Over 40 years in media, PR, and strategic consulting, Chris Bird has moved from regional newspapers to the Chief Operating Officer of Manchester City, from an advisor to JD Sports to the CEO of Raheem Sterling Foundation. He has worked with Betfred and Disney, sat on boards during crises, and made decisions where mistakes were costly. Bird knows the gap between a well-written strategy and the reality of operational management – that's exactly why his questions are uncomfortable.

SBC Summit Malta is one of the industry's key venues, annually setting the agenda for operators, affiliates, and regulators from around the world. This year, the conference is held on the eve of the largest football tournament in history. On April 29 at the InterContinental Malta, Bird will take the stage for the panel “Summer of Football: Betting Predictions and Market Movers.” 

He joins the discussion as a recently appointed consultant to 1xBet, a move that reinforces the brand’s commitment to strengthening its global integrity and social responsibility initiatives. As someone who knows the industry from the inside, Bird will highlight five challenges for the market—each deserving of an honest discussion. Five challenges for the market – and each deserves an honest discussion.

Challenge one: where does the money really come from?

"Where does the money really come from? Let's not guess. Let's be honest."

Bird raises the question directly: what really generates revenue during a major tournament? Pre-match predictions have long since given way to in-play – and it's no longer a trend, but the new norm. Users who previously placed a single bet before a match now interact with the platform for the entire 90 minutes. Every corner, every substitution is a new entry point.

But there's a more pressing question: are predictions as a betting format new money for the industry or simply a redistribution of existing revenue? Expanding a product line only makes sense when it attracts new users, not when it cannibalizes existing ones. This is a question every operator and affiliate must answer honestly.

Challenge two: emotion is more important than transaction – but do you understand what drives a fan?

"Fans first, always. This is a global football tournament, emotional and not just transactional."

48 teams and 104 matches – a significantly larger scale than the audience has seen before. Bird asks a question many prefer not to voice: does the expanded format dilute interest in the tournament? And – even more pressing – do fans still bet on their national teams, or do they follow hype, content, and influencers?

For affiliates, this is a direct signal: if audience behavior has shifted from national loyalty to sentimental following of trends, conversion-driven content must change along with it. Those who understand the fan better than their competitors win not only in clicks but also in LTV.

Bird puts it bluntly: "If we don't understand the fan, none of the product stuff matters." Psychology first, technology second.

Challenge three: if it's slow, the user leaves.

"The experience has to work, simple as that. If it's slow, people leave."

Bird isn't talking about UX in the abstract. A user placing a bet on a smartphone during a match won't wait for it to load, navigate the menu, or give a second chance to a platform that can't handle traffic at the moment of a goal. According to industry research, more than 82% of fans use mobile apps while watching a game.

The main football tournament of the summer of 2026 will be won through speed and simplicity. This is a technical requirement, not a marketing slogan. Mobile-first in 2026 is the only standard that matters. Platforms that haven't adapted to it risk losing users within the first seconds of interaction.

Challenge four: speed raises the stakes

"Trust and responsibility. We can't ignore this. Faster betting means more risk."

Bird draws a direct connection that the industry sometimes prefers not to say out loud: the faster the betting, the higher the risk for the user. The more products, the higher the operator's responsibility. And if the market gets this balance wrong, the consequences will affect everyone, without exception.

This isn't regulatory rhetoric, but operational reality. Bird frames this as a systemic risk: an industry that scales a product faster than it can build protective mechanisms creates precedents that then shape the regulatory agenda for the entire market. Responsible Gaming is the foundation of long-term sustainability for all participants.

Challenge five: what happens after the final?

"The reality for operators and affiliates. This cannot be dressed up. What happens after the final?"

The panel's most practical question is also the most important for affiliates. The tournament lasts about six weeks. After the final whistle, there's silence. How to retain player LTV when the football calendar is empty?

Bird raises the issue of casino cross-selling: where it's appropriate when there are no matches, and how to build a transition from sports betting to other verticals without losing users. Every operator faces this in real time. And those who plan their retention strategy in advance, rather than after the final whistle, win in the long run.

Advice for affiliates: how to capitalize on this moment

Chris Bird's panel at SBC Malta is more than a discussion. It's an analytical cross-section of the market from someone who has seen the betting industry up close. Each question is a direct signal of where traffic and conversion will concentrate – a guide for affiliates.

The dominance of in-play is a signal to build content around live moments: express pre-match previews, in-game updates, and real-time reactions to key events, and convert better than static materials. The emotional nature of the tournament reminds us that the audience makes decisions with their hearts, not their heads: content in the language of fans drives more engagement than odds. Speed is a direct requirement for partner entry points: if a landing page isn't optimized for mobile, traffic disappears before it converts.

1xPartners is an iGaming affiliate program with a ready-made infrastructure: 500 000+ partners in 150+ countries, RevShare up to 50%, and CPA up to $150 per player. Flexible payouts and personal support help you build strategies for any type of traffic and audience.

Bird asks questions. The time to find answers is before the tournament starts.