Best Casino Affiliates – Mastodons of IGaming
Introduction: Monopolization of the iGaming Affiliate Market
The global online gambling market and regulatory landscape of the igaming market research industry, which encompasses various online gaming platforms, including online casinos and esports betting sites, is gradually coming under the control of a few giant holdings, is gradually coming under the control of a few giant holdings, which a decade ago was saturated with independent affiliate websites, is gradually coming under the control of a few giant holdings. What was once a competitive field where hundreds of small SEO players vied for a spot in search results is now rapidly being monopolized by transnational companies with multi-million dollar budgets, their own analytics teams, and direct access to top operators.
Key market players today in the online gambling market, the online gambling industry, and the online gaming industry, along with various online platforms, include effective igaming market research and marketing strategies for growth:
- Better Collective – One of the largest affiliate holdings in the world. It has a portfolio of dozens of websites, including:
- VegasInsider
- Action Network
- Bettingexpert
- SpilXperten
- Catena Media – Formerly one of the industry’s flagships, currently undergoing restructuring. Their assets included:
- AskGamblers (sold to Gentoo in 2023)
- JohnSlots
- Casino.org (partially affiliated through partnership)
- Gentoo Media – A new player that acquired AskGamblers from Catena and also owns:
- Finixio – Less public, but a very aggressive company with an emphasis on Tier-1 and Tier-2 GEOs. Their most famous brands include:
- Techopedia
- Business2Community
- InsideBitcoins
- Gambling.com Group – A publicly traded company listed on Nasdaq, with a focus on the Tier-2 GEOs. Their flagship sites are:
- Game Lounge (owned by Cherry AB) – A Swedish player with a long history and a large network of localized sites:
- CasinoTopsOnline
- SveaCasino
- SlotTracker
These companies control the top 10 search results in most Tier-1 GEOs for key queries such as “best online sports betting casinos,” “esports betting casino bonus,” and “slots UK.” And with each passing year, they only strengthen their positions, creating a competitive edge over smaller affiliates. Through mergers, acquisitions, and aggressive SEO/PR coverage, while promoting responsible gambling.
🔹 Better Collective
📌 General Information
- Founded: 2004 in Copenhagen, Denmark
- Founders: Jesper Søgaard and Christian Kirk Rasmussen
- Headquarters: Copenhagen, Denmark
- Number of Offices: Over 20 worldwide
- Listing: Nasdaq Copenhagen and Nasdaq Stockholm
💼 Business Model
Better Collective positions itself as a digital sports media group focused on creating educational platforms in the online gambling market and iGaming sector, including online wagering, emphasizing responsible gaming and responsible gambling. The company aims to make sports betting and gaming experiences more transparent and fair for a global audience of online bettors.
📈 Financial Performance (2024)
- Annual Revenue: €371.5 million (+14% YoY)
- EBITDA: €113 million
- Recurring Revenue: €231 million (+21% YoY) Insider Sport
🧩 Key Acquisitions
Better Collective actively expands its portfolio through strategic acquisitions, focusing on robust growth and market expansion:
- Bettingexpert (2006): One of the largest sports betting communities.
- The Action Network (2021): American sports betting platform, acquired for $240 million.
- Playmaker Capital (2023): Canadian media group, acquired for €176 million.
- AceOdds (2024): British sports betting platform, acquired for €43 million.
🌍 Geographical Presence
The company holds strong positions in Europe, North America, and Brazil. In 2024, Brazil and the USA accounted for over half of the group’s total revenue.
🎯 Growth Strategies
Better Collective focuses on, as the market continues to evolve:
- Market Consolidation: Acquiring competitors to strengthen its position.
- Acquisition Integration: Optimizing and consolidating new assets.
- Recurring Revenue Development: Increasing the share of stable income.
⚠️ Recent Challenges
In 2024, the company faced financial difficulties, leading to staff reductions. This was attributed to regulatory challenges and less favorable results in key igaming market research such as the online betting and sports betting market in the USA and Brazil.
