Winamax Readying for European Expansion

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Thursday, March 1st, 2018 | Written by Charles Washington

The online poker industry was born on January 1, 1998, and one of the sites that has been a feature of the industry ever since is Winamax, which launched the following year. Since then, it has grown to become the number one online poker room in France, and over the years has sponsored a number of notable pros to help promote the site in its native country.

The new European poker liquidity deal that was agreed last year and has already started to gather momentum in 2018, however, has resulted in Winamax gearing its latest signings towards a wider European audience. As it prepares to expand its operation to Italy, Spain, and Portugal, Winamax has now adjusted its sponsorship approach accordingly in order to achieve its ambitious marketing goals.

Background

Winamax initially enjoyed an early mover advantage after its launch in 1999, but during poker’s boom era (2003-06) many other sites entered the space, creating significant competition for the site. Nevertheless, Winamax chose to almost exclusively concentrate its efforts on the French market, rather than trying to enter into direct competition against sites such as PokerStars, with its reputation further enhanced by its French sponsored pros who gave a more personal feel to the site.

Post-Black Friday during which time numerous sites closed down, Winamax was then able to continue thriving as its never relied upon American players or the wider worldwide market to survive, and as of today it remains France’s biggest online poker room, as well as the sixth largest poker site in the world.

European Expansion

The shared liquidity arrangement involving France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal, however, presents Winamax with a unique opportunity to take its brand to some of Europe’s biggest markets, and elevate its business to a new level of success. Even before the deal was agreed in the summer of 2017, however, Winamax had taken steps to prepare for such an eventuality, and for several years now has been recruiting multi-lingual staff, keeping an eye on potential European competitors, and, of course, considering the pros who may best enhance its reputation across European borders.

Enter the Pros

Winamax continues to have an impressive line up of French sponsored pros, and amongst those currently representing the site are Patrick Bruel, Sylvain Loosli, Michel Abecassis, Bruno Lopes, Gaelle Baumann, Ivan Deyra, Romain Lewis, Guillaume Diaz, and Pierre Calamusa.

Over the past several months, Winamax has also started implementing its plan to recruit some of the best non-French players to represent it across its various new markets. In October 2017, Winamax subsequently signed Spain’s Adrian Mateos Diaz and Italy’s Mustapha Kanit to its sponsored pro team. Furthermore, both players appear atop of their respective country’s ‘All Time Money List’, with Mustapha Kanit currently on $10,730,726 in live tournament winnings, and Adrian Mateos on $13,390,567, including having won 3 WSOP bracelets.

Latest Recruits

This week, Winamax followed up by signing Leo Margets from Spain and João Vieira from Portugal to complete a team in which all its potential European markets are now covered. Commenting upon its newest recruits, Winamax Team coach Stéphane Matheu said:

“Leo and João are two players with very different profiles, but who synergize perfectly with our team spirit. Both players are very friendly and approachable, in addition to being hard workers. Leo has a lot of experience on the circuit, and even beyond: she has much to bring to the Team. João is, in my opinion, the most accomplished Portuguese player in poker.”

Leo Margets is Spain’s second most successful female poker player with $987,114 in winnings, just a short distance behind Ana Laura Marquez Esteban on $1,134,523. The player notably finished the 2009 WSOP Main Event in 39th place for $352,832, still representing her biggest score to date. Nevertheless, her career continues to go from strength to strength and in 2017 Margets recorded her third most successful year to date with $101,486 in earnings, with one of its highlights being a 3rd place finish at the PokerStars Festival Marbella Main Event for $80,244.

Meanwhile, João Vieira is Portugal’s fourth most winning player with $1,298,151 in earnings, including in 2014 finishing 8th at the $25,500 PCA High Roller for $157,940. The ex-basketball pro is also a prolific online player, and commenting upon his signing with Winmax, explained:

“I am a big fan of the Winamax software and tournaments. I am very happy to be able to represent a site that tries to have a positive impact on the community.”