ESG Strategy

Sustainability and commitment

As a leader in the Belgian gambling market, it is incredibly important for GAMING1 to adopt a strong ESG strategy. The group instills values of responsibility and ethics into all its operations in order to ensure a secure and 100% legal framework for its players, to promote the well-being of its employees, and to minimize its environmental impact. Through concrete commitments to responsible gaming, transparent governance and social initiatives, the group positions itself as a model of sustainability in the gaming industry.

GAMING1 is fully aware of its societal role and ethical responsibility in combating problematic gaming behavior. The group is committed to providing a regulated and secure gaming environment to its players, and has placed responsible gaming at the heart of its overall strategy for many years.

Tools for prevention and player protection

In order to anticipate and prevent problematic behavior, we have implemented various player protection measures which include: moderation and self-regulation tools, displays in our gaming halls, prevention campaigns, links to help centers and personalized emails sent to vulnerable players.

We also introduced our own proactive detection tool, a cutting-edge technology powered by AI and data science, designed to identify early signs of gambling dependency through risk indicators. This tool then allows us to quickly offer help to players in difficulty.

BAGO signs the Duty of Care Convention

In November 2023, GAMING1 and 5 other operators, all members of the Belgian Association of Gaming Operators (BAGO), of which our CEO Emmanuel Mewissen is the vice-president, proudly signed the Duty of Care Convention. This agreement establishes a clear framework requiring each operator to develop a prevention policy aimed at quickly identifying and addressing problematic gaming behavior, based on scientific criteria.

Support for the research

To date, we have provided significant financial support to research initiatives. These funds were allocated to the University of Brussels to deepen the understanding and support of individuals facing gambling addiction. One of our main objectives through this approach is to deepen the understanding of the mechanisms of addiction, which could also be beneficial for other addictive behaviors, such as those linked to social networks and video games.

Illegal gambling sites

In a rapidly digitalizing world, the growth of online gambling has led to an increase in illegal gambling websites that do not comply with legal requirements in terms of advertising, deposit limits, minimum legal age or payment methods, and which pose numerous risks to players.

Legal gambling websites provide a permanent point of contact with a regulatory authority, offer support for player questions and complaints, and offer a safe and 100% legal gaming environment.

To raise awareness among players about the differences between legal and illegal online gambling, as well as the dangers of the latter, we display the logo "Always Play Legally" on our Belgian websites, which directs users to a list of legal gambling websites.
 

Top Employer

For the fourth consecutive year, the GAMING1 group is proud to have received the prestigious Top Employer certification. This recognition, awarded by the Top Employers Institute, evaluates companies around the world on their HR practices.

GAMING1 is currently the only Belgian gaming operator to have obtained this certification, which demonstrates our ongoing commitment to improving the working conditions of our employees. Our corporate culture, based on values such as pleasure, team spirit, integrity, boldness and performance, has contributed to our success in employer branding and integration processes for new employees.

Our commitment to protecting our staff

At GAMING1, integrity is a core value. We prioritize mental and social well-being, champion diversity and ensure non-discriminatory practices in recruitment and operations. We promote respect, freedom of association and a work environment free from harassment. We ensure compliance with health and safety standards, as well as fundamental human rights, and we oppose human trafficking, child labor and forced labor.

Training program

As a leader in the gaming industry in Belgium, GAMING1 aims to become a global reference in the prevention of gaming addiction. To achieve this goal, we rely on our motivated employees, whom we support in their personal and professional development. We offer training tailored to their general and role-specific needs, to enable them to develop their talents and achieve their goals. Each employee attends at least three days of training per year covering a wide variety of subjects. Finally, each staff member has a personal budget to follow the training courses of their choice.
 

Ardent Awards

Created in 2016 by Emmanuel Mewissen and Nicolas Léonard, CEO and CSO of GAMING1, the Ardent Awards support the local community network by rewarding projects that address societal issues, such as childhood, disability, ecology, employment and integration. Over the course of the first 7 editions, more than €550,000 has been donated through 75 grants to nonprofit organizations in the province of Liège.

GAMING1 is part of the Ardent Group portfolio, a Liège group sharing values of solidity, curiosity and loyalty, with the ambition of participating responsibly in the economic redevelopment of Wallonia through entrepreneurial and societal projects

Digital for youth

We support Digital for Youth, a nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing the digital divide in Belgium for children and young people aged 6 to 25. The organization works with companies like ours to collect and recondition used laptops. Their goal is to ensure that every young person has access to a laptop, enabling them to thrive in a digital world. In addition, Digital for Youth also recycles our non-functional computers to recover spare parts.

Charity Poker Tournament

For the past three years, we have been organizing an annual poker tournament for the benefit of a charity, open to all our employees. In 2024, €8,175 was collected for the Restos du Cœur, who fight against poverty and exclusion by distributing meals to people in need and providing them with social support.

