Inside an Affiliate Program: How an Operator Prices Its Affiliates

An operator’s affiliate program, at its core, is a price list, but the price can typically be found in the program’s legal documentation rather than the public-facing page. Here we will analyze different methods of calculating affiliate payouts (including CPA and RevShare), as well as the NGR and loss carryover. We will also cover a miscellaneous group of issues including fraud, tiers, and revision clauses. We will review sections of contracts from bet365, Entain, FDJ United (Kindred), Super Partners (Betway), and 1win, as well as Q2 2026 reports from publicly listed affiliates.

Key Takeaways

• The percentage in the contract is not the price yet. The price is determined by the net revenue formula. In FDJ United’s definition of net revenue, in addition to bonuses, taxes, and fees, there is a “35% administration fee.” According to 15M’s calculations, a British casino player with a GGR of £1,000 and a 25% commission rate generated £122.5 for the affiliate until April 1, 2026, and £75 after the remote gaming duty increased to 40%;
• The market continues to be driven by RevShare. At Better Collective, RevShare accounted for 49% of revenue in Q2 2026, while CPA accounted for 22%; 70% of new depositing players came through RevShare agreements. CPA is growing in markets where operators need to quickly build volume: in North America, it grew by 50%, driven by prediction markets;
• The agreements give the operator the flexibility to adjust terms. Entain may change the commission rate with 15 days’ notice, but only for new players. FDJ United can do this if the deal is unprofitable or the affiliate has referred fewer than 6 depositing players in 3 months. Super Partners gradually reduces the base 25% to zero if the affiliate fails to recruit active players.

Three Models and What the Operator Buys in Each One

The definitions are provided in Grandstand’s financial reports (Gambling.com Group until July 2026). CPA is a one-time payment for each referred player. RevShare is a share of the player’s NGR for the entire duration of their engagement with the product. Hybrid – both of the above for the same players.

For the operator, these are three different risk allocations. When paying CPA, the operator acquires the player outright and bears the risk that the player won’t pay for themselves. When paying RevShare, the operator shifts this risk to the affiliate and pays only from actual revenue generated, but gives up a share of that revenue permanently. The hybrid model splits the risk: the affiliate receives a smaller fixed payment and a smaller percentage.

Reports from public affiliates show how this translates into revenue. At Better Collective, revenue grew by 9% in the second quarter of 2026, reaching €89 million. RevShare accounted for €43.6 million (49%), CPA for €19.5 million (22%), sponsorship for 18%, CPM for 6%, and subscriptions for 5%. At Raketech, RevShare accounted for 44.4% of revenue in the same quarter, upfront payments (i.e., CPA) for 22.3%, and fixed placement fees for 33.3%. At Grandstand, 61% of revenue ($23.2 million out of $37.8 million) came from performance marketing, which includes CPA, RevShare, and hybrid models. The company does not disclose the breakdown among these categories.

How Much Does a Player Cost: Benchmarks by Tier

Track360, an affiliate software vendor, compiled commission rates for the 12-month period from the third quarter of 2025 to the second quarter of 2026. The sources include anonymous data from its own platform and published rate cards. This represents the perspective of a single provider rather than a comprehensive market survey, but it does provide a general sense of the figures.

Table 1. iGaming Affiliate Commission Rates, Q3 2025–Q2 2026. Source: Track360, “Affiliate Commission Rates Benchmark 2026” (July 18, 2026). The rate for Brazil (25–40%) has been excluded from the table: the market has been closed since September 25, 2026.

Here are two more figures from the same source. About 45% of new deals in Tier 1 are hybrid deals. In roughly 4 out of 5 deals in regulated markets, the CPA is paid only after qualification: minimum deposit, betting turnover, and GEO match.

From LTV to CPA: How an Operator Calculates the Price

The logic behind any CPA rate is a backward calculation based on the player’s expected value. The operator takes the projected NGR for a new cohort over the payback horizon, decides what percentage it is willing to pay for acquiring the player, and discounts that amount to account for the risk that the player will not live long enough to reach the projected value.

Here’s a calculation from 15M using hypothetical figures. Let’s say a Tier-1 depositing casino player generates $800 in NGR over 24 months. With a 30% RevShare, the affiliate will receive $240 from that player over two years. If the operator pays the same amount upfront, they assume the risk and factor in a discount (for example, 15%), so the maximum CPA is about $204. The $100 + 20% hybrid model gives the affiliate $100 upfront and $160 over two years, for a total of $260. This is more than under a pure RevShare model, but the operator pays only $100 in advance.

This also implies the opposite: the median CPA for a Tier-1 casino ($250 according to Track360), with a 30% share and the same discount, implies a two-year NGR per player of approximately $980. If an affiliate’s cohorts generate less than that, the CPA is unprofitable for the operator, and when renegotiating the deal, the operator will propose a hybrid or a RevShare model.

