As ICE and iGB prepare to bid farewell to London next week with a record number of attendees projected, Yogonet caught up with Stuart Hunter, Clarion’s Managing Director, and Naomi Barton, iGB Events Portfolio Director, to learn more about the can’t-miss features of the expos and how this year will feel different from past editions.
Before the shows relocate to Barcelona, the ICE expo will be held from February 6 to 8 at ExCeL London for the last time, the venue that has hosted ICE since 2013, and will feature 800+ exhibitors from across the globe. Sister show iGB Affiliate, aimed at the iGaming affiliate community, runs Feb. 6 – 9, also at the ExCeL exhibition center.
What should attendees not miss in ICE and iGB? What highlights set the 2024 edition apart?
ICE includes features such as the award-winning Consumer Protection Zone, which will be the biggest in its history, the ICE Esports Arena, the International Casino Conference, the World Regulatory Briefing, Pitch ICE, Fast Forward, The Growth Markets Zone and the High Street Hub. At iGB Affiliate we have iGB INTRODUCING, iGB ASCEND and the IGB Affiliate Awards.
Building on the tremendous success of last year’s show, we’ve delved deep to elevate the ICE experience. With our proud campaign focused on “MORE,” this year’s historic events offer an unparalleled array of ideas, opportunities, product exclusives, education, and experiences.
MORE is a pledge to the entire industry to deliver in a way that only ICE can and that’s by connecting the entire gaming community of suppliers, operators, legislators and regulators. The ICE team has worked tirelessly to provide the industry with the most professional, authentic and business-centric environment possible fuelled by MORE: connections, MORE: inspiration and MORE: learning.
Visitors to both shows have access to a dynamic schedule of events delivering opportunities to connect and engage as soon as they make their way through the doors at ExCeL London.
Given this is the event’s last edition in London before it relocates to Barcelona, in which ways do you anticipate the expo to feel different from previous years?
There’s no doubt that this edition of ICE, the last to be held in London prior to our relocation to Barcelona, will be an extremely poignant occasion for many of our exhibitors.
From January 2025 Fira de Barcelona will be the epicenter for the international ICE and iGB Affiliate communities in a city that is rich in culture and which exudes a spirit of innovation. This week our collective focus is on delivering exceptional editions of ICE and iGB Affiliate, saying a huge thank you to ExCeL London for hosting our events so professionally and for being such an important part of their success.
Any message to share with attendees before the event? Why shouldn’t they miss this year’s expo?
ICE and iGB Affiliate will be bidding farewell to London in quite spectacular style showcasing a record 811 exhibitors from 76 nations and occupying close to 60,000 sqm of net space at ExCeL London. It’s totally fitting that the last editions of ICE and iGB Affiliate to be held in London prior to the relocation to Barcelona in 2025 will be taking over the entirety of ExCeL. We are using every square millimeter of available space on the show floor, all of ExCeL’s meeting rooms, the main boulevard and the ICC Capital Suite in order to provide a panoramic window on the world of gaming.
Once again we are expecting a truly global attendance, an intoxicating energy, a proliferation of new ideas, new connections, world-beating networking opportunities and of course the very best concentration of the industry’s most significant innovators and suppliers.
I believe that the many thousands of global gaming professionals attending ICE/iGB Affiliate will be party to the most attractive and comprehensive representation of the industry across all jurisdictions and all verticals that have ever been held anywhere in the world. I’ve said it previously, but I believe ICE and iGB Affiliate 2024 will go down as ‘I was there’ moments in the history of the industry.
