iGaming Trends 2027: What the SOFTSWISS Report Means for Affiliates

We read SOFTSWISS’s 2027 iGaming Trends report with those questions in mind. Its fifth edition describes a growing industry where businesses expect partners to take a closer interest in their results.

H2 Gambling Capital forecasts global online gambling gross gaming revenue of US$377.5 billion in 2027, with 9% compound annual growth from 2026 to 2028. The report puts the mobile share at 78%.

Drawing on 500+ surveyed professionals, 65+ expert interviews, and 480,000+ analyzed media headlines, we picked the findings most relevant to affiliates: traffic sources, credible content, and support from a program.

SOFTSWISS notes that businesses increasingly expect their partners to help improve results. For affiliates, that could start with calling the manager when a campaign underperforms. Bring the results and explain what you’ve already tried. The manager can investigate what happened on the product side, so you can agree on a change to test before spending more.

Here’s Betty’s take on the trends worth keeping in mind as you plan your traffic, content, and partnerships for 2027.

No Clear Favorite for 2027

SOFTSWISS asked industry professionals which marketing channel would dominate iGaming in 2027. SEO received 18.0% of responses, followed by streamers and influencers at 16.8%, affiliates and partner marketing at 16.2%, paid social at 15.3%, and organic social at 11.7%.

These figures reflect expectations for 2027. They do not measure actual traffic, revenue, or marketing spend.

With the leading answers so close, several channels deserve attention. Look at how they could support the work you already do. A publisher might turn a popular search topic into a video, then use viewers’ questions to expand the article. A paid traffic team could create a guide answering recurring questions in its ads.

Before adding a channel, decide who will run it and how you’ll measure its contribution. Our iGaming SEO guide and traffic sources hub cover the options in more detail.

We asked Bohdan, our Head of Affiliates, what he would check before increasing the budget for a promising source.

"I’d scale in stages. Adding placements or reaching a broader audience can quickly change acquisition costs. After each increase, I’d check whether the additional traffic remains profitable over the same reporting period. If costs rise faster than commission, I’d look at which placements and audience segments are driving the change. Then we can adjust before spending more."

Bohdan

Head of Affiliates at Big Betty Partners

Strong Affiliates Are Becoming Media Businesses

The report describes how the affiliate model itself is changing.

Martin Calvert, Marketing Director at All-In Global, puts it this way:

"The strongest are becoming media brands, entertainment platforms, or highly developed acquisition businesses that combine SEO, PR, social media, paid media, and AI."

Martin Calvert

Marketing Director at All-In Global

For iGaming affiliate marketing, this changes the relationship with a program. Our iGaming affiliate marketing guide covers the fundamentals. A media business needs material its audience will find useful, access to product information, and enough performance data to decide what deserves another campaign.

Game providers are building resources specifically for affiliates. Evoplay launched an Affiliate Hub in 2024, Endorphina followed in 2025, and BGaming launched its hub in 2026. SOFTSWISS describes release information, graphic kits, configurable demo links, video libraries, and performance insights.

For teams publishing reviews, videos, or streams, these resources can help with production. The affiliate program then needs to coordinate the campaign with the promoted product. Before scheduling content, ask:

• Will the game be available and easy to find when the campaign starts?
• Which assets can we adapt for our formats?
• What campaign results will we be able to track?
• Who will notify us about product or offer changes?

We also asked Bohdan, our Head of Affiliates, how a manager should help when published content brings traffic but conversions fall short.

"If a review brings clicks but few registrations, I’d check the tracking first, then look at the steps between the click and registration. I’d also compare the review with the landing page. Someone watching a video about a particular game could arrive on a page full of unrelated offers and struggle to find it. That gives us a specific change to test. The manager should explain what they found, agree on the adjustment with the affiliate, and set a date to review the results."

Bohdan

Head of Affiliates at Big Betty Partners

Trust Has a Commercial Role — and Search Makes It Visible

The report cites Edelman’s finding that 88% of consumers globally say trust in a brand is an important or critical purchase criterion. This is a cross-industry consumer finding, rather than an iGaming-only statistic.

For gambling affiliate marketing, the practical implication is clear: recommendations need evidence.

A review becomes more useful when it explains what the author checked, when they checked it, and under what conditions. Payment information, support access, product availability, and offer terms should be easy to understand. Readers should also be able to distinguish an observed result from a promotional claim.

AI search adds another reason to get those details right. SOFTSWISS notes that Google’s generative search features can bring together information from blogs, videos, and forum discussions, with links to supporting sources. A brand’s own website is one part of that picture.

