Daniel Brooks writes news for JokerClub, covering casino operators, online gaming and the jackpots, launches and market moves that matter to players.
Latest articles by Daniel Brooks
Denmark's School Talks Work: Students See Gambling as Entertainment, and Many Didn't Know Scratchcards Count
A Danish Gambling Authority report finds students were more likely to see gambling as entertainment after its school presentations. Young women recognising they had gambled jumped from 19% to 48%, many unaware scratchcards count.
Melbourne Cup 2026: Maher and O'Brien Dominate the Field as Rain-Soaked Flemington Adds a Wildcard
Ciaron Maher and Joseph O'Brien could train more than half of the 24-horse field for the 2026 Melbourne Cup, with Point Of Law the favourite and a soft Flemington track adding uncertainty.
Two Powerball Players Win $1 Million Each After Missing $691M Jackpot by One Ball
Players in Florida and Georgia matched all five white balls in Monday's Powerball draw, winning $1 million each. The jackpot rolls to an estimated $716 million for Wednesday.
Record €37.25M Fine: Dutch Regulator Hits Instantcasino Operator EOD Code Over 12 Illegal Sites
The Kansspelautoriteit has fined EOD Code SRL a record €37.25 million for offering unlicensed gambling to Dutch players via Instantcasino and 11 other sites. Without the legal 10% cap, the penalty would have been €292.6 million.
Rain in Milan Gives Constitution Hill the Green Light for Italian Group 2 Test
Constitution Hill has left for Milan after heavy rain eased Nicky Henderson's ground worries ahead of Sunday's Group 2 Gran Premio del Jockey Club at San Siro, with Rossa Ryan riding.
L & L Europe to Pay £900,000 After UKGC Finds Unfair 'One Withdrawal at a Time' Rule
The operator behind All British Casino, CasinoCasino and Hyper Casino will pay £900,000 after the UK Gambling Commission found unfair withdrawal terms and AML and safer gambling failings.
Kamala Harris Heads to Las Vegas to Rally Culinary Union Behind Aaron Ford
Kamala Harris will meet Nevada's 60,000-strong Culinary Union in Las Vegas on 21 October to back Aaron Ford's bid to unseat Governor Joe Lombardo, as casino workers voice anger over tourism, living costs and Station Casinos.
Search Shake-Up Bites: Catena Media Cuts 2026 Outlook After Weak Third Quarter
Catena Media has lowered its 2026 EBITDA growth outlook after a weak third quarter, as AI-driven search and smaller operator budgets cut into affiliate traffic.
"We Don't Want a Manchester City Situation": English Rugby Drafts Tough Ownership Rules Before Expansion
With around five overseas investors circling Prem clubs and the league growing from 10 to 12 teams by 2030, English rugby is writing new ownership rules that target state-backed money, source of funds and who really calls the shots.
"The Mix Wasn't Coming Together": Barry Diller's People Inc. Walks Away From 8 Billion MGM Takeover
People Inc. has withdrawn its 8.30-a-share offer to take MGM Resorts private, ending a deal that would have valued the casino giant at over 8 billion. MGM stock fell 8.6% after hours, but Diller is keeping his 27% stake — and the door open.
Fallout 5, The Elder Scrolls 6, The Witcher 4: The Games Lining Up for PS6 and the Next Xbox
Sony and Microsoft haven't dated their next consoles yet, but the list of games heading for PS6 and Xbox Project Helix is growing: Fallout 5, The Elder Scrolls 6, Intergalactic, The Witcher 4, Mass Effect 5 and a next-gen GTA 6. Here is where each one stands.
Three in Four Players Have Already Walked: Fullstory Survey Says the App, Not the Odds, Decides Where Americans Bet
A new Fullstory survey of more than 1,000 US consumers finds that 77% have switched gaming platforms because of the user experience, 83% would likely leave after a single bad digital experience — and only 51% name payouts or odds as a deciding factor. Prediction markets are sharpening the competition: 53% of bettors compare options before placing a bet.
Machetes, Cable Ties and a Drained Crypto Wallet: Singapore Jails Six Over the $3.9 Million Poker Game Robbery
Six Malaysian men have been sentenced in Singapore over one of the largest robberies in the country's history — an armed raid on a private high-stakes poker game in Bukit Timah that netted around $3.9 million in cash, watches, Ferrari keys and cryptocurrency taken straight off the victims' phones. Sentences run from seven years eight months to twelve years eleven months, with 24 strokes of the cane for everyone under 50, and more than $2.5 million has never been recovered.
$7.5 Million Bought at a Houston Grocery Store — and Eleven Days Later Nobody Has Claimed It
A Lotto Texas ticket sold at a Kroger on Memorial Drive in Houston matched all six numbers in the September 5 draw, and the holder is entitled to $3,971,819.05 in cash. They have not come forward. The clock runs for 180 days — and the reason the payout is barely half the advertised $7.5 million was decided at the moment the ticket was bought.
Kalshi's Own Advert Comes Back to Bite It — an Iowa Federal Judge Lets the State Apply Its Gambling Laws
A federal judge in Iowa has refused to stop the state applying its gambling laws to Kalshi. Judge Stephen Locher found the Commodity Exchange Act does not clearly pre-empt state gambling statutes, said the CFTC's mandate covers swaps and futures rather than sports event contracts — and cited Kalshi's own advert calling itself an app for "legal sports betting in all 50 states".
Eat, Drink, Play, Stay: Downtown Grand Puts the Whole Vegas Trip Behind One $199 Price
Downtown Grand is selling Las Vegas as a single number: $199 per person, per night, covering the room, every meal, premium drinks, Wi-Fi and $25 in daily free play. It is the most complete version yet of the bundling wave running through downtown — where Golden Nugget, Plaza and Circa have all decided one clear price beats a low rate with fees stacked behind it.
Nobody Won the Powerball Jackpot — but Seven Tickets Doubled Their $50,000 Into $100,000
Monday's Powerball draw produced no jackpot winner and not a single Match 5 ticket, yet twelve players still hit the tier below — and for seven of them the Power Play multiplier turned $50,000 into $100,000 apiece. With the top prize rolling again, Wednesday's estimated jackpot climbs to $96 million.
Bally's Loses a Third of Its Value in a Month — and Citizens Questions Whether It Can Fund Everything It Has Promised
A fresh 10-Q filing has put "going concern" language on the record at Bally's, and Citizens analysts Jordan Bender and Isabelle Slavin say the operator cannot finish its Las Vegas and New York projects at current leverage without selling assets or taking on a partner. The shares are down 34% in a month — yet nobody is telling investors to sell.
Australia Just Rewrote Its Gambling Ad Rules — and the Senate's Own Inquiry Says the Centrepiece Won't Work
Australia's government has bolted a national gambling ad opt-out register onto its reform bill — on the same night a Senate inquiry reported that opt-out models don't work. The package also bans influencer endorsements, widens ad blackouts and kills VIP commissions, with a 1 January 2027 start date.
The UK Doubled Its Online Gambling Tax and the Big Operators Barely Blinked — Analysts Still See a 12% Drop Coming
A Regulus analysis found the UK's six biggest operators posted modest Q2 growth despite the remote gaming duty jumping from 21% to 40%. But Betfred is closing 130+ shops, racing sponsorships are being cancelled, and analysts still forecast a 12% market contraction in 2027.