Exploring Nigeria’s Betting Transformation: CEOs, Challengers, and Religious Clashes

Meet CEOs/MDs of business behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports wagering market.

sports betting has actually evolved considerably in Nigeria from standard kinds like pool staking and Baba Ijebu to a thriving sports betting wagering market. Historically tied to European football leagues, 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 gain access to came virtual wagering, which trends. The sports betting wagering market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and sports betting is predicted to almost double to $182.02 billion by 2030.

In spite of economic challenges such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting wagering sector has flourished, drawing in millions, especially among the youthful market facing high joblessness rates.

Reports show that around 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively engage in sports betting wagering, driving an industry that creates an estimated yearly income of N730 billion. The federal government has actually not gone unnoticed by this development, which is thinking about regulatory procedures like import tax duties and VAT increases to handle the sector.

The National Lottery Act of 2005 established regulatory bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to ensure reasonable operations regardless of difficulties in enforcement. Issues such as insufficient age verification and advertising guideline breaches show industry regulatory gaps.

Despite these difficulties, sports betting companies continue to thrive through efficient service models and aggressive marketing strategies, leveraging the developer influencer market.

These efforts have actually contributed to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion gambling sector, with CEOs playing essential functions in broadening audience reach and driving market growth. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting business who have significantly added to Nigeria’s $2 billion gaming empire through their substantial 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 varied profession covers numerous functions in the gaming and sports betting show business, including working at among the United Kingdom’s largest 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, founded in August 2011, has turned into a leading e-commerce service 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 because broadened 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 sports betting brands and sports betting media. In 2019, he became the CEO of LiveScore Group, a fully incorporated community that combines appropriate sports betting content, engaging functions, and a first-rate sportsbook.

Considering that taking the helm just before the pandemic, Sam has actually driven substantial growth for LiveScore Group. The business’s staff member headcount has increased by 29%, and yearly revenue has surged from approximately ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.

Sam’s management and tactical vision have propelled LiveScore Group’s success and assisted shape the industry’s direction. LiveScoreBet has actually attained 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 actually formerly acted as the company’s Marketing and Operations Director since 2015. He joined Betway in 2013 and has been in the online gaming market because 2000, holding different successful functions, including General Manager of a data analytics group and Director of a digital marketing company.

Under Werkman’s leadership, Betway has continued to grow its market presence and boost its offerings. The business’s app has actually amassed significant user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Damilare Alabi, Co-Founder, Managing Director NairaBET

Damilare Alabi has actually distinguished herself as a senior executive with a performance history of changing start-ups into institutionalized organizations. Her expertise covers the video gaming, property, sports betting and credit loaning markets, where he has developed himself as a strategic and functional leader.

Damilare has contributed in NairaBET’s success for over 14 years. Since June 2019, she has acted 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, sports betting pivotal in the business’s functional techniques and market expansion.

She established DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), a non-profit organization empowering women-owned organizations. DDWIN supplies frHer academic background includes a Bachelor’s degree in Geology/Earth Science from the University of Ibadan, completed in 2005.

Akin Alabi, the creator of NairaBET.com, Nigeria’s pioneering sports betting bookmaking company, sports betting established business in 2009. While NairaBET was not the first sports betting platform in Nigeria, it was the first to launch a fully practical website, setting a benchmark 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 business based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, has actually developed itself as one of the biggest bookies in Europe and the world. The business operates in more than 50 countries, consisting of Nigeria, where it is completely certified.

Under Babalola’s management, sports betting 1XBET Nigeria has broadened its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting market, using a wide variety of sports betting 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, Managing Director of KingMakers, and Chairman of Vend Capital. In addition to leading these endeavors, Ukanwoke has actually teamed up with African socio-economic organizations and governments to design developmental policies aimed at empowering young people. 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 brand name of Lake Ventures Ltd. This pan-African sports betting wagering and entertainment business has 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, creating over 100,000 jobs, the number of which is increasing annually. In the same year, MultiChoice broadcaster bought 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 creator, sports betting bulk shareholder, and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online gaming company she developed in 2000. Bet365.com was released in 2001 as an online wagering site and has actually given that become among the world’s largest online sports betting business.

By 2016, Bet365 produced $2 billion in incomes and sports betting helped with $45 billion in yearly bets. The business also holds a majority stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has gathered substantial 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 company in Nigeria, developed alongside businessman 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 generates investment returns and uses special investment insights and solutions to both private and sports betting institutional customers.

Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, Bet9ja has quickly grown in popularity, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store. Under Ojuroye’s leadership, Bet9ja has ended up being a significant player in the Nigerian sports betting industry.

Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet

Fikayo Ogunfuye is a seasoned specialist in the sports betting industry. He has actually been acting as the Country Director for 22BET in Nigeria since June 2021. In this function, he has added to the business’s growth through collaborations, organization technique, and brand-new company development.

Fikayo’s experience includes functions such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, sports betting where he handled item advancement and customer experience, and Country Manager at 22BET, sports betting concentrating on marketing method and spending plan management. Before 22BET, he led marketing efforts at LuckyBet.NG and held different digital marketing roles at Laclic Services and Betty Bingo.

His profession began at Jumia Group, where he worked in SEO, sports betting CRM, and content management. Fikayo also worked 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, sports betting Management, sports betting and Operations from ESTG University in Cotonou, Benin Republic.

22Bet is an online gambling platform that provides sports betting, sports betting gambling establishment video games, and live dealership video games. It was launched 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 video gaming operator sports betting known for providing an omni-channel home entertainment experience in regulated emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s management, SportyBet has ended up being a considerable gamer in the market, sports betting with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.

In addition to his role at SportyBet, Sudeep is an active investor sports betting in fintech and mobile payments and a strong supporter for the growing African web environment. His financial investments show his commitment to cultivating development and advancement within the area.

On April 30, 2024, sports betting Sudeep Ramnani bought Chowdeck, taking part in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.

The firm is set to disrupt the sports wagering market.

Sunbet Sporting International Limited has said it is focused on revolutionising how millions of Africans engage with sports betting. In an industry 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 firm intends to utilize innovative technology and a commitment to accountable gaming to change the sector.

Backed by the financial power of 4 popular African billionaires, Sunbet, which will introduce in the first quarter of 2025, intends to be the continent’s largest and most ingenious sports betting platform.

At a press rundown, the company’s representative, Akin Babatunde, said that the rise in Internet penetration, mobile usage, and the continent’s deep passion for sports betting, specifically football, has actually set the stage for Sunbet’s enthusiastic entry. He added that the firm’s robust sponsorship and professional group will enable it to scale and dominate the marketplace rapidly.

Islamic police raid betting shops in northern Nigeria

Islamic authorities 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 prohibited in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police, known as the Hisbah, sports betting told the BBC.

Problems from community leaders and moms and dads triggered the crackdown, fretted about the growing number of gambling addicts, sports betting he said.

On the first day of raids, 30 shops were closed in one residential area alone, and their owners were sent out home with a warning, the Sharia officer said.

However Mr Aminudeen warned that now that the general public understood that the Hisbah was clamping down on gaming, those flouting the guidelines would be arrested.

Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a bulk Muslim population and operates the Islamic legal system – Sharia – along with secular law.

Bookies and sports betting bars tend to be allowed to run in Kano’s Christian areas, though they too can deal with action if the Hisbah thinks Muslims are frequenting them.

However, the current crackdown is concentrated on Muslim locations of Kano, a sprawling city and sports betting the financial center of northern Nigeria.

sports betting wagering stores can be discovered all over the city. The majority of have television screens, sports betting and consumers watch the result of international football matches or horse races on which they have actually staked cash.

Mr Aminudeen stated such bookmakers had had the ability to run under the radar as they had opened under false pretenses.

“They do not have licences to operate as they were permitted to run computer game centres, which they later converted to sports betting stores,” he stated.

The sports betting wagering industry has actually broadened significantly across West Africa in the last few years. The region is roughly divided in between a generally Muslim north and a predominantly Christian south.

Many people go to bookmakers to enjoy the sociability of other gamblers, though mobile apps are likewise popular for wagering on the result of occasions and teams.

Nigeria’s crippling recession has also meant individuals are willing to risk a small amount in the hope of winning huge.

However this had caused extensive addiction, and parents were even complaining that kids were leaving of school to gamble, Mr Aminudeen said.

“These economic issues we are dealing with in Nigeria is God telling us to change our methods 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 encouraging those running those sports betting stores to either shut down or we’ll apprehend them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen stated.

It is uncertain what penalty they would face – frequently, sports betting such violations bring a fine.

Sharia was presented in Kano in 2000 – as it was in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, gambling and the usage of alcohol were banned.