🔹 Catena Media
📌 General Information
- Founded: 2012 in Malta
- Founders: Erik Bergman and Emil Thidell
- Headquarters: Gzira, Malta
- Number of Employees: 158 (as of 2024)
- Listing: Publicly traded company, listed on Nasdaq Stockholm
- Key People:
- CEO: Manuel Stan (from July 2024)
- Chairman of the Board: Erik Flinck
- CFO: Michael Gerrow Wikipedia + iGaming Express
💼 Business Model
Catena Media specializes in performance marketing and lead generation in the online casino games, including online slots, online poker, and online gaming sectors, reaching out to online gamblers. The company creates content-driven websites that help users navigate the world of online gambling and online gambling operators, attracting them through offers and participation opportunities. This generates high-quality leads, which the company passes on to its operator partners, receiving compensation for each new user. PitchBook + igamingsuppliers.com
📈 Financial Performance (2024)
- Annual Revenue: €49.6 million (35% decrease compared to 2023)
- EBITDA: €5.4 million (79% decrease compared to 2023)
- Net Profit: –€48 million
- Number of New Depositing Customers: 128,700 (30% decrease compared to 2023) usigaminghub.com Wikipedia Sports Betting Operator
🧩 Key Acquisitions
Catena Media actively expanded its portfolio through strategic acquisitions, including new digital platforms that respond to market dynamics:
- AskGamblers.com: (acquired in 2016 for €15 million; sold in 2023 for €45 million)
- JohnSlots.com and NewCasinos.com: (acquired along with AskGamblers; sold in 2023)
- i15 Media: (2021; acquired sports betting and casino assets for $45 million)
- Baybets Ltd: (2017; German affiliate business)
- Squawka: (2017; football news website, acquired for $1.3 million) iGB iGB gamingamerica.com
🌍 Geographical Presence
The primary market for Catena Media is North America, which accounted for 88% of the company’s revenue in 2024. The company also had a presence in land based casinos in Europe, particularly Italy, but exited the Italian market in 2023, selling assets worth €19.8 million. catenamedia.com
🎯 Growth Strategies
In 2024, Catena Media began a strategic transformation, focusing on the evolving igaming space and achieving iGaming success:
- Cost Optimization: 25% staff reduction and 39% decrease in operating costs.
- Product Focus: Shifting to a product-oriented organizational structure.
- Strengthening North American Position: Deepening market presence in the USA. GamblingNews
⚠️ Challenges – From Leader to Restructured Player
Recent years have been a period of deep restructuring for Catena Media. The company’s main strategy since 2022 has been to abandon gray traffic and sell old review sites operating in offshore GEOs (Curacao/Anjouan). Catena exited most illegal markets and redirected efforts to the legal US market to enhance the gaming culture while complying with regulatory bodies, where it saw significant growth prospects in the context of sports betting regulation.
In 2023, the company navigated the complex regulatory landscape:
- Sold AskGamblers, JohnSlots, NewCasinos – sites that once formed the core of its European presence.
- Exited Italy and several other EU GEOs – partly due to regulatory pressure, partly due to declining profitability.
- Focused on the USA and Canada, investing millions in creating new affiliate sites for licensed states (e.g., New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Ontario, etc.).
However, the bet did not fully pay off. 2024 showed that Catena’s new US-focused sites often did not recoup their investment. In the face of constant Google Core Updates, especially after E-E-A-T-focused changes, some of the newly created projects failed to rank in the top 10, losing organic traffic to Reddit, operators’ own media, and trusted UGC platforms. This, combined with the high cost of content, legal support, and CRM infrastructure for the US, along with changing consumer behavior led Catena to end the year with losses of €48 million, a 30% decrease in new customers, and a forced 25% staff reduction. Today, Catena is a company that is putting all its eggs in one basket: North America, licensed traffic, white-hat SEO. But, as the 2024 figures show, this strategy does not guarantee ROI even for such giants.
🔹 Gentoo Media – Evolution from GiG Media to Independent Player
📌 General Information
- Founded: 2007 as Rebel Penguin in Copenhagen, Denmark.
- Rebranding: In 2024, GiG Media was rebranded as Gentoo Media after separating from Gaming Innovation Group.
- Headquarters: St. Julian’s, Malta.
- Other Offices: Belgrade, Copenhagen, Valencia, Norwich.
- Number of Employees: 387 as of late 2024, a 45% decrease compared to the previous year.
- Listing: Nasdaq Stockholm (G2M); in the process of delisting from Euronext Oslo Børs. Affiverse + Wikipedia + Gentoo Media + StockAnalysis
🧩 Key Assets and Acquisitions
Gentoo Media owns over 150 websites, including:
💰 Monetization Model
In 2024, Gentoo Media changed its monetization model: gcauthority.com
- Revenue Share: 59% of revenue, down from 65%.