Qualification: Which Players the Operator Actually Pays For

Baseline is a set of conditions under which a registered user becomes a paying player. It is defined differently in various contracts. At Entain, a “Customer” is a user who places bets or plays with deposited funds totaling at least £10/€10/$10. At bet365, a player must register for the first time and make a deposit within six months, and CPA is paid for an “active” player who wagers deposited funds. At Super Partners, CPA is paid for registration, a minimum deposit, and a minimum wagering volume; the amounts are agreed upon in writing with the affiliate manager and are not specified in the general terms and conditions.

The second part of the baseline is the hold period and the right to refuse payment. 1win Partners holds CPA payments for 7 days. FDJ United reserves the right not to pay CPA for accounts deemed to be engaging in bonus abuse, blocked, closed due to fraud, or subject to self-exclusion. For Super Partners, players with chargebacks are excluded from the CPA calculation.

The NGR Formula: Where the Price Is Actually Hidden

RevShare is calculated not based on GGR, but on a figure that each operator determines on its own. Below are five programs based on their published terms.

Table 2. Affiliate Program Terms and Conditions as of October 22, 2026. Sources: bet365 Partners agreements (ROW, April 1, 2026), Entain Partners (revised May 4, 2026), FDJ United Affiliates (Global T&Cs, March 2026), Super Partners (2026), and the 1win Partners website.

The difference in definitions is what accounts for the difference in price. FDJ United’s “35% administration fee” and bet365 and Entain’s “associated administrative costs” reduce the base even before the percentage is applied. For Super Partners, payments to game providers are deducted from the base; in the article “Where Every Dollar of GGR Goes,” 15M estimated these at approximately 12% of GGR. The 50% of GGR at 1win and the 25% of NR at the European operator cannot be directly compared.

The most obvious example is taxes. As of April 1, 2026, the remote gaming duty in the United Kingdom increased from 21% to 40%, and a new 25% remote rate within the General Betting Duty will apply from 1 April 2027; remote bets on UK horseracing stay at 15%. Almost all contracts deduct taxes from the base amount, so the affiliate also pays the tax.

Calculation from 15M: a British casino player, GGR £1,000, bonuses £150, providers £120, payments £30; tax calculated based on GGR for simplicity. Before April: 1,000 − 150 − 120 − 210 − 30 = £490; at 25%, the affiliate receives £122.5. After: 1,000 − 150 − 120 − 400 − 30 = £300; the affiliate receives £75. The same commission rate in the contract, but 39% less money.

Tiers and Rate Decay

The tier for the affiliate program depends on an affiliate’s volume. With less volume, the rate falls, and vice versa. At Super Partners, the basic rate is 25% net revenue. If an affiliate does not refer 30 active players in the first 6 months, the commission rate falls to 20% of the net revenue. If 60 active players are not referred in the first 12 months, the rate falls to 10% of the net revenue. The rate falls to 5% of the net revenue if 90 active players are not referred in the first 18 months. Finally, the rate falls to 0% of the net revenue if 120 active players are not referred in the next 24 months. Once an affiliate meets their quota, the commission rate for the next month increases to 25% of the net revenue. 

Entain reduces the rate based on the player’s lifetime in the product. On the third anniversary of registration, the commission rate is reduced to the fixed values listed in the table (ranging from 5% to 15%, depending on the product). The operator reserves the right to remove a player from the tracking system or assign them a reduced commission rate if they have not logged into their account for 3 months or have deposited less than £10 over a 3-month period. An affiliate is also considered inactive if they have fewer than 10 new depositing players for three consecutive months or less than £100 in net revenues for any three-month period.

Negative Carryover: Who Pays for the Player’s Winnings?

If an affiliate’s players have won more than they’ve lost in a given month, the NGR goes into the negative. The question is whether this deficit carries over to subsequent months. At bet365, a negative balance in any vertical is deducted from the available commission. At FDJ United, the deficit is carried over by default, and any transaction without a carryover must be approved by the Head of Affiliates. Entain “has the right, but is not obligated” to carry over the deficit, and for Greece, carryover is disabled. Super Partners resets the deficit to zero, except in two cases: fraud and high rollers. A high roller is a player with negative revenue of $10,000 or more per month, when the affiliate’s total deficit for that brand is $2,000 or more. Their deficit is carried over and can only be offset by their own future revenue.

Calculation by 15M at a 30% rate: the affiliate’s NGR is −$8,000, +$5,000, and +$6,000 over three months. With carryover, the negative balance is offset by the third month, and the affiliate receives $900 (30% of $3,000). Without carryover: $1,500 and $1,800, for a total of $3,300. That’s a 3.7-fold difference at the same commission rate. That is why large affiliates negotiate for the cancellation of the carry-over just as much as they do for the percentage.

GEO, Traffic Sources, and Regulatory Shocks

GEO adjusts the price in two ways: based on the player’s expected LTV and through deductions from the revenue base. Entain limits the RevShare payout period in its country-specific appendices (annexes) to the agreement: 24 months for Colombia and Brazil, and 36 months for Portugal. Based on the medians in Table 1, the CPA in Tier 3 is roughly five times lower than in Tier 1 ($250 vs. $50 for casino), while the lower bound of RevShare is, conversely, higher – 30% vs. 25%: this is how the operator shifts the risk of a short and unpredictable LTV onto the affiliate. 

