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Sports Betting Thriving Despite Lockdown

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Wanna Make a Bet?

The global pandemic put North American professional sports on the shelf for nearly five months but bettors soon found leagues that they never knew existed and, well, if you’re dying of thirst in the desert and someone offers you water, you don’t ask if it’s Fiji. Soon there were millions of experts on Belarusian soccer and Taiwanese paddle ball willing to put up or shut up. Even eSports became a mainstream betting vehicle with everything from League of Legends to Madden NFL simulations.

Sports betting may not be the oldest profession but it is quickly becoming one of the most compelling. After decades in the shadows, it has recently been legitimized due to it finally being legalized in many parts of the United States. But gambling, whether it be legal or illegal, will always be pervasive because it’s fun, and potentially profitable if you know what you’re doing.

Adam Burns, an industry sportsbook director, stated, “Business is booming. “We probably took in 10 times more money than last year on the 2020 NFL Draft. It goes to show people are looking for something to bet on. The draft is always big, but I couldn’t believe how much money [was bet] when I woke up the next morning.”

In April of this year, betting was up 50 percent at New Jersey sportsbooks over last year on sports other than basketball, football, and baseball, to the tune of $21.7 million.

Prior to the reopening of sports in North America, Dustin Gouker, lead analyst for PlayUSA.com network, stated, “The rise in bets on nontraditional sports has been interesting, and with auto racing and golf closer to starting, that trend could increase.”

Books are Booming

Now that the NBA, MLB, and NHL are in full swing, business is booming even more as evidenced by reports from the best online sportsbooks in the industry. But with the king of kings, the NFL, drawing closer, the numbers are expected to soar as long as the leagues can remain open for business.

In August of 2019, a total of $744,065,765 was legally wagered in the United States and $61,762,233 in revenue was hauled in as a result. But industry experts are nearly unanimous in declaring that this August will dwarf last year’s take, not to mention what the offshore books will do as well.

But few believe the take this month will beat the record-breaking month of November 2019, when U.S. sportsbooks handled over $1.8 billion, due to the fact there is no preseason football. “It’s a reach,” opined ESPN gambling writer David Purdum when asked by US Bets whether the month that starts Saturday can break the November ’19 record, “especially without preseason football, which accounts for more than most would believe. Last August, around 25% of the total handle bet in Nevada sportsbooks was attributed to football wagers. The NBA will probably make up for the lack of football, but even then, eclipsing a regular-season football month seems unlikely.”

As Purdum noted, the NBA and NHL are both playing in August which is a first for both leagues and will only add to what should be a robust betting handle this month. SportsHandle Editor-in-Chief, Brett Smiley, echoed Purdum’s sentiments regarding his skepticism of a record handle in August of 2020, “There are so many moving parts here, including players going in and out of quarantine. Over/under on games played for any of these leagues, I mean, who knows? We’re in completely uncharted territory here and there’s too many unknowns in the equation. I think people may watch in record numbers, but hopefully people who have taken a serious economic hit — and that’s an awful lot of Americans — are not using limited resources to gamble on sports. Betting 10 bucks is fine, but that doesn’t impact handle much.”

Purdum referenced the uncertain economic times and the looming election as another hurdle to climb for a record-breaking month, “The U.S. betting market is expanding and growing. We have more visibility than ever at how much is being wagered, which may lead to some record-setting numbers in some states. Records seem to be set routinely these days. But, to me, the pandemic, the pending election, and uncertainty surrounding the economy and sports in general will, at some point, have a negative impact on the betting market.”

Whatever happens this month, one thing we do know is that Americans have a growing passion for the action. Sports betting is now mainstream and records will be routinely shattered for several years to come as more states enter the fray and become beneficiaries of all that additional tax revenue. Legalized sports betting in the USA has been a long time coming but at long last, we’re glad it’s arrived.

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Awards

OLBG recognised in iGB Affiliate Awards for Dorking sponsorship

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OLBG recognised in iGB Affiliate Awards for Dorking sponsorship

OLBG, Principal Partner of Dorking Wanderers FC since the start of the 2025/26 season, has received national recognition after their headline sponsorship campaign was shortlisted for Affiliate Campaign of the Year at the 2026 iGB Affiliate Awards.

