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It’s a brave new start for iGaming’s most popular and professional Expo – SiGMA Central Europe – which opens next week in Rome from 3rd–6th November 2025.
Organisers are billing it as a ‘scale-up moment for the brand’ in the first time this casino and sports betting expo has been held outside of Malta since its first event in 2014, which attracted a crowd of 1,000.
12 years later and its new home in Italy boasts a larger venue, 30,000+ delegates expected, and a program that blends expo spectacle with keynotes that are heavy on policies.
From the opening session on the 1st day, the focus is firmly on real industry news. The opening ceremony is set to feature European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, alongside Italy’s Deputy PM Antonio Tajani.
This signals a week where regulation, market access and consumer protection share the stage with product reveals. For followers who track where product and policy intersect, it’s a strong statement of intent.
The expo floor brings together familiar platforms, providers, and payment companies, but on an even bigger stage than has previously been held in the Malta Week.
The organisation cites over 1,200 sponsors and exhibitors, four conference stages and a 100,000 square-metre exhibition space.
If last year’s SiGMA Europe 2024 is any guide (27,000 attendees and an expanded expo), Rome should attract more visitors, with more first-time booths and an overflow of traffic around the bigger brands.
Due to the growth and newfound potential in the Italian iGaming market, it’s also likely that there’ll be a lot of Italian first-timers getting involved in Sigma this year.
Who’s Who and What’s What
Announcements in the run-up point to names across payments, platforms and content.
CoinsPaid is inviting meetings around crypto payment systems for operators; EGT is unveiling new slot machines and fresh game titles; and prior winners such as SOFTSWISS (SiGMA Europe’s 2024 “Best Platform Provider”) typically use this time to preview their latest software updates in live partner demos.
For players and those interested in the industry, that translates to live demos of faster and easier ID verification systems, AI-driven compliance, and upgrades to live casino and crash/instant game frameworks.
Beyond the booths, the conference will include themed sessions covering topics that dominated recent summits. This will include esports betting growth, payments, and new market opportunities across Central and Southern Europe.
If Malta’s 2024 conversations on Brazil and esports were any indicator, Rome should offer panels with equally useful insights. It should undoubtedly benefit players curious about what updates might be rolled out by casino sites in the first half of 2026.
For casual players curious about why this matters: big shows like SiGMA are where upcoming casino features start to take shape. Expect to hear about faster withdrawals via streamlined networks, stronger responsible gaming tools built into player accounts, seasonal content (like holiday events), and clearer bonus disclosure. These are areas that the larger suppliers have been discussing since last winter’s circuit. The large exhibitor lineup in Rome suggests these small player improvements are becoming standard.
What’s Next?
Rome is framed as a “new chapter” for the brand, with a venue size, speaker lineup, and exhibitor count to match. If Malta 2024 was the turning point, Central Europe 2025 will test whether a bigger venue and bigger names can deliver changes players notice. As the year winds down, expect the deals made in Rome to shape which new features will appear at online casinos first in 2026.
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