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Clarion Gaming rebrands as World Gaming New name and visual identity mark a fresh chapter for the team behind ICE One of the biggest stories to come out of ICE 2026 is Clarion Gaming’s announcement of its rebrand to World Gaming. This goes beyond a simple visual refresh though. The rebrand is designed to bring clarity and purpose to the business’s customer offering, with precise branding and identity across its myriad channels and services. World Gaming Managing Director Alex Pratt said the new name reflects “how we now operate and the responsibility we have across the international gaming ecosystem at a time when the market is expanding, fragmenting and facing increased scrutiny.” The concept is for the industry to have one connected ecosystem for everything it needs: business intelligence, news, networking, live events and more. The rebrand is about ensuring the industry can understand everything that World Gaming offers, and how they can find it. The full story is on page eight. 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Bonus abuse accounts for more than 63% of all detected fraud 306 5 158 21 JANUARY 2026ICEGAMING.COM#ICE26 McLaren and ICE go full throttle Nicole Macedo calls for calm Today’s events 10:00 – 12:30 ICE WGF: Entering New Markets workshop 10:00 – 12:30 ICE WGF: Safer Gaming workshop 10:00 – 12:30 ICE WGF: Cybercrime and fraud workshop 10:00 – 16:00 ICE: Barcelona Beer Festival, C105 10:30 – 12:30 Global Gaming Women brunch: Pitch ICE stage 11:00 – 15:00 Academia América Latina: Enterprise stage Digitain scoops award for stand innovation Event news page 5 Day 3 ICE celebrates creative vision behind bold stand designs A new initiative from Clarion at ICE 2026, the StandOut Awards were created to recognise the hard work and achievements of the people and businesses that put such profound effort into making their stands at the show memorable and outstanding. The awards are broken down into five categories: Best ICE Newcomer, Most Innovative Stand, Most Creative Visitor Experience, Best Pre-Show Marketing Campaign and Most Sustainable Stand. Organiser World Gaming has opened up Hall 1 to expand the ICE experience – which also means more new businesses, so the Best ICE Newcomer award was especially hotly contested. That means 16,000 additional square metres for exhibitors, so there was plenty of room for experimentation and creativity this year. Portfolio Director Margaret Dunn told ICE Daily: “Exhibitors put time, effort and creativity into making their stands amazing. This year, for example, we have Fira’s most complex stand ever created, which just exemplifies how much effort people put into this. We wanted to recognise and reward their creativity, their skill and their commitment to the ICE experience, which is why we launched the awards.” The StandOut Awards also support World Gaming’s goal of making ICE a sustainable event for all attendees and exhibitors. Turn to page five to find out who won the inaugural awards, which were handed out on the Enterprise stage yesterday.POWERING THE NEXT GENERATION OF CASINO GROWTH 17.000 + worldwide casino games from 170 + providers 10.000 + sweepstake-ready games from 50 + providersAlex Pratt Managing Director, World Gaming #ICE26 3 The first word O ver the past two years in Barcelona, it has become clear to me that Clarion Gaming has outgrown its name. The industry we serve is larger, more global and more complex than it was when Clarion Gaming was first defined. Our role has evolved with it. This is more than a name change. World Gaming reflects how we now operate and the responsibility we have across the international gaming ecosystem at a time when the market is expanding, fragmenting and facing increased scrutiny. Our new name is a strategic expression of that role. Today, we sit at the intersection of live events, media, intelligence and year-round engagement. We connect regulators, operators, suppliers, affiliates, investors and technology providers across regulated markets worldwide, not just during event weeks but continuously throughout the year. As the industry grows, regulation is becoming more complex and the illegal market more aggressive. That creates a responsibility for those of us with scale and reach to be clearer, more evidence- led and more consistent in how we show up. It is no longer enough to simply convene the industry. We must also help it navigate change with better information, better connections and a longer-term view. Bringing everything together under World Gaming is about clarity. For our customers, it means one relationship, one standard and a more connected experience across our events, media platforms and intelligence products. For us, it creates focus and discipline as we continue to invest in areas where we can genuinely add value. This evolution reflects how our portfolio already operates today, across ICE, iGB Affiliate, iGB L!VE, World Gaming Week and our growing media and data businesses. It also reflects where we are heading: towards deeper insight, more relevant connections and a stronger year-round proposition for the global gaming industry. Our aim is not to be the loudest voice in gaming, but a reliable one. A partner that understands the commercial realities of the industry, respects the regulatory framework it operates within and helps businesses make better decisions as the market continues to mature. This is not an endpoint. It is a signal of how