- CPA (Cost Per Acquisition): 13% of revenue, up from 8%.
- Fixed Fees and Other Services: 28% of revenue. NextCasino Aff Programs
This shift allowed the company to ensure more stable revenue and reduce dependence on changes in mobile sports betting player behavior.
⚙️ Optimization and Technological Investments
Gentoo Media invested in strategies to enhance user engagement and increase market share:
- Proprietary Media and Martech Platform: Full revenue impact expected in 2025.
- Integration of Acquired Assets: For example, Casinomeister.com and Casinotopsonline.com, to improve performance and revenue growth.
- Process Automation: Development of a backend platform to automate and reduce core workflows. Gentoo Media Gentoo Media + Euronext + Wikipedia
📈 Financial Performance (2024)
- Annual Revenue: €124.5 million (38% increase compared to 2023).
- EBITDA: €57.2 million (EBITDA margin – 46%).
- Number of New Depositing Customers: 121,900 in Q2 2024, an 11% increase compared to the previous year. iGaming Express
🌍 Geographical Presence
Gentoo Media’s main markets:
- Europe: 63% of revenue in Q1 2025.
- Americas: 18% of revenue in Q1 2025, a 26% year-over-year decrease due to regulatory changes in Brazil. Euronext
⚠️ Challenges and Strategic Initiatives
In response to challenges, Gentoo Media implemented five strategic initiatives after Q1 2025: Euronext
- Cost Optimization: Expected annual cost reduction of €8–10 million.
- Reorganization for Future Growth: Strengthening the organizational structure after the company split.
- Development of a Performance Culture: Implementing new approaches to management and staff motivation.
- Improvement of Commercial Efficiency: Optimizing commercial processes and strategies.
- Strengthening the Technology Platform: Investments in technology to support growth and efficiency. Euronext
Gentoo Media continues to adapt to changes in the global igaming market and emerging markets mobile gaming market, leveraging technological advancements including virtual reality to improve enhanced user experience to meet rising demand driven by increasing smartphone penetration. Its transformation from GiG Media to an independent player demonstrates the company’s ability to effectively respond to challenges and leverage opportunities for development.
🔹 Finixio – An Aggressive Player in iGaming and Crypto Affiliation
📌 General Information
- Founded: 2018 in London, UK.
- Founders: Adam Grunwerg (CEO) and Sam Miranda.
- Headquarters: Tower 42, 25 Old Broad Street, London, EC2N 1HN, UK.
- Number of Employees: Over 150 people, including over 100 in-house content writers and designers.
- Working Model: Fully remote team, operating in over 10 languages. Tracxn LeadIQ + Dun & Bradstreet + finixio.com + SBC Americas
🧩 Key Assets and Projects
Finixio owns over 100 websites focused on highly profitable verticals:
The company is actively expanding its presence in regulated markets, particularly in legal sports betting via mobile devices, such as the USA, Canada, Japan, Germany, and the Balkans.
💰 Monetization Model
Finixio uses a hybrid monetization model, including aspects of mobile gaming:
- CPA (Cost Per Acquisition): Payment for each acquired user.
- Revenue Share: Percentage of revenue generated from acquired users.
- Fixed Fees: Payment for brand placement and fixed positions on websites.
This approach allows the company to ensure stable revenue and reduce dependence on changes in player behavior.
⚙️ Optimization and Technological Investments
Finixio invests in: SigmaPlay + PR Newswire
- Proprietary Martech Platform: For process automation and improved performance.
- Integration of Acquired Assets: For example, Cryptosvet.cz, to improve performance and revenue growth.
- Process Automation: Development of a backend platform to automate and reduce core workflows. Finance Magnates + PR Newswire
📈 Financial Performance
- Annual Revenue: $70.5 million as of September 2022.
- Monthly Audience: Over 10 million unique visitors per month. Tracxn
🌍 Geographical Presence
Finixio actively operates in the following markets:
- Europe: Germany, UK, Balkans.
- Asia: Japan.
- North America: USA, Canada.
- Other Regions: Middle East, Australia, Scandinavia.
⚠️ Challenges and Strategic Initiatives
Finixio faces challenges related to:
- Changes in search engine algorithms: Affecting traffic to some websites.
- Market competition: From other affiliate companies and media platforms.
In response to these challenges, the company implements strategic initiatives aimed at cost optimization, reorganization for future growth, development of a performance culture, improvement of commercial efficiency, and strengthening of the technology platform.
