The 2026 FIFA World Cup Will Test More Than Platforms. Featured in Global Gaming Insider, Christine Virardi explores why leadership, workforce capacity, and organisational readiness may prove just as critical as technology during the industry's biggest moments.

If you’re an iGaming professional weighing your next move, gross salary is the wrong number to look at. The iGaming EU partnered with HRLadderBox, to bring on a full salary benchmark across the UK, Gibraltar, Malta and Cyprus.

The iGaming industry has never had more access to data, technology, and automation than it does today. Yet the most important hiring decisions remain remarkably human.

From AI’s impact on junior hiring to the recalibration of compensation and remote work, HRLadderBox has a clear view of how recruitment decisions are actually being made in 2026.

Teams are being reshaped mid-cycle. Companies are making decisions they wouldn’t have considered 18 months ago.

In iGaming, speed of response depends on people and the environment that signals when it is safe to act. Risk doesn’t fail organisations, waiting does.

We have launched iGaming Job Hub with its core aim beeing to connect job seekers with anyone who is on the hunt for great talent. Strictly iGaming jobs, globally. Powered by HRLadderBox.

No marketing campaign can save a bad product, you fix the product first. The same goes for people. You can throw perks, slogans, and fancy programs, but if the foundation isn’t solid, nothing sticks.

I advise companies to use referrals, but I also advise them to control them. The risk is not a single bad hire, the risk is creating a hiring system that gradually favors familiarity over merit.

In this conversation with Gaming Port, Christine Virardi shares insights on Africa’s evolving iGaming workforce.