we intend to operate going forward, as a long- term partner to a global industry that is still evolving. A broader vision and a unified voice for a global gaming industry facing unprecedented change From Clarion Gaming to World Gaming: what’s changing and why Contents 3 The first word Setting the agenda for day three 5 Event news Speakers, stages and feature areas to watch 9 In the spotlight Parties, people and famous faces 11 The studio Inside the iGB@ICE Studio – interviews, fireside chats and more 15 Exhibitor news Key updates from the show floor, the beating heart of ICE 27 New to ICE Meet the first-time exhibitors making their Barcelona bow 30 The last word Nicole Macedo tells it straight#ICE26 5 Y esterday at ICE saw plaudits given for the new StandOut initiative, an awards programme designed to recognise the brilliant creative efforts of stand designers and builders at the event. Opening up Hall 1 at Fira this year gave the organisers over 16,000 additional square metres of space to enjoy, which meant that exhibitors could really get visionary with their booth designs. As Portfolio Director Margaret Dunn succinctly puts it, “Exhibitors put time, effort and creativity into making their stands amazing… we wanted to recognise and reward their creativity, skill and commitment to the ICE experience, which is why we launched the awards.” The StandOut Awards comprise five categories. First up is Best ICE Event news ICE celebrates first ever StandOut winners Five award categories highlight the imagination, effort and sustainability shaping this year’s exhibition stands Newcomer, awarded to the best stand for a company new to the exhibition. Traditionally, 80% of exhibitors at ICE rebook year after year, which means very real limits on new businesses and the space available to them. With ICE’s additional space this year, delegates will have discovered a crop of new names. The winner of this award was Gamecheck, situated in the Sustainable Gambling Zone. Head of Sales Jack Crabtree said: “This is a great achievement. It feels like recognition of the work our team are doing behind the scenes.” Second, we have Most Innovative Stand – a category where great things were expected thanks to the aforementioned increase in exhibition space. This year, the winner was Digitain. Merkur Internet Vikings Endorphina #ICE26 I CE has shifted gears this week with a high-octane partnership with McLaren, bringing innovation, technology and performance together on the exhibition floor. Launched on Monday, the collaboration gives attendees access to dedicated spaces and experiences designed to elevate their time at ICE. At the McLaren x ICE Lifestyle Lounge between Halls 4 and 5, guests can configure their dream car, sate their need for speed on an interactive simulator or admire an actual McLaren. The display brings a touch of high-end spectacle to ICE, complementing the hubbub and pace of the exhibition floor. According to Eduardo Costabal, CEO of McLaren Barcelona, the tie-up between ICE and McClaren reflects the natural crossover between gaming and automotive innovation. “Gamification is redefining how people interact with a car long before they ever drive it,” he explains. “The ability to explore configurations, materials and sensations in a digital environment turns the personalisation process into something more intuitive, emotional and deeply personal.” Speaking to ICE Daily, Joanna Burton, head of partnerships and activation at ICE, said: “ICE is thrilled to partner with McLaren Barcelona, a brand synonymous with luxury, performance and innovation. This collaboration underlines our commitment to delivering world-class, memorable experiences alongside brands that resonate with our audience.” The McLaren x ICE Lifestyle Lounge remains open until 16:00 between Halls 4 and 5 today. McLaren x ICE Lifestyle Lounge January 21 EVENT NEWS 6 ICE ramps up speed with McLaren partnership Supercar, simulators and configuration zone add polish to the show floor Continued from page 5 Group Chief Marketing Officer Aregnaz Hakobyan explained: “We wanted our stand to go beyond visual presence and become a true product experience.” Then we come to Best Onsite Marketing Activation, which relates to the activations exhibitors are doing on their stands: something unique and exciting. The worthy winner of this was Merkur, with a dazzling booth packed with fun events for customers, who could enjoy a DJ, many different tournaments and prize wheels. Juliane Engelking, head of marketing and customer experience told us: “We tried to integrate as many promotional activities as we could, to encourage visitors to stop by the booth.” Fourth award is Best Pre-Show Marketing Campaign. If you’ve been on social media any time in the last month, there’s a great chance you’ve seen some of these. It’s a campaign about the buildup to ICE and might comprise a video campaign, some catchy, well-thought- out advertising, it could be anything… The winner of this was Endorphina on 2V70, where Event Manager Maria Fylonenko told ICE Daily: “We want to have fun, not just talk business. This is an entertainment show and we want everyone to have some fun while they’re doing their important business!” Finally, we come to Most Sustainable Stand, an award close to Dunn’s heart. She said: “Sustainability is a big issue in our industry and with a show the size of ICE, there is the potential to create an enormous amount of waste. This award is to encourage exhibitors to be more