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In LATAM, which markets do you currently consider most relevant for affiliation and why—by volume, regulatory maturity, conversion, or stability—and how does your strategy differ between Brazil, the Southern Cone, and Central America?
Today, for a gambling affiliation company, Brazil remains the largest market in terms of volume, but the landscape has changed substantially following the implementation of online gaming regulation and the consolidation of the federal regulatory framework. Higher requirements, stricter advertising restrictions, tighter controls on bonuses and promotional messaging, and an actively enforced oversight environment have reduced the room for mass acquisition and forced the channel to professionalize, raising entry barriers and concentrating the market among operators with stronger investment capacity and compliance capabilities.
As an indirect consequence, part of the regional expansion focus has shifted toward the Southern Cone, particularly Argentina, where the province-based regulatory scheme has enabled sustained growth of the online market. This has been supported by strong investment from both international and local operators, who have increased spending on brand, sponsorships, and performance. This dynamism has been further reinforced by the adjustment in the Brazilian market, generating greater competition and opportunities for affiliates with jurisdictional segmentation capabilities.
In parallel, Chile is showing relevant growth driven by high investment and brand consolidation—even within a regulatory environment still in transition—replicating the pattern observed in other South American countries where the expectation of formal regulation encourages early positioning.
In Central America, the landscape is heterogeneous: jurisdictions with more structured frameworks and formal supervision coexist alongside gray areas or limited regulation. This forces affiliate agencies to adopt prudent strategies, prioritizing compliance, rigorous operator selection, and sustainable acquisition models in anticipation of potential regulatory changes.
How are the new regulations impacting the affiliation model (advertising, KYC, responsible gaming, bonus/influencer restrictions), and what concrete adjustments are you making to continue growing without reputational or regulatory risk?
At Eightroom, we have seen how new gambling regulations—especially regarding advertising, bonus promotion, influencer usage, KYC, and responsible gaming—have transformed the affiliation model, reducing the space for aggressive acquisition strategies and significantly raising compliance standards.
In response, we have integrated compliance as a central pillar of our growth. We developed market-specific regulatory playbooks, apply strict segmentation and localization, prioritize informative and transparent content over purely promotional messaging, implement pre-approval processes for creatives and influencers, and work exclusively with properly licensed operators.
Additionally, we have strengthened continuous monitoring and contractual clauses to ensure traceability and risk mitigation, focusing on qualified and sustainable traffic that protects both the reputation and regulatory viability of our partners and Eightroom.
The role of influencers and social media is increasingly central: how do you build authority and trust in a saturated environment—what metrics and criteria do you use to select partners, measure traffic quality, and prioritize long-term relationships?
At Eightroom, we understand that influencers and social media are now a strategic pillar, but in a saturated environment differentiation depends on real authority, not just reach. To select partners, we prioritize audience affinity, regulatory compliance history, brand coherence, and engagement quality over raw follower volume. We analyze metrics such as real interaction rate, audience demographics, retention, and content consistency.
From a performance standpoint, we measure traffic quality through FTD rate, registration conversion, completed verification/KYC rate, ARPU, 30/60/90-day retention, and churn levels, along with risk indicators such as chargebacks or anomalous patterns.
We prioritize long-term relationships with creators who generate sustainable traffic aligned with responsible gaming and compliance standards, establishing transparent agreements, continuous monitoring, and joint optimization beyond short-term campaign activations.
How do you see the future of affiliation in LATAM toward 2026?
Toward 2026, affiliation in LATAM will evolve into a more mature and regulated model, where growth will be driven by traffic quality and regulatory compliance rather than mass volume. Regulatory consolidation in markets such as Brazil, the structured development in Argentina, and legislative progress in Chile will continue raising entry barriers and favor affiliates with strong compliance infrastructure and data analytics capabilities.
Additionally, the 2026 FIFA World Cup will have a direct and significant impact on the market. Historically, these events generate extraordinary acquisition peaks, increased registrations, and higher sports betting activity, but they also intensify advertising scrutiny and competition for inventory and audience, requiring early planning of acquisition, retention, and risk management strategies.
In this context, the future of affiliation in the region will combine major cyclical opportunities driven by global sporting events with a growing requirement for professionalization, transparency, and operational sustainability.
