Welcome back to our live coverage of SBC Summit Americas 2026!
Yesterday was a top-drawer day of content, discussions, masterclasses, meetings, and networking, topped off by the glitz and glamour of SBC Awards Americas. If you missed out on attending the event, or you want a recap of some of what happened on Wednesday, our retrospective Day 1 live blog is a good place to start.
Now, it’s on to Day 2!
Below, we’ll bring you the biggest stories live from the floor at the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, including plenty of updates from a packed conference agenda that dives into a range of topics hitting the headlines in North American and Latin American gaming.
The SBC team on site today includes:
- SBC Americas Editor Adam Candee
- SBC Americas Senior Business Journalist Justin Byers
- SBC Media Director Martyn Elliott
- SBC Media Manager Fernando Noodt
- SBC Media Researcher Ana Maria Menezes
- SBC Noticias Editor Lucia Gando
- SBC Noticias Business Journalist Pedro Occhiuzzi
- Affiliate Leaders Editor Jyoti Rambhai
Keep checking here throughout the day for the latest insights, the best quotes, and breaking news from SBC Summit Americas 2026.
4:15 p.m. — That’s all, folks!
Stick a fork in us, because we’re done. What an event it’s been. Another year in the books at SBC Summit Americas!
The SBC Media team has been busy moderating panel sessions, conducting interviews, participating in podcasts and networking with various leaders from across the industry. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed hearing from some of the biggest names from across the sports betting and iGaming industry on topics ranging from leadership, affiliation, regulation, payments and technology – and so much more.
Thank you so much to all of the panelists who have given us an opportunity to dive into the biggest developments across the U.S., Latin America, and Canada.
Now, this brings our live coverage to a close, although our night is just beginning as we head over to the INFINITY Florida networking party at Daer Nightclub & Dayclub. We’re ready for an unforgettable night, with music from world-renowned DJ Oliver Heldens. We’re sure we’ll see many of you tonight!
From all of us at the SBC Media team, we want to say a big thank you for tuning in to our live blog, straight from the expo floor at SBC Summit Americas. We hope you’ve enjoyed keeping up to date with the biggest stories direct from the show floor; we’ll see you next year!
4:00 p.m. — ParlayX wins First Pitch Americas 2026
One more piece of prediction markets-related news before we go: Congratulations to ParlayX, the champion of the 2026 edition of the First Pitch startups competition!
ParlayX describes itself as a prediction market aggregator that helps sports betting syndicates compare opportunities and act on market insights more efficiently.
It beat fellow finalists InsightPlay.ai, Odditt, OddsBlaze, and The Sharps to win a prize package valued at over $100,000 to help support its growth, including PR and marketing services, data provision, $10,000 of AWS Credits, gaming-related legal services, web design, and more.
ParlayX was chosen as the best of this year’s bunch by a panel of judges comprising:
- Paris Smith, Founder & CEO, Defy the Odds
- Evan Meyer, Managing Partner, Astralis Capital Management
- David Williams, Co-Founding Partner, Discerning Capital
- Meredith McPherron, CEO and Managing Partner, DRIVE by DraftKings Inc.
Thank you to our partner BettingStartups and Jesse Learmonth.
3:15 p.m. — Alright, it’s FIFA World Cup 2026 time!
Well, if you’re looking for any more content from SBC Summit Americas panelists, you’ll likely need to wait 90 minutes or so… because it’s time for the Happy Hour watchalong of the FIFA World Cup 2026 opening game between Mexico and South Africa.
Soccer: It’s the greatest sport in the world. Don’t let any NFL fans tell you different.
3:00 p.m. — Regulators get serious on illegal gaming
With reporting from SBC Americas Editor Adam Candee
In the “Crackdown on Unregulated Gaming: Where States Draw the Line” panel, former Director of the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) David Rebuck discussed the challenges in working with the federal government to take action against illegal offshore operators operating within the United States and how that inaction affects the industry.
