At IGC Malaga 2025, Jeremy Castillo from Affnook was joined by Marie and Mariona from PokerStars for an engaging discussion on the brand’s multi-vertical growth strategy and evolving affiliate approach.
Mariona, the affiliate manager, and Marie, the junior affiliate manager at PokerStars, shared their insights on the ever-changing technologies in the iGaming field. They elaborated on the importance of networking and keeping up to date with the trends for a brand like PokerStars.
PokerStars at a Glance
As they introduced PokerStars, Marie and Mariona explained that the company focuses on providing poker, casino, and sports games.
Launched in 2001, PokerStars is an online poker room platform and is home to some of the most popular and largest selections of online games.
It is known to run ‘the most prestigious online tournaments’, including the World Championship of Online Poker, the Spring Championship of Online Poker, the European Poker Tour, and the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure.
In recent times, they have launched some of the most popular and innovative exclusive games that cannot be commonly found.
Apart from its game offerings, PokerStar also provides player protection and supports responsible gaming. To bring this idea to action, they provide proper education to their players and offer a range of tools and services to help players stay in control.
All of these initiatives further strengthen the reputation of the platform in the field of online gaming.
Expansion Goals and Market Focus
When discussing PokerStar’s growth strategy with Marie and Mariona, they emphasised that the company is looking for traffic and networking in the iGaming industry to stay ahead of the trends.
Their approach to expansion is connected to understanding markets, maintaining partnerships, and a strong brand presence.
PokerStar’s key target geos include France, Spain, and Portugal, where the brand continues to see its growth through poker, casinos, and sports verticals.
In fact, to further strengthen their international reach, they have a team dedicated to working specifically towards global expansion, exploring new opportunities. Their main focus, however, remains on Europe.
Marie and Mariona further emphasised on the importance of networking and collaboration as they explained how industry events like IGC Malaga, help them stay connected with affiliates and market trends.
“It is great to develop personal relationships because that is what matters the most.”, they added.
They aim to seek new affiliate partnerships and long-term collaborations, and that is exactly the purpose of the iGaming Club Conference.
Outlook for 2025
When discussing their outlook for 2025, Marie and Mariona shared their insights on how the affiliate and iGaming landscape is evolving.
One of the most notable developments is the rapid rise of AI. They further highlighted how “AI is emerging a lot even in the affiliate industry,” as it is not restricted to just technology and operations anymore.
They also pointed out how AI influencers and tools are becoming even more common these days. Even traffic is being generated and optimised through AI-powered systems.
As automation and personalization continue to transform traditional marketing strategies, AI has started shaping how brands connect with players.
According to the PokerStars team, the affiliate industry is experiencing a “shift in trends, driven not only by technological innovation but also by regulatory changes across markets.” These factors are encouraging affiliates to diversify their approaches and adopt more data-driven models.
Furthermore, they discussed the generational shift within the industry as they highlighted, “We’re seeing a lot more younger influencers entering the space, the focus is expanding beyond traditional SEO and PPC.”
Closing Thoughts
As part of their ongoing efforts to stay connected with the latest trends and industry discussions, PokerStars plans to attend major conferences in 2025, including iGB London and SBC Malta, among others.
These events, they said, are key opportunities to network, exchange ideas, and strengthen partnerships.
Marie and Mariona closed the conversation by emphasizing that adaptability and connection remain at the core of PokerStars’ strategy.