Our practical recommendation is to keep important facts consistent wherever people encounter them. A current website cannot fully resolve confusion created by outdated reviews or contradictory descriptions elsewhere.

Affiliates can support accurate interpretation by publishing:

• Clear answers to specific questions.
• Visible authorship and review dates.
• Sources beside figures and factual claims.
• Descriptions that explain conditions without burying them.
• Corrections when products or terms change.

These practices help readers assess a recommendation and give search systems clearer material to interpret. They do not guarantee inclusion in an AI answer.

Our article on how trust drives affiliate growth explores the relationship further.

We asked Valeria, our Head of Brand Marketing, how trust and AI search shape Betty’s communication, and what affiliates can do to help AI assistants describe their businesses accurately.

"I want people to be able to check what we say about Betty. If we mention a commission rate or payout condition, the details should be easy to find and explained in plain terms. I’d recommend the same approach to affiliates: explain what you do, name the people behind the business, and keep your reviews up to date. When you publish a figure, link to its source. That gives readers and AI assistants a clearer basis for understanding your business."

Valeria

Head of Brand Marketing at Big Betty Partners

Retention Belongs in the Acquisition Conversation

SOFTSWISS’s global commercial section emphasizes retention and describes business partners being expected to contribute to continuing revenue growth. Our affiliate takeaway is to evaluate what happens after acquisition.

The first deposit answers an immediate question: did the campaign convert? Later activity helps establish whether the audience and product were a good fit.

For campaign planning, we recommend reviewing player groups over comparable periods. Look at continued activity, net gaming revenue, and accrued commission alongside acquisition costs. Revenue per active player can add context, as long as the definition and reporting period remain consistent.

This also makes conversations with a manager more productive. If one campaign brings players who stay active longer, the team has a concrete reason to discuss suitable products, ongoing communication, and further testing.

CRM and retention are therefore useful topics to raise when evaluating a program. Ask how the product maintains a relevant relationship with referred players and what reporting can help you assess the outcome.

RevShare connects affiliate income to ongoing net gaming revenue; Hybrid combines a qualifying acquisition payment with continuing revenue share. The calculations are covered in our RevShare and CPA income guide.

The broader affiliate marketing trends we covered in April remain useful background. For 2027 planning, the focus here is on the working relationship that supports player value over time.

Gambling Trends Worth Watching Beyond Traffic

Several product and hiring developments deserve a place in an affiliate’s planning, even before they become part of a campaign.

Casino Leads Investment Expectations

Online casino received 32.1% of responses when SOFTSWISS asked which iGaming vertical would attract the most investment in 2027. It led the survey. This is an expectation indicator, rather than a measured share of investment.

For affiliates, product knowledge deserves regular attention. New releases, formats, and entertainment features can create useful editorial subjects when they match an existing audience’s interests.

Crypto Requires Clear Product Explanations

The report cites US$14.0 billion in on-chain crypto gambling volume during Q1 2026, drawing on TRM Labs. This measures on-chain volume and should not be presented as GGR or operator profit.

SOFTSWISS also discusses development towards blockchain-native products and independently verifiable mechanics. Affiliates covering this category need precise explanations of the user experience, payment process, and product structure. Adding “crypto” to a headline does little of that work.

Prediction Markets Could Broaden the Content Agenda

SOFTSWISS expects prediction markets to move towards a standard event-based product category in 2027. The report explains how fixed-odds formats reduce some of the operational complexity of peer-to-peer exchanges.

For affiliates, this creates an editorial question: which event categories fit the audience, and what explanations would help people understand the format? Familiarity with sports betting should not be assumed to cover every event-based product.

Creator Relationships Are Becoming a Specialist Skill

In the hiring outlook section of the report, Pentasia’s Gareth Mulley highlights increasing demand for streamer and influencer managers with established creator relationships and knowledge of conversion performance.

That suggests a more structured approach to creator partnerships: clear briefs, campaign schedules, audience assessment, and useful performance feedback. A large following gives a campaign reach. The working process helps determine what that reach produces.

What This Means for Big Betty Partners

For partners planning around the iGaming future, Big Betty offers CPA up to €600, RevShare of 25–60%, and Hybrid combining CPA with Lifetime RevShare.

Partners work with Affilka and ReferOn, with API and postback support, lifetime cookie tracking, and statistics updated every 20 minutes. Payouts start at €100 via bank transfer or crypto, and each partner has a dedicated manager.

Our view of the future of affiliate marketing centers on using that support to understand performance and build a working relationship that lasts beyond the launch.

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