This year’s SBC Summit 2025 will host a Player Protection stage September 16–18 at the Feira Internacional de Lisboa in Portugal.
The Player Protection stage will offer an estimated 30,000 delegates an examination of how industry ethics intersect with regulation, technology, and player behavior, featuring insights from experienced professionals across the sector.
“Player protection has rightly evolved from a regulatory checkbox to a core business strategy,” SBC Founder and CEO Rasmus Sojmark said in a statement. “As global frameworks tighten and consumer expectations rise, the operators that succeed long term will be those that genuinely embed safety into their model.”
The Player Protection stage will address three vital themes:
- September 16: Regulation. Opening day will explore the relationship between regulation and unintended consequences, asking whether strict compliance measures push players toward unregulated markets. It will also examine who should bear responsibility for player disputes: operators, regulators, or an independent body.
- September 17: Research. The second day will focus on practical solutions to player protection. Panels will explore themes such as how AI is changing player engagement and why unlicensed sites continue to attract consumers. Sessions will also compare global approaches to affordability and risk assessment and ask who has the best approach to protecting players.
- September 18: Tech. The closing day will look at the latest tools and technologies for keeping players safe, including how different platforms can work together to protect players, AI-powered player monitoring, and how player protection functions when gamers play with cryptocurrencies.
The Player Protection Stage will host a number of safe gambling experts, including: Maxbet CEO Savo Bakmaz; Dr. Maris Catania, LeoVegas Director of Player Sustainability; Entain Head of Regulatory Affairs David Foster; Richard Hayler, IBAS Managing Director; Dr Alexandra Koerner, Grand Casino Baden AG Chief Legal & Compliance Officer; GamStop Chief Marketing Officer Katie Reynolds-Jones; and Monica Shafaq, Gordon Moody CEO. They will tackle the key challenges around harm minimization, regulatory expectations, and sustainable gambling.
The Player Protection stage is one of six dedicated conference stages at SBC Summit 2025, alongside Global Markets, Emerging Markets, Technology, Affiliation, and the Super Stage.