Support for sports and charitable associations

One of Gaming1's main objectives as a group is to engage with positive initiatives that benefit people across many fields and sectors of activity.

In 2024, we offered some of our employees the opportunity to devote half a day to volunteering for the Restos du Cœur. We also organized a capsule collection to fund the Natuurhulpcentrum. In addition, our solidarity Family Day, open to employees and their families, highlighted several local organizations during an open day.

Finally, we also actively support the sports community through sponsorship partnerships with various teams, such as the Brussels Basketball Club, the RAEC Mons and Intermarché-Wanty.
 

Compliance Policies

To structure the governance of the GAMING1 Group, we rely on :

  • The Code of Conduct, which defines the standards of responsible and ethical behavior expected of all GAMING1 employees.

  • The Anti-Corruption Policy, which details the strategies implemented within GAMING1 to combat unethical practices.

  • The Whistleblowing Policy, which outlines the steps employees can take to report any unethical behavior they observe within the company

Operating only on 100% regulated markets

We favor countries with strict gambling regulations to protect players and prevent abuse. We are present online and physically in Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Portugal, Switzerland and Spain, countries with well-defined regulations for this sector. We comply with these regulations and maintain our licenses in each of these countries. Operating in fully regulated markets not only ensures our compliance, but also the long-term sustainability of our business.

ISO 27001:2013 Certification

GAMING1 is committed to personal and confidential data protection, in compliance with GDPR and thanks to its ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification, obtained in 2018. This certification allows us to continually improve the security of our information and protect ourselves against cyberattacks and data breaches. Going forward, our goal is to maintain this certification while continually strengthening our information security practices.
 

Expanding the scope of our carbon footprint assessment

For the second consecutive year, we are delving deeper into the analysis of GAMING1's
carbon footprint. Last year, we focused this assessment on the CO2 emissions of our
headquarters in Belgium and our international online activities. This year, we have expanded
this scope to include all of our casinos and gaming halls in Belgium. In the coming years, we
also aim to integrate our landbased activities abroad.

This categorization allows us to target our actions on the most significant sources of impact
and thus reduce our carbon footprint in order to better respect the planet.

2022 2023
Total Carbon footprint 4.023 tCO2e* 5.393,42 tCO2e
Scope 1 emissions 942 tCO2e* 1.383,09 tCO2e
Scope 2 emissions 71 tCO2e* 1.188,47 tCO2e
Scope 3 emissions 3.010 tCO2e* 2.821,86 tCO2e

*Scope: head office in Liège (if no *, the figures correspond to Belgian landbased + online
operations)

Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) membership

SBTi helps businesses set science-based decarbonization targets aligned with limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Since the end of 2023, GAMING1 has been committed to this initiative, starting by establishing a short-term goal to reduce its carbon footprint. Through its latest assessment, the group will develop a roadmap to decarbonize its activities in line with SBTi guidelines. This objective will be defined from 2025.

Launch of the Sustainable Procurement project

Following our 2022 EcoVadis assessment, which highlighted necessary improvements in our purchasing policy, we have implemented certain measures. By the end of 2023, we required our suppliers to comply with our Code of Conduct, which reflects our ethical and environmental standards. Suppliers who fail to comply with these values risk termination of their contract. We aim to refine our selection criteria and choose new suppliers based on their sustainable practices.

BREEAM Certification

GAMING1’s main offices in Liège and Malta have obtained BREEAM certification, demonstrating our commitment to environmental performance. This certification evaluates buildings on criteria such as energy efficiency, water management, greenhouse gas emissions, indoor air quality, use of sustainable materials and waste management. We are proud to have achieved a 'Very Good' rating for both sites

Soft mobility

Our Hub, strategically located opposite the Guillemins train station and several bus stops, illustrates a carefully designed initiative to promote mobility, accessibility and carbon footprint reduction. We also encourage sustainable mobility by providing four shared bicycles that our employees can reserve via our intranet.

We also favor remote meetings over traditional business trips as part of our commitment to reducing our environmental impact. With the same aim in mind, and taking into account our many employees and partners abroad, we limit business travel as much as possible. The daily use of tools like Microsoft Teams also allows us to combine efficiency and environmental responsibility. In addition, our employees benefit from the option to work remotely up to 50% of the time, therefore significantly reducing commutes.
 

Ecovadis

EcoVadis certification assesses companies on their environmental, social and ethical impact based on the principles of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). In 2024, we proudly achieved the silver medal for the third time. This distinction places us among the top 15% of companies rated worldwide by EcoVadis.

With an overall score of 71%, we are particularly pleased with our progress in environmental practices, labor rights, human rights and ethics.

The EcoVadis label is essential for assessing our current performance and identifying areas for improvement. We use these findings to continue to improve our sustainability practices, including a focus on responsible sourcing.

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