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Pioneering VC Fund Targeting Legal U.S. Sports Betting Opportunity
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Gambling industry veterans bring funding, expertise to wave of new sports betting startups through newly formed Sports Gaming Investment Fund (SGIF)
The market for sports betting in the U.S. is expanding at an unprecedented pace following a 2018 Supreme Court decision that allowed all states to legalize sportsbooks. A wave of innovative startups is emerging with products, services, and solutions designed to tap the estimated $17 billion dollar opportunity that legal U.S. sports betting represents.
Discovering, funding, and guiding the development of the best of those startups is the goal of the Sports Gaming Investment Fund (SGIF), a pioneering VC fund focused primarily on the U.S. legal sports betting industry.
Management for this industry-first fund features a host of gambling industry, investment, and venture expertise:
- Chris Grove, Managing Partner: Grove is a partner at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, heading the firm’s sports betting practice.
- David Sargeant, Managing Partner: Sargeant is the founder and CEO of iGaming Ideas, a leading international incubator for gambling startups, and sports betting consultant.
- Blaine Graboyes, Advisory Partner: Graboyes is the co-founder and CEO of the groundbreaking gambling machine developer GameCo.
- Seth Schorr, Advisory Partner: Schorr is the Chairman of Fifth Street Gaming and co-founder of the streaming media startup Konek TV.
- SeventySix Capital, Advisory Partner: SeventySix brings decades of fund management to the SGIF team and will assist with deal structure, vetting, and back office.
“There’s no doubt that the keys to fully unlocking the potential of the U.S. sports betting market are in the hands of startups,” said Grove, a nationally recognized expert on the legal sportsbook industry. “We’re just now starting to see the ideas that will ultimately define sports betting in the United States.”
“The pace of development in the U.S. market only increases the opportunity for startups,” added Sargeant, who has evaluated hundreds of early-stage companies during his career. “Large casinos and software providers won’t have the bandwidth or resources to truly innovate. They’re too busy simply getting up and running.”
Investors in SGIF have been attracted to the combination of timing, team, and opportunity.
“My decision to invest in SGIF was driven by my belief in the team’s superior deal flow, their proven ability to evaluate that flow, and the resources they can deploy to support portfolio companies,” said Jeremy Levine, an investor in SGIF. Levine is the founder of multiple companies, including DRAFT, which was acquired by PaddyPower Betfair in 2017.
For startups, SGIF will play an invaluable role in guiding them through the regulated gambling landscape.
“Gambling is one of the toughest industries for startups from a compliance perspective,” noted Graboyes, who has steered GameCo from concept to a heavily licensed gambling supplier. “Having the right plan as early as possible in the process can easily be the difference between success and failure for a startup targeting the sports betting industry.”
SGIF will add additional value to portfolio companies by helping to ensure optimal product fit and market access.
“Startups don’t always appreciate what problems larger gambling companies are actually attempting to solve and what opportunities do and don’t resonate with those companies,” said Schorr, who has held management roles at several Las Vegas casinos and currently operates the Downtown Grand in Las Vegas. “We will help our startups hone their product, model, and approach to fit with the real demand within the gambling industry, and then match a startup’s product to that demand.”
For more information, visit www.SGIF.vc.
About SGIF
Sports Gaming Investment Fund (SGIF) is a VC fund focused on startups that support the emerging U.S. market for legal sports betting.
Source: SGIF
Source: Latest News on European Gaming Media Network
This is a Syndicated News piece. Photo credits or photo sources can be found on the source article: Pioneering VC Fund Targeting Legal U.S. Sports Betting Opportunity
This summer in Zadar, sporting legends and top broadcasters came together for the first-ever Sofascore Player of the Season Award Show, filmed during the Sunset Sports Festival. Now, the show has reached millions as it premiered on CBS, bringing together football stories and data-supported awards.
The show celebrated Europe’s top performers from the Premier League, LaLiga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1, and many more leagues across the world, all chosen just through Sofascore’s objective performance ratings. No votes, no popularity contests. Mohamed Salah topped the Premier League with a 7.78 rating, Raphinha led LaLiga with 7.80, Mattia Zaccagni claimed Serie A’s best with 7.34, Joshua Kimmich was Bundesliga’s highest rated player with 7.91, and Achraf Hakimi shined in Ligue 1 with 7.76. Beyond this, the awards also celebrated the highest-rated player in the UEFA Champions League, the top leagues in women’s football, and many more standout performers from around the globe.