sustainable.” It went to Internet Vikings, who are at 2G20. Anastasia Vinnyk, marketing co-ordinator, said: “We want to thank World Gaming for introducing this award for this year. It’s important to us because sustainability is a core part of how we design and build our presence at all events globally.” Gamecheck #ICE26 Connections on tap at ICE Beer partnership puts conversation and local culture at the heart of the show T rade shows are all about bringing people together, sharing ideas, building friendships and forging pathways into the future. Collaboration and connection are at the heart of ICE Barcelona and, in this second iteration of the show, a partnership with the Barcelona Beer Festival, sponsored by Uplatform, is a natural synergy. Is there a better way to meet people and foster relationships than over a carefully crafted drink? As revealed in Monday’s ICE Daily, footfall across World Gamig Week 2026 will exceed 65,000. That’s a lot of potential new friends, acquaintances, alliances and deals to be sealed over a beer. “Being the main beer sponsor at ICE is our way of saying: let’s talk, let’s connect, and let’s build something great together,” says Maria Bashkevish, head of marketing at Uplatform. “No pressure. Just good vibes… and very cold, very good drinks.” The director of the Barcelona Beer Festival, Mikel Rius, explains further: “The collaboration between the Barcelona Beer Festival and ICE Gaming for the January 2026 edition in Barcelona brings together two projects that share a strong commitment to creativity, quality and well-crafted experiences. “Both organisations value innovation, attention to detail and products shaped with intention and care.” ICE is proud to be a resident of Barcelona again this year and has demonstrated a clear sensitivity for understanding the local ecosystem, recognising that one of the best ways to connect with Barcelona’s culture is through its independent craft breweries. “By engaging with small, highly skilled local producers,” Rius concludes, “this partnership strengthens the link between two dynamic communities and highlights the talent, diversity of flavours and cultural identity that define the city’s craft beer scene.” There’s even a specially brewed, limited edition ICE x Uplatform beer for ICE attendees. There will be many new friendships coming out of Barcelona this year. Discover ICE x Barcelona Beer Festival at Beer Bar in Hall 1 and Beer Garden on La Avenida 1. ICE x Barcelona Beer Festival January 21 EVENT NEWS 7 Innovators Challenge winner named AI, creativity and player protection take over the Enterprise stage as ICE’s Innovators Challenge crowns its first winner alongside Microsoft A nother new idea for ICE 2026, the Innovators Challenge was developed in conjunction with tech giant Microsoft to promote creativity in the field of player protection. Emerging technologies like AI are reshaping all industries; companies like Microsoft are at the forefront of this innovation wave, providing businesses with suites of tools that are enhanced by using AI. The ICE Innovators Challenge invited gaming professionals to develop and pitch bold, AI-driven technology ideas that make gaming safer. From the scores of entries received, five finalists got the chance to pitch live on stage to a panel of experts for the chance to win a £15,000 Microsoft consultancy, coaching and access to top- tier AI tools to work on their idea. The five finalists were Gemma Goddard, Christopher Hagstedt, Rajaraman Ramachandran, Alec Gehlot, and Travis Sztainert. The winner was Rajaraman Ramachandran, winning with his pitch in front of our distinguished jury, comprising Microsoft executives, investors, and safer gambling experts. The win came on the main stage in front of thought leaders, regulators and influencers from the international industry yesterday. So how did the competition work? Clarion’s William Harding explains: “It starts off as an idea. To make it technology-focused, we came up with the idea of doing an AI application form. “We’ve actually trained our own language model and you just talk or type to it, and it forms an idea with you. “This is our first year running the initiative and we had more than 50 submissions. From those we picked the top ten based on the idea’s originality, whether it’s technically possible, that kind of thing. From those ten, our judges selected the five finalists.” The top five enjoyed some consultation time to hone their idea, before hitting the Enterprise stage yesterday. #ICE26 EVENT NEWS 8 ICE Daily sits down with the people driving Clarion Gaming’s evolution into World Gaming A s we bid farewell to ICE for another year we also say goodbye to Clarion Gaming, with the rebrand to World Gaming already underway behind the scenes. A rebrand for a multi-disciplined business like Clarion is no small undertaking, so why would any company put itself through this – especially one with one of the industry’s best-known and loved brands in ICE? This is more than just a visual rebrand though. The company knows that it needs to do this authentically, or not at all. World Gaming Managing Director Alex Pratt (above, second right) sums it up nicely: “We can’t just put a sticker over Clarion Gaming and become World Gaming. It has to mean something and it has to stand for our values that we’re saying: we Industry eyes on iGB L!VE As ICE Barcelona closes, attention shifts to London A s this year’s ICE spectacular comes to an end and we look back on what has been