Finixio demonstrates stable growth and adaptability in the dynamic world of real money gaming and mobile gaming, focusing on superior gaming experiences, iGaming, and mobile technology, leveraging emerging technologies aided by increasing internet penetration and smartphone penetration to improve its compound annual growth rate. Its strategic acquisitions and focus on regulated markets allow the company to strengthen its position and ensure stable revenue.
🔹 Gambling.com Group – Public Affiliate Marketing Giant with a US Focus
📌 General Information
- Founded: 2006 by Charles Gillespie and Kevin McCrystle.
- Headquarters: Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
- Number of Employees: 555 as of late 2024.
- Listing: Nasdaq (ticker: GAMB) since 2021.
🧩 Key Assets and Acquisitions
Gambling.com Group owns over 50 websites, including:
- Gambling.com: The company’s flagship brand.
- Bookies.com: Focus on sports betting in the USA.
- RotoWire.com: Acquired in 2022 to expand its presence in fantasy sports.
- BonusFinder.com: Acquired in 2023 to strengthen its position in the North American market.
- Freebets.com: Acquired in 2024 for $37.5 million to $42.5 million.
- OddsJam: Acquired in 2025 for up to $160 million. WSJ
💰 Financial Performance (2024)
- Annual Revenue: $127.1 million, a 17% increase compared to 2023.
- Net Profit: $30.5 million, a 68% increase compared to 2023.
- Adjusted EBITDA: $48.5 million, margin – 38%. igaming.news + Investor’s Business Daily + SBC Americas yogonet.com
⚙️ Monetization Strategy
The company uses a hybrid monetization model:
- Performance Marketing: Over 70% of revenue comes from casino partners.
- Fixed Fees and Subscriptions: Thanks to the acquisition of OddsJam, the company receives additional recurring revenue from subscribers and corporate clients. Investor’s Business Daily + iGaming.org + igbaffiliate.com ,
🌍 Geographical Presence
The company’s main focus is the US online gambling market and sports wagering, particularly states regulated by the uk gambling commission with online gambling, including online slots. Also present in the Canadian, UK, and EU markets.
🔄 Acquisition Integration and Optimization
Gambling.com Group actively integrates new assets such as live dealer games and esports betting to increase efficiency in online sports betting:
- Freebets.com: Expected to generate approximately $10 million in revenue and $5 million in Adjusted EBITDA in 2024.
- OddsJam: Expected to generate $26 million in revenue and $12 million in Adjusted EBITDA in 2024, with a projected 20% growth in 2025. gambling.com Gambling Insider
Gambling.com Group demonstrates stable growth and adaptability in the dynamic world of the gambling industry, particularly in the sports betting segment, particularly in the sports betting segment. Its strategic acquisitions and focus on regulated markets allow the company to strengthen its position and ensure stable revenue.
🔹 Game Lounge – SEO-Oriented Affiliate with Global Reach
📌 General Information
- Founded: 2011 in Malta.
- Founder: Jonas Cederholm.
- Headquarters: St. Julian’s, Malta.
- Number of Employees: Over 180 people.
- Subsidiary: Wholly owned by Cherry AB (Sweden) since 2018. Game Lounge PitchBook
🧩 Key Assets and Acquisitions
Game Lounge owns over 130 SEO-oriented websites in more than 30 countries, including: Game Lounge + Morningstar
💰 Financial Performance
- Annual Revenue: $15 million as of November 2024. LeadIQ
⚙️ Monetization Strategy
Game Lounge uses a hybrid monetization model:
- CPA (Cost Per Acquisition): Payment for each acquired user.
- Revenue Share: Percentage of revenue generated from acquired users.
- Fixed Fees: Payment for brand placement and fixed positions on websites.
🌍 Geographical Presence
Game Lounge actively operates in the following markets: Game Lounge
- Europe: Sweden, Netherlands, Germany.
- North America: USA, Canada.
- Asia: Japan. LeadIQ
🧠 Innovations and Technologies
Game Lounge invests in: Casino.online + igbaffiliate.com
- GLX: An innovation hub for developing new products and platforms.
- Kiickr: A platform for optimizing affiliate marketing.
Game Lounge demonstrates stable growth and adaptability in the dynamic world of iGaming by providing immersive gaming experiences. Its strategic acquisitions and focus on regulated markets allow the company to strengthen its position and ensure stable revenue.
