Euro Sport – Australia’s National Rugby League will investigate allegations that one of its top officials knew about Canterbury Bulldogs forward Ryan Tandy’s gambling problems but failed to take action before the player was convicted of match-fixing. Tandy, banned from the NRL for life after attempting to fix a 2010 match, was found dead last week at his parents’ house in eastern New South Wales state having suffered an apparent drug overdose. State media reported this week that the NRL’s head of football Todd Greenberg was made aware of Tandy’s gambling problems when he was chief executive of the Sydney-based…

QZ – Last week, the casinos of Macau, the world’s largest center for gambling in terms of revenues, got some bad news: smoking will be banned at all casino tables as of October, a move to protect workers’ health. That’s a problem for the island’s massive casino industry—which generated $45 billion last year, several times that of Las Vegas. Macau depends overwhelmingly on gamblers from the world’s largest nation of smokers—China. The mainland is home to about a third of the world’s smokers. About a quarter of the Chinese population smokes, compared to the global average of a little under…

iGaming Business – US distributor KGM Gaming and gaming content developer Spin Games have successfully launched six new HTML games in the regulated New Jersey interactive gaming market. The six HTML5 games are part of the proprietary Video Poker Royale suite, which cinsists of Deuces Wild, Deuces Wild Elite, Double Double Regal Poker, Double Regal Poker and Regal Poker Deluxe. Under a previous deal with Caesars Interactive Entertainment, the two companies agreed to provide the land-based operator with a remote gaming server and game titles for its online gaming operations in the US state. The six new games are now…

The Costa Rica News – A detailed report released on Thursday in Paris, France, reveals that organized crime launders $140 billion annually through sports betting with 80% of transactions from illegal gambling. The document indicates that Costa Rica is one of the world’s havens with between 250 and 500 people doing trades, while”no sports betting licenses are granted. In fact, this activity is not legal in Costa Rica, despite past efforts that were made for taxing this activity. The bill that was under discussion, but got stuck. The extensive document is called Integrity Protecting of Sports Competitions, and was conducted…

The Korea Herald – Macau, one of China’s special administrative regions along with Hong Kong, is undoubtedly enjoying its heyday as the world’s most profitable casino district. But reflecting the awareness that the gaming business alone, as prosperous as it is, can no longer be counted on as the sole pillar for profit, market leaders are pressing to diversify business and lure new customers. The issue will be discussed at the Global Gaming Expo Asia, referred to as G2E Asia, which kicked off Tuesday at the Venetian Macao. Organized by the American Gaming Association and incorporating over 6,000 visitors, the…

iGaming Business – Pre-paid payment provider paysafecard has continued its international expansion by launching its ‘my paysafecard’ online payments account in Croatia. Paysafecard has been available to customers in Croatia since 2012, but the launch of my paysafecard will further strengthen the provider’s presence in the country. The my paysafecard system allows customers to manage all of their purchased PINs and remaining credit from one single account. In addition, customers in Croatia can also access the ‘my PLUS’ loyalty programme, which is available to all customers using my paysafecard. Developed and technically implemented by paysafecard, the new loyalty programme was…