The nomination celebrates the leading sports betting and casino community’s collaboration with the Surrey-based club. Their partnership has helped shine a wider spotlight on non-league football through fan-focused content, social engagement and community-led activations.

Alongside the Dorking Wanderers campaign nomination, OLBG has also been shortlisted for both Best Sports Betting Affiliate and Best Casino Affiliate, underlining the brand’s continued growth across the wider iGaming industry.

Since announcing the long-term partnership in 2025, OLBG and Dorking Wanderers have launched a range of initiatives designed to bring supporters closer to the club, including branded fan engagement campaigns and social activations that have generated significant traction online.

Founded in 1999, Dorking Wanderers have become one of the most recognisable names in English non-league football following their rapid rise through the pyramid under owner and manager Marc White. The club has built a substantial national following through viral social media clips and documentary-style football content.

The iGB Affiliate Awards are regarded as one of the leading award ceremonies in the global affiliate and online gambling sector, recognising standout campaigns, partnerships and businesses from across the industry.

This year’s winners will be announced at a ceremony on 2 July.

OLBG CEO Richard Moffatt said: “After winning two awards at last year’s iGB Affiliate Awards, it’s fantastic to see OLBG shortlisted again across three categories this year.

As OLBG continues to grow as a broader sports fan engagement brand, it’s been rewarding to see ideas and learnings from partnerships such as Harry Derham Racing continue to evolve across new collaborations.

It’s especially pleasing to see our work with Dorking Wanderers F.C. recognised in the Campaign of the Year category. We were honoured to win this award last year for our partnership with Harry Derham Racing and, much like that collaboration, our work with DWFC has centred around long term storytelling, helping our partners move closer to their ambitions while giving fans a deeper connection to the sport they love.

A huge thank you goes to everyone at Dorking Wanderers F.C., Bunch of Amateurs and the OLBG team whose energy, creativity and commitment have made the partnership such a success.”

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N1 Partners Shortlisted at iGB Affiliate Awards

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N1 Partners was shortlisted for the iGB Affiliate Awards in two categories: “Best Affiliate Program” and “Marketing Campaign of the Year”. 

iGB Affiliate Awards is a prestigious award in the affiliate industry, annually honouring companies and experts who develop the iGaming market, influence its future, and set industry standards. For N1 Partners, these nominations reflect the high results of the past year.

N1 Partners received nominations in two categories at once:

  • Best Affiliate Program

N1 Partners creates the best conditions for partners by providing a portfolio of 14+ betting and casino brands in 10+ Tier-1 GEOs. Moreover, in 2025, the average monthly volume of FTDs driven by partners increased by 150%. This is one of the most striking indicators of company scaling and effectiveness. N1 products are also constantly evolving and expanding, with 4 new brands added in 2025 with high conversion rates and extensive scaling capabilities.

  • Marketing Campaign of the Year

N1 Puzzle Promo has become one of the largest promos in the affiliate industry in 2025, with 350+ partners, reaching over 6 million views in 50+ media. With a prize pool of €500,000 and the main gift, Robinson R22 helicopter, the campaign brought partners from around the world together and provided an opportunity to receive solid rewards for traffic achievements.

At the same time, N1 Partners continues to create competitive mechanics for partners in 2026 — the N1 Traffic Cups tournament series continues to strengthen partner engagement and develop the affiliate community.

This year, the company also launched sports traffic on three brands — N1 Bet, RollXO, and Lucky Hunter — and released a new vertical, Prediction Markets, a betting format for real events with simple “yes/no” mechanics.

Scale your results with N1 Partners:

  • 14+ casino and betting brands with high Reg2Dep
  • 10+ Tier-1 GEOs
  • CPA up to €700 and RevShare up to 55% + NNCO for top affiliates

Be number one with N1!

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Behind the Game What Makes Products Convert

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In iGaming, registration does not bring value — the result appears only when the user makes the first deposit. Therefore, the Reg2Dep metric plays a key role: it shows how much you will earn from each attracted user.

