SBC Summit Americas In Florida: Top 5 Provocative Panels

The debates figure to be as hot as the pavement on Las Olas Boulevard when the SBC Summit Americas 2025 descends on Fort Lauderdale this week.

More than 10,000 gambling industry professionals will be in the house, including 400 exhibitors and sponsors displaying their wares. Around coffee urns and fruit trays, they’ll knowingly or not begin sorting out not only the present, but the future of the business.

Ahead of the event that begins Tuesday and runs through Thursday, Casino Reports examines the top five can’t-miss panels, leading with the panel title and official description:

1. Who could have predicted?

Trading on the future: Prediction markets are here to stay

“The entry of major exchanges to the sports betting sector with event futures contracts has caused a collective shock to the U.S. gambling landscape. Futures trading platforms are only a small portion of the sports betting market right now, but after huge uptake in bets during the 2024 election, might these incomers be a real existential threat to the current status quo — or a potential new source of profit, if the industry embraces event contracts?”

Newsy. Saucy. This panel portends to be the Alex Kane show, but don’t expect the CEO of Sporttrade to be the only one with hot takes, like when he put it out there that speculating on sports event contracts is definitely, absolutely sports betting.

There is also potential for “heat” on a panel with attorney Daniel Wallach, iGaming Capital CEO Melissa Blau, and Jones Day counsel David E. Aron. Moderator Chris Gerlacher was on the prediction market beat before it was cool and will be tasked with keeping that heat level at a simmer.

2. California teaming

What kind of collaboration is needed in California?

“Legalizing sports betting in California in a way that respects tribal sovereignty requires unprecedented collaboration. For a successful transition, tribes and operators must collaborate, aligning their interests to create mutually beneficial agreements that respect tribal sovereignty and expand economic opportunities. Building trust is essential for success, so what strategies can foster this cooperation and ensure a unified push toward legalizing gambling in California?”

Seriously, only 45 minutes for this panel? Clear the rest of the day! Jesus Tarango (chairman/CEO, Wilton Ranchería), Sean Vasquez (president, Pechanga Resort Casino), and Jason Ramos (Tribal chairman, Blue Lake Rancheria) are fine additions to the panel, but a heaping helping of the provocative Victor Rocha would have sent this into the stratosphere.

3. Raising the ‘stakes

Pivoting to sweeps

“How can sweepstakes betting transform casinos in the U.S., particularly given the inital success of it within sportsbooks? By offering free entries and the chance to win prizes, sweepstakes models operate within legal frameworks, avoiding traditional gambling regulations. Integrating this approach with sportsbooks has enhanced user engagement, so could this be the key to expanding the market while staying within state laws?”

Another saucy one. At any other conference, this panel would potentially rank as the sauciest of the saucy.

The proliferation of social and sweepstakes casinos in recent years has irked stakeholders in most every sector of the gambling industry — except those who seized upon it as a new post-sports-betting-land-grab revenue stream.

This panel includes a sweeps purveyor (Brett Calapp, Shadow Fox), a head of government affairs whose company recently said it will never supply games to sweeps sites (Shawn Fluharty, Play’n GO), and bunch of other folks trying to get in there and mix it up.

4. Props and protection

Amateur, collegiate & professional, should the goalposts move?

“The NCAA sounded the alarm on the harassment of athletes, coaches, and officials. Would eliminating certain prop bets help address this issue and protect against integrity concerns? Can regulators and other entities play a part in addressing these concerns?”

Come for David Purdum’s hat, and stay for a loaded panel dissecting integrity and safety issues in college sports, including whether player prop bets need to become a relic.

This lineup of hitters includes Mark Hicks, managing director of enforcement and development at the NCAA; Matt Fowler, head of global operations, International Betting Integrity Association; and Eric Frank, co-CEO of IC360. This is a deep-dive panel likely to provide tremendous insight on one of the major negative by-products of the spread of legal sports betting in the United States.

5. Getting real about fantasy

Paid fantasy sports & sports betting — legislation & regulation differences

“Lessons to glean from the variation in legislation and regulation for fantasy sports versus sports betting. There are vast differences between what is required of operators for fantasy sports compared to sports betting. This panel of experts examines restrictions, legislation, and pending legislation to empower businesses with knowledge of how to navigate those differences.”

Ohio Casino Control Commission General Counsel Andromeda Morrison is on this panel, and learning what Ohio regulators are thinking is crucial, because Ohio, in general, doesn’t play around.

Another speaker, Alan Wilmot, leads the gaming department of the Heitner Legal PLLC. Expect deft insights on a form of gaming that has been overshadowed but not destroyed by sports betting.