Betting on Sports Week 2018, held last month in London and of which the inaugural CasinoBeats Summit formed a key part, was the biggest to date with more than 2,500 registrations.

The attendance was a significant increase on the 1,300 that visited the 2017 edition, with more than 270 of those speaking across the many 2018 conference tracks – Betting on Sports itself, SBC Sponsorship Forum, AffiliateFEST, ESI London and the inaugural two-day CasinoBeats Summit.

This lineup included five-time snooker World Champion Ronnie O’Sullivan, Sky Betting & Gaming CEO Richard Flint, Pinnacle CEO Paris Smith, DraftKings CEO Jason Robins, Betsson CEO Jesper Svensson, Hard Rock SVP for online gaming Kresimir Spajic and Karolina Pelc, LeoVegas casino director.

Jari Vähänen, SVP for International Development at Veikkaus, was a key speaker on the Betting on Racing track. He said: “It was really nice and fun to speak and participate at Betting on Sports Week in London.

“Based on my 27 years’ experience, I can say that it is the best sports betting event I have attended, and one of the best events in the gambling industry ever.”

The exhibition floor, which was full of lively product displays within a 6,300sq.m exhibition space and five conference rooms, housed more than 100 exhibitors, eight networking areas, bars and a series of break-out meeting rooms.

Wednesday’s exclusive VIP dinners and networking party took place on the 28th and 29th floor of the Millbank Tower, while the week drew to a fittingly extravagant close with the Hall of Fame awards evening and closing party at one of London’s most iconic venues, the Natural History Museum.

Rasmus Sojmark, SBC founder and CEO, said: “Betting on Sports has become an essential focal point for anyone involved in the betting business. We’ve worked tirelessly this year to build and improve in all areas, so it was extremely gratifying to see it all come together across two floors at the Olympia, as well as multiple top end venues across London.

“This incredible growth – to 100-plus exhibitors and 270 speakers across three days, has given us the confidence to take the event to New York in April 2019. A final thank you to each and every one of our sponsors – none of this would be possible without them.”

Sue Schneider, who will act as a chief advisor to next year’s Betting on Sports America, was effusive in her praise of the event’s finale. She said: “Team SBC did a fantastic job with the entire event but the wrap up party was wonderful. Onward to the US!”

Five things we learned from hosting the first ever CasinoBeat Summit