a truly exceptional event, it’s already time to look ahead to the summer and World Gaming’s “other” show, iGB L!VE. The move from its longstanding home in Amsterdam to London’s ExCeL last year left some wondering whether it would still be the successful, vibrant show the industry had come to love. Wonder no more: the numbers that came out of London 2025 were outstanding, the show has become bigger than ever and in 2026 we aim to build on that even further. More than 20,000 people attended, a new record; they came from a staggering 149 countries, with over 60% of attendees recognised as C-level and/or decision makers. This year’s event is aiming to build a welcoming atmosphere, one that Portfolio Director Naomi Barton describes as “festivalised”. She explained: “The front of Excel has this great grassy area by the main entrance and we’re looking at how we can use that more, so that when you arrive there is a great atmosphere outside.” World Gaming is also aiming to create really meaningful networking – not the usual drinks receptions, but utilising London’s strengths as a cultural and sporting world capital. “We took some visitors to Wimbledon last year, and that was a really good networking pastime. A trade show floor can feel very transactional and that’s great because people are there for business, but you don’t have to offer the same things at every event. Customers have asked for something more unique, different. “Our other big focus this year is about the quality of the audience and getting the right people, because it’s not about the volume. You need a critical mass, but you don’t need the wrong people.” This year’s iGB L!VE is on 1-2 July, again at ExCeL in London. Be there! World Gaming: more than a name change are a global media, events and community business, we are about trying to be a partner to the industry. “It’s easy just to change the name and put a new logo out. It’s much harder to walk the walk of what we want to stand for.” The concept is for the industry to have one connected ecosystem for everything it needs: business intelligence, news, networking, live events and much more. The rebrand is about ensuring the industry can see and understand everything that World Gaming offers, and how they can find it. Stuart Hunter, managing director, World Gaming Events (right), told ICE Daily: “As a business, we have been on a huge transformation over the last few years. “We have invested in the digital capabilities of our business, making some strategic acquisitions like GGB in the US, and launching new initiatives like iGB Executive. Now we have a much more diverse portfolio. Events are still the mainstay, but it’s supported now with much more of a strategic, year-round proposition. We’re much more than an events business. Depending on your aspirations in the global gaming industry, we’ve got products and services to help you grow and develop and reach customers to get your message across. We felt it was time to repackage and rebrand that into a much more exciting proposition to tell that story.” But does that really answer the question “why?” Sophie Webster, managing director, World Gaming digital (above right), takes things a step further: “Over the last three years, we’ve spent a significant amount of time and investment on how we think through an audience- first approach to all of our products and services. What we mean by that is, how do we build everything around the audience need? Whether that’s a visitor to the show, someone looking to buy our products and services, or someone coming to the website looking for news or analysis. “During that time of transition and transformation we’ve not done the final piece, which is how do we emotionally bring all of those things together? We’ve done all the operational parts. We’ve invested in the publishing brands and we’ve scaled those services around marketing solutions, directories and more. We’ve moved a show from London to Barcelona to give it more scale and volume, and we’ve launched a number of initiatives around the audience. But we haven’t really given them a combined story – you’ve still got iGB and iGB L!VE, Global Gaming Business, ICE, plus igamingbusiness.com and igbaffiliate.com, which are traditionally very Europe-centric brands now going on a more global journey. “We’ve not really told a story of how they all fit together and the value that each of them lend to either the supplier base or the audience side. Without this, we are a collection of separate businesses that share resources. But with this? We become a one-voice business model that can really focus on the things that matter, rather than doing multiple things in multiple places.” The final word goes to Alex Pratt: “Ultimately, World Gaming is about being a long-term partner to the global gaming industry and building trust through results. We aim to drive the growth and progress of the industry together with our partners. As a whole team, we truly understand our mission is to shape the next chapter of the industry looks like.”#ICE26 9 In the spotlight ICE at full tilt: celebs, celebrations and packed-out halls D ay two at ICE saw the momentum of day one carry on as the EAFC grand final played out to fired-up fans at the Esports Arena. Elsewhere, attendees came together to celebrate at various receptions and networking events, winners toasted their success at the StandOut Awards and the show floor crackled with debate and discussion. McLaren x ICE Lifestyle Lounge Esports ArenaNext >