“If you’re not aggressively attacking it, you’re subtly allowing it,” Rebuck said. “It’s a tough situation we’re all in, but hopefully it changes in the future.”
Rebuck was speaking alongside other esteemed panelists, including:
- Carl Herold, Director of Law Enforcement at the Florida Gaming Control Commission
- Ed Martin, CEO of the Sports Betting Regulators Association
- Susan Bala, President and CEO of Advanced Compliance Technology
- Nakisha Skinner of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission
2:20 p.m. — Martin Lycka and Joe Brennan weigh in on prediction markets
With reporting from SBC Americas Editor Adam Candee and Senior Business Journalist Justin Byers
OK, back to prediction markets with the “Innovation vs. Regulation: Finding Common Ground in Prediction Markets and Emerging Formats” panel.
Martin Lycka, Oddin.gg VP of Institutional Affairs and a longtime gaming regulatory expert, talked about how state gaming regulators might approach dealing with both prediction markets and sports being operators.
“The critical point is that we do need to get more structure around all this,” he told the room. “And frankly, if I were a sports betting regulator, I might be thinking about … expanding the sports betting markets that are offered.”
Prime Sports co-founder Joe Brennan also weighed in on the importance of implementing compliance policies as gaming brands explore prediction markets and other verticals.
“If you’re in this business and you want to be in this business for a long time, anti-fraud, AML and all those things should be a regular part of your business,” Brennan said. “There’s a lot of bad people and a lot of bad actors out there.”
1:50 p.m. — Day 1 on film
SBC’s events, editorial, and media teams aren’t the only ones hard at work in Florida this week!
Check out this snazzy video recap of Day 1 in Fort Lauderdale yesterday from the good folks over at marketing.
1:15 p.m. — Is social media site X an underused tool?
With reporting from SBC Noticias Editor Lucia Gando
Some food for thought from the LatAm side of the agenda.
Nicolas Cardenas, a Senior Reseller Manager at X, discussed how the social network has become the leading real-time platform for conversations about sports betting and online gaming in Latin America.
“People think X is a political platform and many people only use it during specific times like elections or international conflicts,” Cardenas noted. “But the rest of the time, the greatest engagement is about sports. Ninety percent of X’s unique users in Latin America are soccer fans.”
The executive explained on a “X Gaming: Real-Time Engagement Today and Tomorrow’s Growth Engine for LatAm Betting & iGaming” panel that there is a large, engaged, and gambling-ready audience waiting for those who know how to tap into it.
12:25 p.m. — Art Manteris on the mic
One of Thursday’s star guests was legendary bookie and author of the aptly named ‘The Bookie’, Art Manteris.
Manteris spoke to Sports Betting Hall of Famer Sue Schneider about, among other things, whether or not prediction markets are a viable long-term model.
12:00 p.m. — Hard to bet on prediction markets’ future
With reporting from SBC Americas’ Justin Byers
Firstly, how is it noon already?! Secondly, the topic of prediction markets is of course back on the agenda today. There’s a whole Prediction Markets Forum taking place, in fact.
On a panel called ‘Prediction Markets: How Sportsbooks are Entering the World of Event Contracts‘, hosted by constantly newslettering consultant Dustin Gouker, panelists including Sporttrade Chief Operating Officer David Huffman, EdgeMarkets Founder and CEO Seni Thomas, 365Prediction Founder and CEO Dr. Laila Mintas, and MediaTroopers CEO Sam Segal assessed how sportsbooks such as DraftKings, Fanatics, and FanDuel are hedging their bets by stepping into the world of sports event contracts in states where they cannot offer state-regulated sports betting.
Of course, the ongoing court battles from coast to coast cast a large, looming shadow over everything. If there’s one word Segal would (and did) use to describe the future of the prediction markets landscape, it’s “uncertainty.”
