Three Major Forces Reshaping Jobs in the iGaming Industry: Insights from Itai Pazner

Former 888 Holdings CEO and current consultant Itai Pazner is set to share his views at the upcoming SBC Summit panel titled "Workforce Realities: Uncertainty or Opportunity in 2026?" In this exclusive preview for iGamingExpert, he breaks down what's really happening with employment in our industry.

The gambling business has changed dramatically in the last twenty years. We've seen the internet revolution take hold, companies merge across borders, and regulations shift constantly. But looking toward 2026, the narrative isn't about endless growth anymore – it's about dealing with uncertainty and finding our footing. Right now, there are three major forces affecting everyone who works in this industry: artificial intelligence, mergers and acquisitions, and taxes going up.

AI is supposed to make everything more efficient, but it also means companies aren't hiring as much. When big companies merge, it creates chaos for employees. And when governments raise taxes, companies cut jobs to save money. The real question isn't if things will change – they definitely will. It's about how companies will handle it and whether workers can keep up.

The AI Revolution: Lots of Talk, But What's Really Happening?

Everyone's talking about artificial intelligence these days. You can't go to a conference or read an industry publication without seeing it mentioned. Some people think AI will replace everyone's jobs tomorrow. Others believe it's the best thing that's ever happened to business efficiency. Here's the truth: we haven't seen any truly AI-first gambling companies yet. It's still early, and our industry has unique challenges. Think about it – gambling operators juggle regulatory hoops in every country they operate in. They need licenses that take months or years to obtain. Every single game needs certification from testing labs. The tech stack involves payment processors, KYC providers, game suppliers, and affiliate platforms all talking to each other. Some startup with an AI chatbot can't just waltz in and replace all that overnight. It's a completely different ball game from, say, launching a new social media app.

How Established Companies Are Actually Using AI

The reality on the ground is less dramatic than the headlines suggest. Flutter, Entain, Betsson, Kindred – these companies aren't sitting still, but they're not throwing out their entire workforce either. I've seen their teams experiment with AI in pretty mundane ways. Customer service reps now have better templates for answering queries. The data guys can pull reports without writing as much SQL. Marketing teams pump out banner ads faster because AI helps with the creative. And yes, developers are using GitHub Copilot to write boilerplate code. But it's all incremental stuff. The changes are happening bit by bit. Marketing teams are using automated tools to buy ads and AI to create graphics and copy. Data analysts are getting reports done faster with automation. Developers are using AI copilots to speed up their coding work. But here's the catch – most gambling platforms are really old and complicated. They were built 10 or 20 years ago to work in multiple countries with different rules. They connect to dozens of other systems for regulatory compliance and business operations. You can't just slap AI on top of these old systems and expect magic to happen. You'd need to rebuild everything from scratch, which isn't realistic right now. Per Widerström at Evoke was one of the first big CEOs to publicly commit to automation across his entire company. It's going to take years to implement, but it shows where things are heading. Other companies will probably follow this path eventually. This doesn't mean everyone's getting fired tomorrow. What it does mean is companies aren't hiring as many new people. They're trying to get more work out of their existing teams by making them use AI tools. Some employees don't like this – change is hard and scary. But if you're not using AI for at least half of your daily work, you're probably going to be the first one let go when cuts come.

Mergers and Acquisitions: A Different Game Than Before

Company mergers have always been a big part of iGaming, and they've always made employees nervous. In the past, when companies like bwin merged with Partygaming, or when GVC bought Ladbrokes Coral, or Flutter bought Stars Group, or 888 bought William Hill, the main goal was "synergies" – which is just a fancy way of saying "cut costs by firing duplicate staff."

Today's M&A Landscape Looks Different

But things feel different now. Most of the huge deals have already happened. Today's acquisitions are more about adding new capabilities – buying a company because they have technology you want, or because they're strong in a market you want to enter, or because they have games you don't. When operators buy regional companies, game studios, or tech platforms these days, they're usually adding something new rather than duplicating what they already have. This means fewer job losses. That said, big disruptions could still happen. Imagine if the rumors were true and DraftKings merged with Bet365. That could create massive overlaps. DraftKings is huge in America, Bet365 dominates everywhere else. They both have their own sportsbook technology and trading teams. In theory, you could combine these and cut a lot of duplicate positions. But this would take years to actually do, and migrating platforms is incredibly hard. Companies always think it'll be easier than it actually is.

Why Some Companies Keep Everything Separate

Look at Flutter – they've bought tons of companies but haven't merged most of them into one platform. They learned their lesson when they tried to combine Betfair and Paddy Power's systems – it was a nightmare. So now they keep most of their brands on separate platforms in different countries. This lets each business stay flexible and competitive in their local market. For now, M&A isn't causing massive job losses across the board. But when big integrations do happen, the disruption for employees is inevitable and painful.

Tax Increases: The Real Job Killer

While everyone worries about AI and mergers, it's actually tax increases that pose the biggest immediate threat to jobs. In the UK, operators keep warning that higher taxes will push players to illegal sites. But let's be real about what happens when companies lose money to taxes. They don't cut marketing spending because that would kill their growth immediately. Instead, they look for "operational efficiencies" – which basically means firing people.

It's Not Just a UK Problem

This isn't just happening in Britain. Several US states have raised their gambling taxes recently. European politicians are watching and thinking about doing the same. Meanwhile, the US market is slowing down – no big new states are opening up for sports betting or online casinos. Companies like DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM are shifting from "grow at any cost" to "we need to be profitable now." That means less hiring and more cost-cutting. Some quick calculations (yes, I used ChatGPT to help) suggest that if the UK aligns sports betting taxes with gaming taxes, the three biggest UK-listed companies – Flutter, Entain, and Evoke – could see their overall profits drop by 2% to 5%. That might not sound like much, but for their UK operations specifically, the hit would be much bigger. And there

are rumors that gaming taxes might go up even more.

Why Even Small Percentages Matter

For big public companies, even a 2% hit to profits is serious. Shareholders don't like it. To make up for it, companies will cut costs wherever they can. Here's the funny part – tax hikes could end up pushing companies to automate faster than they planned. When the government takes a bigger slice of your pie, you start looking for ways to bake it cheaper. And if you're still doing your job the old-fashioned way while your colleague has figured out how to get AI to do half their work? Well, good luck when layoff season comes around.

The Bottom Line: What This All Means

Look, the gambling industry has survived worse. We're not heading for some apocalyptic scenario where everyone loses their job next Tuesday. But let's not sugarcoat it either – things are getting tougher. Companies are stuck trying to keep shareholders happy while dealing with all these pressures. Some will figure it out, others won't. The fear versus opportunity debate – that's what's going to dominate every boardroom and break room conversation for the next few years. And yes, that's exactly the argument we'll be having at the SBC Summit, probably with some colorful disagreements. If you're working in this industry, here's my advice: pay attention to what's happening around you. AI is here whether you like it or not – might as well figure out how to use it before someone else does. M&A deals will keep happening, so don't get too comfortable. And governments will keep raising taxes because, well, that's what governments do. The people who see these changes coming and adjust their game plan will do fine. Those who stick their heads in the sand? They'll be updating their LinkedIn profiles sooner than they think.

Read the full article on igamingexpert.com :👉 Itai Pazner: the three factors redefining iGaming employment