The semi-official figures from this year’s edition of ICE London are in, and event host Clarion Gaming has tentatively announced that they expect the attendance to tally over 40,000, which would represent a new record.
ICE 2020, which took place just before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, saw a total of 36,000 attendees, and the downsized edition of the show in 2022 drew just 24,000.
In a statement, Clarion Managing Director Stuart Hunter said that while it’s “important to stress that the data is subject to independent verification,” the company is “confident that ICE has broken through the 40,000 high point and in the process set a new attendance record for a show which in its original format dates back to the 1930s.”
“Furthermore, the number of visitor days which measures return visits, stands at 79,000,” Hunter added. “Clearly these are really significant numbers and I believe they reflect the huge importance and value that visitors attach to their ICE experience.”
Broken down by sector, Hunter said the percentage of operators who featured both land-based and online offerings versus those who just operate online was split nearly 50-50.
Additionally, approximately 20,000 attendees were from the casino and games sectors, whereas some 13,000 were associated with sports betting. Hunter also celebrated the growth of the payments sector, which drew over 5,000 attendees.
According to Clarion, more than 80 percent of the stand space for 2024 has already been booked; next year’s show could be the last in London for at least five years, as the company is soliciting bids from Barcelona, Madrid and Paris to host the show from 2025 through 2029.