“What worries me in this specific product vertical is uncertainty,” Segal told the crowd. “It’s still unclear exactly how regulations are going to evolve in the next two years. It is very difficult to decide to invest a lot of money when you don’t know exactly how things are going to work.”
You can say that again, Sam.
11:15 a.m. — David Edelman delivers keynote on AI
With reporting from SBC Media’s Ana Maria Menenes.
Kicking off Thursday’s agenda in style, executive advisor and bestselling author David Edelman put on a clinic, explaining to a large assembled audience how AI is already transforming gaming operations, and why the next frontier is commercial advantage.
Edelman explored how gaming brands can harness AI to transform the physical and online customer journey by personalizing and automating at scale, drawing on global case studies across various sectors.
“Marketers had to ask data science experts to create tables, get insights, and it takes days and weeks,” Edelman told the room. “Well, what if you could just have a chatbot for it?
“Responsible personalization isn’t soft; it’s a growth strategy. This is not an altruism argument; it’s a math argument.”
10:35 a.m. — A masterclass in entrepreneurship and brand-building
One of the coolest initiatives at this year’s event is a series of intimate Masterclasses offering insight and advice from a range of industry leaders on a variety of topics.
A “What Gets Funded and What Gets Bought — Inside the Minds of Investors and Operators” session yesterday was divided into two periods of 30 minutes; the first half involved leaders such as Third Planet Media Founder Adam Small, Drive by DraftKings CEO and Managing Partner Meredith McPherron, and Delaware North Chief Interactive Officer of Gaming Lee Terfloth offering advice for venture capitalists, before operators took the floor to share where they’re spending, what they’re buying, and what it takes for a startup to survive a vendor review.
The Masterclasses series continues today with sessions devoted to:
- Fundraising 101 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
- Building a World Cup Tournament Model: From Ratings to Outrights from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.
- Cross-Border & Outbound Sweepstakes Opportunities from 2-3 p.m.
10:00 a.m. — Prediction markets the topic du jour for iGaming Daily
Yesterday, before the conference agenda got started, SBC Americas Senior Business Journalist Justin Byers and SBC Noticias Editor Lucia Gando chatted with SBC Media’s Fernando Noodt for an on-site episode of the iGaming Daily podcast.
They covered an awful lot of ground in just 17 minutes, including discussion of:
- The controversies and regulatory concerns around prediction markets
- Whether sports contracts are competitors or complements to sports betting
- The prospect of legitimization through regulation and industry acceptance
- Where to watch for regulatory developments
9:15 a.m. — Who won at SBC Awards Americas 2026?
After a bustling day of networking and insightful panel sessions, attendees flocked to Pier Sixty Six for this year’s edition of SBC Awards Americas.
BetMGM, Kaizen Gaming, and Sportradar were the big winners with two awards each, while the likes of FanDuel, Hard Rock Bet, Soft2Bet, Rush Street Interactive, and Choctaw Casinos & Resorts also took home something for their mantelpiece.
We broke down all you need to know about the SBC Awards Americas 2026 winners here.
9:00 a.m. — We’re back for day two! What’s on deck?
Yesterday was an absolutely jam-packed day on the exhibition floor, and the conference rooms were filled with expert insights from the leading voices from across the industry.
It was a big night last night, but attendees are filtering through the doors of the Broward County Convention Center ready for another busy day of networking, panel sessions, coffee breaks, and even a bit of FIFA World Cup action to boot, with Mexico vs. South Africa kicking off the six-week-long tournament this afternoon at 3 p.m. ET. We have five stages of conference, a Prediction Markets Forum breakout stage, expert-led masterclasses, plus our Podcast Stage makes its return for day two.
Things wrap up a little earlier than they did on Wednesday, concluding with the annual First Pitch startups competition. The Betting Startups Podcast host Jesse Learmonth will interview this year’s winner around 3:30 p.m. to sign off on SBC Summit Americas 2026.
Let’s have it!