Behind the Game is a series of expert materials where specialists from the N1 Partners affiliate program across different teams break down how strong iGaming products are built from the inside.

In this article, you’ll learn how the product affects Reg2Dep: what helps bring the player to the deposit, where the conversion is lost, and which solutions provide stable growth.

Top 3 must-have factors of a successful iGaming product: what has the strongest impact on Reg2Dep today?

Alignment between the offer and the player’s expectations (shaped by the traffic), including proper game selection in the lobby, plays a major role.

It’s also important to pay attention to bonus policy. The bonus offer must match the audience’s expectations and be easy to understand.

Speed is equally important — everything should be tested, from page loading to payment confirmation. Alignment between the offer and the player’s expectations (shaped by the traffic), including proper game selection in the lobby, also plays a major role.

Top-3 factors that stand out:

  • First, the product must provide the maximum number of local payment methods with high approval rates. 
  • Second, it needs strong retention and VIP retention — achieved through CRM, bonus mechanics, and gamification. 
  • And of course, the foundation is a stable, fast platform without technical issues.

If you want to work right away with products where this system is already well-established and generates stable profit, join N1 Partners!

What do partners need to know when choosing a product and which red flags can’t be ignored?

You should pay attention to all product weaknesses, especially:

  • Low payment approval rates.
  • Confusing or irrelevant bonus terms.
  • Slow support and weak brand reputation in the community.
  • Unstable website performance on mobile devices.

Most often, the quality of the payment infrastructure and the availability of local solutions are underestimated. 

Partners also don’t always consider retention depth and VIP segment management, as well as basic factors like page load speed and product stability.

Which onboarding elements determine whether a player makes the first deposit and where do users most often drop off? 

Players don’t like to wait — fast and simple registration is crucial (1–2 steps, no unnecessary fields). There must also be a clear and understandable welcome offer, and the path to deposit should be direct and fast, with helpful prompts. If these conditions are met, players won’t drop off at the earliest stages.

Convenience is important for players at every stage of the way to the deposit, so the main points of the user loss look like this:

  • At the payment method selection stage.
  • At the data entry stage — if the form is too long or complicated.
  • During redirection to a PSP — especially if there are payment approval issues.
  • At the stage of exploring bonuses or choosing content and games — if the terms or interface are not clear enough.

Which UX changes in N1 Partners projects have recently driven the biggest conversion growth?

The greatest impact came from three areas: increasing the number of local payment solutions, personalising offers immediately after registration based on traffic type, and updating the cashier. 

The new payment area became clearer and more stable for players, which directly improved conversion rates.

How does player behaviour differ across GEOs, and how do N1 Partners products adapt to Tier-1 GEOs?

User behaviour differs significantly depending on the GEO, from preferences in payment methods to the perception of bonuses.

In Tier-1, players are more demanding: product speed, transparent conditions, user-friendly UX, and a wide range of local payment solutions are critical for them.

In Tier-2, users are more sensitive to bonuses and retention mechanics, take longer to make a deposit decision, and react more strongly to the size and terms of the offer.

N1 Partners products adapt to these features through localisation of payment methods, UX development, and gamification.

Which product hypotheses most often drive Reg2Dep growth?

The most consistently effective hypotheses are those focused on simplifying the deposit flow and expanding the list of payment methods. Additional growth comes from personalised welcome offers tailored to the traffic source and type.

Which features of N1 Partners products help achieve high conversion?

A key role is played by strong payment expertise and extensive localisation of payment solutions. Conversion is further boosted by a fast registration form, a flexible bonus system with clear terms, and advanced gamification. All of this is continuously optimised through A/B testing at every stage of the funnel.

To sum up, a high Reg2Dep is the result of a systematically built product: strong payment infrastructure with local methods, fast and intuitive UX, and relevant bonus logic. This combination determines whether traffic turns into revenue.

If you want to drive traffic to strong products designed for players, start working with N1 Partners. The affiliate programme unites 14+ casino and sportsbook brands with high Reg2Dep, operates in 10+ Tier-1 GEOs, and offers competitive scaling conditions — payouts up to €700 CPA for top partners and RevShare up to 55% + NNCO.

Be number one with N1!

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