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 actually rapidly grown its presence 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 variety of which is increasing annually. In the very same year, 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, bulk investor, and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, sports betting an online sports betting company she developed in 2000. Bet365.com was launched in 2001 as an online wagering website and has given that grown into one of the world’s biggest online sports betting companies.
By 2016, sports betting Bet365 created $2 billion in earnings and sports betting helped with $45 billion in yearly bets. The business likewise holds a bulk stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has 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 sports betting co-founder of Bet9ja, a leading sports betting wagering business in Nigeria, established alongside businessman Kunle Soname, who likewise owns Portuguese club CD Feirense and Nigerian club Remo Stars.
Ojuroye is likewise the Chairman of Mango Asset Management, an independent Nigerian asset management business that creates financial investment returns and sports betting provides special investment insights and options to both specific and sports betting institutional clients.
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 ended up being a substantial player in the Nigerian sports betting industry.
Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet
Fikayo Ogunfuye is an experienced specialist in the sports betting market. He has actually been serving as the Country Director for 22BET in Nigeria because June 2021. In this role, sports betting he has actually contributed to the business’s development through partnerships, service method, and brand-new organization advancement.
Fikayo’s experience consists of functions 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 technique and budget plan management. Before 22BET, he led marketing efforts at LuckyBet.NG and held numerous digital marketing roles at Laclic Services and sports betting Betty Bingo.
His profession started at Jumia Group, where he worked in SEO, sports betting CRM, sports betting and content management. Fikayo likewise acted 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 offers sports betting, gambling establishment video games, sports betting and live dealer games. It was introduced in 2017 and is owned and run by Marikit Holdings Ltd, a business signed up in Cyprus and a subsidiary of Orakum N.V.. They are also 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 an international sports betting and sports betting real-money video gaming operator understood for providing an omni-channel home entertainment experience in managed emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s leadership, SportyBet has become a substantial 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 financier in fintech and mobile payments and a strong supporter for the growing African web community. His investments reflect his commitment to promoting innovation and advancement within the region.
On April 30, 2024, Sudeep Ramnani invested in Chowdeck, participating in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.
The firm is set to interrupt the sports wagering market.
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 yearly, sports betting 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 cutting-edge innovation and a dedication to to change the sector.
Backed by the financial power of 4 popular African billionaires, Sunbet, which will release in the first quarter of 2025, aims to be the continent’s largest and most innovative sports betting platform.
At a press rundown, the company’s representative, Akin Babatunde, stated that the increase in Internet penetration, mobile use, and the continent’s deep enthusiasm for sports betting, specifically football, has set the stage for Sunbet’s ambitious entry. He included that the firm’s robust financial backing and sports betting professional group will allow it to scale and control the marketplace quickly.
Islamic police raid wagering shops in northern Nigeria
Islamic cops in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have actually begun shutting down sports betting shops, which they state are operating unlawfully.
“As you know, sports betting is forbidden in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police force, known as the Hisbah, told the BBC.
Problems from neighborhood leaders and parents prompted the crackdown, stressed over the growing number of gambling addicts, he said.
On the first day of raids, 30 shops were closed in one residential area alone, sports betting and their owners were sent home with a caution, the Sharia officer said.
But Mr Aminudeen warned that now that the public understood that the Hisbah was clamping down on gaming, those flouting the rules would be detained.
Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a bulk Muslim population and runs the Islamic legal system – Sharia – together with nonreligious law.
Bookmakers and bars tend to be permitted to operate in Kano’s Christian neighbourhoods, though they too can face action if the Hisbah believes Muslims are frequenting them.
However, the existing crackdown is focused on Muslim locations of Kano, a vast city and the financial hub of northern Nigeria.
sports betting wagering shops can be found all over the city. Most have television screens, and clients see the outcome of international football matches or horse races on which they have staked cash.
Mr Aminudeen said such bookies had actually been able to run under the radar as they had opened under false pretences.
“They do not have licences to run as they were permitted to run video games centres, which they later on transformed to wagering shops,” he stated.
The sports betting market has broadened considerably across West Africa in recent years. The area is approximately divided in between a generally Muslim north and a predominantly Christian south.
Many people go to bookmakers to delight in the sociability of other bettors, though mobile apps are likewise popular for wagering on the outcome of occasions and teams.
Nigeria’s debilitating recession has likewise meant individuals are willing to risk a percentage in the hope of winning huge.
But this had led to prevalent dependency, and moms and sports betting dads were even grumbling 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 ways 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 shops to either closed down or we’ll apprehend them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen stated.
It is unclear what punishment they would deal with – frequently, such infringements bring a fine.
Sharia was introduced in Kano in 2000 – as it was in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, sports betting and sports betting the intake of alcohol were prohibited.