Hosted by Kate Scott and Peter Schmeichel, and directed by Emmy Award-winner Pete Radovich, the event featured exclusive insights from football greats and top analysts including Jamie Carragher, Micah Richards, and Alessandro Del Piero. Raphinha shared his pride as both LaLiga and Champions League’s top-rated player, while Luka Modrić made history by receiving Sofascore’s first-ever Founders’ Legend Award. In the audience, big names like Dimitar Berbatov, Stipe Miočić, and Šime Vrsaljko added extra prestige to the celebration.
The Player of the Season celebration extended beyond the TV broadcast, with massive billboards in London, Liverpool, Barcelona, Munich, Rome, Frankfurt, Lyon, Metz, and other European cities, showcasing Sofascore’s award winners. From Raphinha and Alexia Putellas in Barcelona to Mohamed Salah in Liverpool and Joshua Kimmich in Munich, fans across Europe could see the season’s best right in their own cities.
The Sofascore Player of the Season Award is built on objective data, not public votes. Every goal, pass, tackle or miss contributes to a rating that reflects what truly happened on the pitch. That’s why, for players and all football fans around the globe, Sofascore’s Player of the Season trophy is the only award that counts.
The post Sofascore Player of the Season Award Show Premieres on CBS appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Evoplay, the award-winning game development studio, has released Don Juan Peppers, a fiery new slot that blends bold bonus features with festive flair.
Set in a sun-soaked Mexican town bursting with colour, rhythm and celebration, the game invites players to join the charismatic Don Juan himself for a lively fiesta across 20 fixed paylines.
The action centres around two types of bonus symbols. Landing three Chili Bonus icons on reels two, three and four triggers seven Free Spins. During Free Spins, each appearance of a Chili Bonus symbol awards an Instant Chili Prize corresponding to the value shown above its reel.
Meanwhile, landing six or more Bonus symbols activates the bonus game. In this mode, all Bonus and Chili icons lock in place and reset the spin counter to three. Chilis in this round boost the value of up to four Bonus symbols before transforming and continuing the chase for bigger wins.
The bonus game also gives players a shot at four fixed jackpots: MINI, MEGA, SUPER, and the GRAND prize of 3,000x the bet. For players who want to skip straight to the fiesta, a Bonus Buy feature offers direct access to either the Bonus Game or Free Spins.
Don Juan Peppers is the latest release in Evoplay’s growing portfolio of standout slots, blending engaging gameplay with vibrant storytelling and proven features.
Ivan Kravchuk, CEO at Evoplay, said: “Don Juan Peppers is a celebration of bold design and dynamic mechanics. By blending familiar bonus features with a distinctive aesthetic and rhythmic theme, we’ve created a slot that feels both familiar and fresh.
“It’s a fantastic showcase of our approach to delivering high-performing content with real personality.”
The post Evoplay starts a big fiesta in spicy new title Don Juan Peppers appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Zitro Digital, the online division of global gaming leader Zitro, announces its participation in SBC Summit Lisboa 2025, taking place from 16–18 September at the Feira Internacional de Lisboa, Portugal.
As a key player in the digital gaming space, Zitro Digital will present its latest online slot and video bingo titles portfolio, reflecting its continued investment in innovation, omnichannel strategy, and game performance at scale. Visitors to booth B530 will have the opportunity to explore the company’s newest content, including the debut of ‘Dreams’, the first title in the Fairyland Quest series — a digital adaptation of one of Zitro’s most successful land-based games.
Also featured will be ‘Elysium’ from the Legendary Sword series, ‘Autumn’, the latest addition to the popular Fu Pots collection, and ‘Monk’, the newest release in the Bashiba Link series. The company will also offer an exclusive first look at ‘Tomahawk’ — an upcoming standout title from the all-new Cash Totems series — which will be on display at SBC Lisboa ahead of its global release.
Alongside its expanding games portfolio, Zitro Digital will spotlight GameGate, the company’s new player engagement tool designed to guide users through its growing universe of content. GameGate enhances retention and gameplay by creating personalized journeys across multiple titles, completely transforming how players experience Zitro Digital’s slot offerings.
“Our goal at Zitro Digital is simple: to create engaging games that not only engage players but also drive measurable results for our partners,” said José Javier Martí, COO at Zitro Digital. “We combine the proven appeal of our land-based hits with new digital innovation to offer products that perform consistently across regulated markets. Events like SBC Summit Lisboa are essential for us to connect directly with operators, understand their evolving needs, and demonstrate how our portfolio can support their growth and stand out in competitive markets”.
The post ZITRO DIGITAL TO SHOWCASE NEW DIGITAL GAMING LINE-UP AT SBC SUMMIT LISBOA 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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