Meet CEOs/MDs of companies behind Nigeria's $2 billion Sports wagering industry.
sports betting has actually developed considerably in Nigeria from standard forms like pool staking and Baba Ijebu to a thriving sports betting wagering industry. Historically connected 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 web access came virtual wagering, which parallels international patterns. The sports betting market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and sports betting is projected to almost double to $182.02 billion by 2030.
In spite of financial obstacles such as inflation, Nigeria's sports betting wagering sector has actually prospered, attracting millions, especially among the vibrant market dealing with high unemployment rates.
Reports indicate that roughly 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively engage in sports betting wagering, driving a market that produces an approximated yearly profits of N730 billion. The federal government has not gone undetected by this growth, which is considering regulative steps like import tax responsibilities and VAT increases to handle the sector.
The National Lottery Act of 2005 established regulative bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to make sure fair operations regardless of challenges in enforcement. Concerns such as insufficient age verification and advertising rule breaches show industry regulative gaps.
In spite of these difficulties, sports betting wagering business continue to flourish through reliable company models and aggressive marketing methods, leveraging the developer influencer industry.
These efforts have contributed to Nigeria's robust $2 billion gaming sector, sports betting with CEOs playing essential roles in expanding audience reach and driving industry development. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting wagering companies who have actually considerably added to Nigeria's $2 billion gambling empire through their comprehensive audience reach.
Sheriff Olaniyan - CEO Surebet247
Sheriff Olaniyan is the CEO of Surebet247, a sports betting book business he co-founded with Badmos Olasupo in 2011. His varied profession spans different functions in the video gaming and show business, sports betting including operating at among the United Kingdom's biggest video gaming centres, The Palace Bingo Club, where he acted 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 service in the wagering and video gaming sector, running through online, mobile, and retail channels. The business was integrated in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, and sports betting has considering that expanded its existence, sports betting accomplishing over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.
Sam Sadi - CEO Livescorebet
Sam Sadi has over 25 years of experience in sports betting brand names and sports betting media. In 2019, he ended up being the CEO of LiveScore Group, a fully integrated community that combines pertinent sports betting content, engaging functions, and a first-rate sportsbook.
Because taking the helm just before the pandemic, Sam has driven considerable growth for LiveScore Group. The business's employee headcount has increased by 29%, and yearly profits has surged from approximately ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.
Sam's leadership and strategic vision have actually propelled LiveScore Group's success and assisted form the market'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 appointed CEO of Betway in November 2017, having actually formerly served as the business's Marketing and Operations Director given that 2015. He signed up with Betway in 2013 and has actually been in the online video gaming industry because 2000, holding various effective roles, consisting of General Manager of an information analytics group and Director of a digital marketing firm.
Under Werkman's leadership, Betway has actually continued to grow its market existence and boost its offerings. The business's app has gathered 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 changing start-ups into institutionalized businesses. Her expertise spans the video gaming, sports betting realty, and credit financing industries, where he has actually developed himself as a strategic and operational leader.
Damilare has actually been instrumental in NairaBET's success for over 14 years. Since June 2019, sports betting she has actually worked as Managing Director and has actually overseen the business's growth and operations in Lagos, Nigeria.
Before this, she was the Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to June 2019, essential in the business's functional strategies and market growth.
She established DearDammy Women's Initiative (DDWIN), a non-profit company empowering women-owned companies. DDWIN provides frHer instructional background consists of a Bachelor's degree in Geology/Earth Science from the University of Ibadan, completed in 2005.
Akin Alabi, the creator sports betting of NairaBET.com, sports betting Nigeria's pioneering sports betting bookmaking business, developed the 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 criteria in the industry.
Femi Babalola- General Manager of 1Xbet Nigeria Limited
Femi Babalola is the Managing Director of 1XBET Nigeria Limited, sports betting a franchise of the global sports betting company based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, sports betting has established itself as one of the biggest bookmakers in Europe and the world. The company operates in more than 50 nations, including Nigeria, where it is completely accredited.
Under Babalola's leadership, 1XBET Nigeria has broadened its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting market, sports betting using a vast array 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 ventures, sports betting Ukanwoke has teamed up with African socio-economic organizations 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, established and introduced in Nigeria on February 22, 2018, by Byron Petzer and Adekunle Adeniji, operates under the trademark name of Lake Ventures Ltd. This pan-African sports betting and home 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 participated in a partnership with the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, creating over 100,000 tasks, the variety of which is increasing each year. In the 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, bulk investor, sports betting and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online gaming company she established in 2000. Bet365.com was launched in 2001 as an online wagering site and has actually given that grown into one of the world's largest online gaming companies.
