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The 2026 Finalists

Eight experts made the 2026 shortlist. Here is who they are, what they build and why the jury is reading their work right now.

DACH — Market Analysis

Leo K. Weber

Editor-in-chief of his own gambling-focused projects and co-author of several gaming portals. Before moving into publishing, Leo built substantial hands-on experience with online casino platforms and land-based casinos, working with data and probability models — a background that still anchors his analysis today. On X he has grown into one of the recognisable voices of the DACH market.

Fifteen-plus years in the industry show in how he writes: less opinion, more numbers, and conclusions that hold up when the market moves.

x.com/Leo_K_weber

Italy — Publishing

Lorenzo Vitali

iGaming expert and editor-in-chief of one of Italy's most popular gambling publications. Alongside editorial work, Lorenzo is a published publicist and the author of academic research on gambling — a rare combination of daily market coverage and scholarly depth.

Academic profile on Academia.edu

Betting — Sports

Mike Betoray

Betting and sports expert specialising in football predictions. Mike is the author and creator of a sports and betting portal where his data-driven matchday breakdowns are published, backed by more than seven years of hands-on sports betting experience.

betoray.com

Products — Consulting

Jan Woźniak

Product Owner at SOFTSWISS, where his day job combines the roles of project lead, product manager and marketer on a casino platform. Outside working hours Jan runs several gambling projects of his own and consults for casinos and casino software developers — bringing platform-side experience to both sides of the table.

Policy — Advocacy

Lina Murphey-Gaelle

Speaker and long-time advocate for the legalisation of iGaming. Lina is a familiar presence on the international conference circuit, where she argues for regulated, transparent markets — bringing policy makers, operators and player-protection advocates into the same conversation.

Consulting — Advisory

Markus Komovic

Independent consultant to gambling companies and a regular industry speaker. Markus advises operators and suppliers across markets, and takes his conclusions to the stage — turning consulting practice into talks the industry actually uses.

Design — Italy

Giulio Caruso

Slot designer at a major software provider (under NDA), where he draws and designs game elements. A designer his whole career, Giulio drifted into the gambling industry, got hooked — and work became a hobby. He has since created his own gambling project for the Italian audience, where he now also writes: sharing what he knows turned out to be the most interesting part.

Portugal — Publishing

Vasco Oliveira

Editor-in-chief, ex-Evolution Gaming, freelancer and iGaming enthusiast. Vasco has led the editorial line of casinossemlicenca.org since its launch. At Evolution Gaming — the world's largest live casino supplier — he worked close to table design, RNG audit processes and the day-to-day operation of live games for European operators.

After leaving Evolution he moved to the analytical side of the sector: first as a freelance consultant for iGaming review sites, then as an editor specialising in the Portuguese market. He has followed SRIJ regulation since Decree-Law 66/2015 was approved, and his coverage spans more than 50 operators — launches, closures and licence changes alike. His responsibilities today: editorial direction, defining review criteria, final sign-off on every analysis, and contact with operators and readers.

[email protected] · Contact page

A note from the organisers

How they got here — and why it matters

Each of these gambling experts reached the shortlist by one of two routes: some applied on their own initiative, others were put forward by the award's organisers on the strength of their public work. Both routes end at the same bar — the jury reads the work, not the application form.

What unites the eight is the scale of their contribution to the industry. Between them, these gambling experts have built publications that thousands of players read before depositing a cent, shipped platforms and games that operators run daily, shaped regulatory debate in several markets, and turned personal expertise into public knowledge — reviews, research, predictions, talks. The industry works a little better, and a little more honestly, because of what they publish.

To everyone who entrusted us with their name and their track record: thank you. The field this year was crowded, and cutting it down to eight was genuinely difficult. Making this page is not a consolation prize on the way to the real result — with this many contenders, standing here already says a great deal about the work behind each name.

Winners will be announced on August 1. Whatever the jury decides, all eight have our respect — and, we suspect, a busier inbox than they had in June.

Winners announced August 1, 2026

Follow the results