17: 12BET (2016)

For the opposite marketing strategy to SBOBET, read 12BET, which has been using its access to a UK licence to full effect in order to further raise its profile in Asia.

The predominantly Asia-facing operator secured major sponsorship deals with the sides that finished first and second in the Premier League last season, Leicester City and Arsenal – becoming the latter’s official Asia betting partner.

But while a market leader in Asia, the firm is very much on the periphery in the UK and Europe and will be hoping the aforementioned deals, plus its growing focus on data and personalisation, will in the longer-term deliver a business of genuine scale in its own right.