ICE London registrations tracking 26% above 2020 figures

Clarion Gaming said Monday that registrations for April’s return of ICE London are tracking above the like-for-like volumes recorded for the February 2020 show, which was the last live edition of ICE. Over the period March 1 – March 8, registrations were up 26% compared to the same stage of the campaign in 2020, contributing to what is an overall 22% uplift in pre-registrations.

Stuart Hunter, Managing Director of Clarion Gaming believes the upward trend reflects how much value the industry places on having a successful ICE London and the trust the brand commands. He stated in a press release: “Whilst the overall uplift in registrations could be due to a range of historical reasons which may no longer be relevant, the daily registrations that we are receiving as we enter the last month of our visitor campaign stand-up to scrutiny and represent an extremely encouraging level of engagement."

Officials and board members of the European Casino Association (ECA) have given their endorsement for April’s edition of ICE London, with Laurent Lassiaz, CEO of JOA Group, being the latest to lend his support to the event earlier this month. The event has seen a number of exhibitors step down from this year's edition after the confirmation of new April 12-14 dates, including most recently Alfastreet, and the Russo-Ukrainian war also led to cancellation from companies like Slotegrator and SOFTSWISS.

“Industry professionals registering now know about our temporary April dates and are aware that the show floor will look and feel different compared to previous years," Hunter noted. "Other metrics confirm that the audience will comprise a higher proportion of senior C-Level executives as well as those industry professionals that are part of the decision-making and purchasing process. I should add that the overwhelming majority of ICE attendees register in the last 30-days prior to the event and that the figures do not include those registering for the co-located iGB Affiliate London.”

Stuart Hunter, Managing Director of Clarion Gaming.

He added: “The core message is that despite the difficulties facing the industry and the unavoidable problems concerning our enforced temporary dates, ICE London 2022 will be the biggest gathering of the international industry since the last edition of ICE two years ago. We are in close contact with our community of exhibitors and visitors and to a person they are looking forward to being able to reconnect with their customers and suppliers in a live environment. This chimes with our experience running iGB Live! and iGB Affiliate Amsterdam last Autumn which demonstrated quite how much the industry has missed the opportunity to meet face-to-face and the huge commercial value of being able to do so. Data from the broader events industry confirm that nearly seven out of ten buyers (69%) will recommend brands that they have engaged with at live events and there’s no doubt that the return of in-person represents a major opportunity for businesses to bounce-back post-Covid.”

Underlining the core credentials of ICE, Hunter confirmed: “The ICE London experience is underpinned by technology, innovation and opportunity. Visitors will have access to initiatives such as Pitch ICE, the International Casino Conference, World Regulatory Briefing, the ICE VOX conference programme, the expanded Consumer Protection Zone, and our brand-new Hosted Meetings Programme. In addition, there will be no better place for executives in the gaming and gambling industry to receive a comprehensive understanding of the esports phenomenon and how their businesses can benefit from it."

“ICE has always set the tone for the year ahead and the stands at ExCeL London will be brimming with the many hundreds of new innovative products and services that will be making their debut at ICE London and that have the potential to transform the industry. ICE is very much open for business and as a team we are looking forward to marking the return of the industry in the company of the industry when it meets next month in London,” Hunter concluded.