Prediction markets in a pinch, Americans question sports integrity

The weekend continued to be an exciting one for the gambling industry, with the ICE Barcelona 2026 concluding with record attendance, and multiple important developments taking place alongside that.

For starters, sports integrity is increasingly eyed with suspicion in the United States, where an increasing number of people, especially among sports bettors, are now more inclined to believe that professional and college athletes are fixing games.

This critique is not new, and should hardly surprise a soul given the pro league’s patchy track record of late.

A former Department of Justice corruption prosecutor recently called, in light of these developments, for the establishment of a sports integrity body that would investigate instances of alleged betting-related fraud.

In a similar vein, Timothy McCormack became the first person to have been sentenced in relation to a high-profile NBA scandal implicating Jontay Porter and Terry Rozier, who are also awaiting sentencing.

The man is accused of having placed bets on the outcome of games Porter and Rozier were involved in by using information given to him by the pair, including when they would not appear on the court to play. Thus, McCormack defrauded sportsbooks, Judge LaShann DeAcry ruled.

Business and finance

Media, streaming, and entertainment giant DAZN has announced that it has teamed up with Polymarket, and it will be bringing the platform’s dedicated probability and data feeds into its live streams.

DAZN has been looking to expand into the North American betting or betting-adjacent space and has recently obtained a license in Ontario. The Polymarket partnership will strengthen the group’s understanding of prediction markets and hopefully allow DAZN to seek a license from the CFTC, as it has plans to launch a prediction market platform of its own.

SOFTSWISS has announced a brand-new C-level executive position with long-standing company veteran Denis Romanovskiy, who has been appointed as the company’s first Chief AI Officer.

ChatGPT is getting a new revenue stream added in the near future, with advertisements to be featured in the AI agent. It is not yet clear whether these ads will exclude certain kinds of problems, such as sportsbooks and casinos. The users to see the ads are free users as well as lower-tier ones.

Laws and regulation

In the meantime, Finland’s new gambling regulatory body has been confirmed, with plans to roll out the new watchdogs being finalized.

New market rules are going to launch on July 1, 2027, significantly strengthening the legal sector and planning to eradicate issues such as illegal and underage gambling.

Polymarket has been challenged for the first time in Nevada, with the Nevada Gaming Control Board arguing that the platform is, similar to competitors, offering an unlicensed form of gambling in the Silver State.

Elsewhere, Massachusetts has dealt a blow to Kalshi, as the platform is expected to appear at an official hearing on Friday, June 23, and be forced to shut down its sports event contracts in the Bay State with immediate effect.

The hearing, however, is an opportunity for the company to request a stay against the injunction and argue that it needs more time, which the judge may still grant.

Responsible gambling

The Netherlands has vowed to strengthen its overall control of the gambling framework in 2026, focusing on key pillars such as player safety, operator compliance, and, notably, cracking down on illegal gambling.

What is new this year is that the Kansspelautoriteit, the country’s gambling watchdog, will seek to target suppliers that offer their products to both licensed and unlicensed operators, and penalize them.

The UK Gambling Commission’s boss, Tim Miller, has said that Meta Platforms’ social media business, Instagram and Facebook, have been dropping the ball on curbing the display of illegal gambling ads in the United Kingdom.

According to Miller, the regulator has been able to easily track down illegal gambling ads, suggesting that Meta Platforms was capable of doing so as well. In other words, Miller said, the platform had chosen to turn a blind eye.

Among the most worrying examples quoted by the executive are ads that specifically target consumers with messages such as "not on Gamstop," referring to the self-exclusionprogram in the country.

The voice of the industry

The returning iGB Affiliate 2026 has set a brand-new record with the event, kicking off on Tuesday, January 20, at the Fira Gran Via Barcelona, touted as the largest to date by Clarion Gaming, the organizers.

The event is already 20% bigger than its 2025 predecessor, with nearly double the footprint of the 2022 gathering.

This week, Casino Guru News caught up with Magnus Wallentin, Play’n GO’s Game Ambassador, and spoke about the company’s success in 2025, as well as the studio’s plans for 2026.

From celebrating a 20th anniversary to bold launches and evolving creative roles, he shared insights into the company’s momentum and what lies ahead.

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