By 2016, sports betting Bet365 created $2 billion in revenues and helped with $45 billion in yearly bets. The business also holds a majority stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has 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 business in Nigeria, developed along with business owner 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 asset management company that creates financial investment returns and provides unique investment insights and services to both individual and institutional clients.
Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, sports betting Bet9ja has actually quickly 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 wagering industry.
Fikayo Ogunfuye - Country Director 22bet
Fikayo Ogunfuye is an experienced expert in the sports betting market. He has been acting as the Country Director for 22BET in Nigeria since June 2021. In this role, sports betting he has added to the business's development through partnerships, company method, and brand-new company advancement.
Fikayo's experience includes roles such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, where he handled item advancement and sports betting customer experience, and Country Manager at 22BET, concentrating on marketing technique and spending plan management. Before 22BET, he led marketing efforts at LuckyBet.NG and held various digital marketing functions at Laclic Services and Betty Bingo.
His profession began at Jumia Group, sports betting where he operated in SEO, CRM, and content management. Fikayo also 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, and Operations from ESTG University in Cotonou, Benin Republic.
22Bet is an online gaming platform that offers sports betting, gambling establishment video games, and live dealership games. It was released in 2017 and is owned and run by Marikit Holdings Ltd, a company signed up in Cyprus and sports betting 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 a worldwide sports betting and real-money gaming operator known for providing an omni-channel home entertainment experience in managed emerging markets. Under Ramnani's management, SportyBet has become a considerable gamer in the industry, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.
In addition to his function at SportyBet, sports betting Sudeep is an active investor in fintech and mobile payments and a strong supporter for the growing African web community. His financial investments show his dedication to cultivating innovation and development within the region.
On April 30, 2024, Sudeep Ramnani invested in Chowdeck, participating in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.
The company is set to interfere with the sports wagering industry.
Sunbet Sporting International Limited has stated it is focused on changing how millions of Africans engage with sports betting. In an industry 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 utilize innovative technology and a commitment to accountable gaming to revolutionise the sector.
Backed by the monetary power of four popular African billionaires, sports betting Sunbet, which will release in the very first quarter of 2025, intends to be the continent's largest 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 use, and the continent's deep passion for sports betting, particularly football, has set the stage for Sunbet's enthusiastic entry. He added that the company's robust sponsorship and professional team will allow it to scale and dominate the market rapidly.
Islamic police raid betting stores in northern Nigeria
Islamic authorities in Nigeria's northern city of Kano have actually begun shutting down sports betting wagering shops, which they say are operating illegally.
"As you know, sports betting is forbidden in Islam," Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police force, referred to as the Hisbah, told the BBC.
Complaints from neighborhood leaders and parents prompted the crackdown, worried about the growing variety of sports betting addicts, he said.
On the first day of raids, sports betting 30 stores were closed in one suburban area alone, and their owners were sent home with a warning, the Sharia officer said.
But Mr Aminudeen alerted that now that the public was aware that the Hisbah was clamping down on gambling, those flouting the guidelines would be detained.
Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a bulk Muslim population and operates the Islamic legal system - Sharia - together with secular law.
Bookmakers and bars tend to be permitted to run in Kano's Christian areas, though they too can face action if the Hisbah believes Muslims are frequenting them.
However, the current crackdown is concentrated on Muslim areas of Kano, a vast city and the economic center of northern Nigeria.
sports betting wagering stores can be discovered all over the city. Most have television screens, sports betting and customers watch the outcome of worldwide football matches or horse races on which they have staked cash.
Mr Aminudeen stated such bookmakers had had the ability to operate under the radar as they had actually opened under false pretenses.
"They do not have licences to operate as they were allowed to run video games centres, which they later on transformed to sports betting shops," he stated.
The sports betting industry has expanded drastically across West Africa over the last few years. The area is roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and a mainly Christian south.
Lots of people go to bookies to take pleasure in the friendship of other gamblers, though mobile apps are also popular for sports betting on the outcome of events and teams.
Nigeria's crippling economic crisis has also meant individuals want to risk a small amount in the hope of winning big.
But this had caused prevalent dependency, and moms and sports betting dads were even complaining that kids were leaving of school to gamble, Mr Aminudeen stated.
"These economic issues we are dealing with in Nigeria is God informing us to change our ways by stopping sins," he said.
The raids on Tuesday concentrated on Munjibir, considered 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 shut down or we'll apprehend them and take them to [a Sharia] court," Mr Aminudeen said.
It is uncertain what penalty they would deal with - typically, such infringements bring a fine.
Sharia was introduced in Kano in 2000 - as it remained in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states - and prostitution, sports betting gambling and the intake of alcohol were prohibited.