The most drastic regulatory shock of the year is Brazil. On September 25, 2026, Provisional Measure MP 1,394/2026 was issued: it prohibits the offering and advertising of fixed-odds betting, including on foreign websites. Licensed operators were prohibited from accepting new deposits and were required to shut down their websites and apps by October 5. The authorities requested the takedown of 5,209 domains. The measure is already in effect but must be approved by Congress. For affiliates, Brazilian traffic is now worth nothing, and the provisions in the contracts regarding “regulatory changes” have been triggered in practice.

“Paid Media continued to grow despite the impact of increased UK casino taxation and the developments in Brazil,” wrote Jesper Søgaard, co-CEO and co-founder of Better Collective, in the Q2 2026 report. He added that the company continuously reallocates its investments in paid acquisition based on expected returns.

The traffic source affects the price just as much as the GEO. Super Partners explicitly states that CPA depends on the country and the type of traffic. Better Collective North America illustrates this in its prediction markets: contracts there are based on CPA, and CPA revenue has grown by 50% to €5 million. Søgaard attributes this to competition among operators to effectively acquire users.

Fraud, Clawback, and Rate Revision

Fraud clauses are the third part of the price that people tend to remember last. Entain may recoup overpayments made as a result of a miscalculation and may set off payments for traffic for “prohibited activities” (like bonus abuse or manipulation of the CPA). bet365 may withhold all payments due as a result of a breach of the agreement and may set off payments in respect of commission overpayments. At Super Partners, a deficit resulting from fraud is carried over to subsequent months, even in cases where a regular deficit would be reset to zero. 

The revision triggers are predefined. FDJ United may reduce the commission or switch the commission plan if the affiliate has materially reduced its marketing and promotional efforts, if the current plan is loss-making for the company, if fewer than 6 new depositing customers have been referred over 3 months, or if the market regulation changes. Entain changes its commission rate with 15 days’ notice, but only for new players: existing players remain under the previous terms. Super Partners may change the terms upon publication of the new version. bet365 reserves the right to change the commission amount or percentage.

What does that mean?

To operators. First, calculate CPA based on the cohort’s LTV, not on a competitor’s rate card. A hybrid model is the cheapest way to spread risk, and the market has already embraced it: about 45% of new deals in Tier 1 are made under it. Write the NGR formula so that an affiliate can replicate it. Opaque “administrative expenses” may save you a percentage point today, but tomorrow they’ll cost you your best affiliates.

To affiliates. Compare programs based on the revenue generated by a single player, not on percentages. Request the NGR formula and use it to calculate your average player, as shown in the example above. Negotiate separately to eliminate negative carryover and establish a high-roller policy. In markets with a tax rate above 30% and in GEOs with regulatory risk, request a hybrid model with a CPA component: it is not dependent on future taxes.

To platforms and trackers. Demand is shifting from click-based accounting to calculating NGR based on the terms of a specific contract: negative carryover per player, rate decay by player tenure, and applying various deductions by GEO. Whoever can provide affiliates with a breakdown of these deductions eliminates the main source of disputes.

Methodology

The program terms are taken from published agreements and program pages as of October 22, 2026. We compared definitions of the base, deductions, negative carryover rules, tiers, and revision clauses. Rates that operators do not publish (e.g., bet365’s RevShare) are not included. Payout model percentages are from Better Collective, Raketech, and Grandstand reports for the second quarter of 2026. All 15M calculations are based on hypothetical figures: a player’s NGR of $800 over 24 months, 15% bonuses, 12% GGR for providers, and a tax on GGR. They illustrate the mechanics rather than the economics of a specific operator. 

Sources

1. G3 Newswire, “Brazil seeks blocking of 5,209 betting domains after nationwide ban,” October 1, 2026 — Provisional Measure (MP) 1.394/2026 dated September 25, 2026; ban on deposits; mandatory shutdown by October 5, 2026; submission to Congress. https://g3newswire.com/brazil-seeks-blocking-of-5209-betting-domains-after-nationwide-ban/
2. Better Collective, “Q2 2026 Report,” August 20, 2026 — revenue of €89 million; RevShare €43.6 million (49%), CPA €19.5 million (22%), sponsorships 18%, CPM 6%, subscriptions 5%; 373,000 NDCs, 70% generated through RevShare; CPA revenue in North America increased by 50% to €5 million; letter from co-CEO Jesper Søgaard. https://bettercollective.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Q2-2026-Report-Better-Collective-1.pdf
3. Raketech Group, “Interim Report Q2 2026,” August 20, 2026 — RevShare accounted for 44.4%, upfront payments for 22.3%, and flat fees for 33.3% of revenue from continuing operations. https://storage.mfn.se/0f6920e9-610a-4260-8b6d-ed031701b70b/q2-2026-continued-ebitda-improvement-highlighted-by-the-largest-sports-campaign-to-date.pdf
4. Grandstand Ltd, Form 6-K, “Second Quarter 2026 Results,” August 13, 2026 — revenue of $37.8 million; performance marketing revenue of $23.2 million (61%); definitions of CPA, RevShare, and hybrid models. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001839799/000183979926000138/gamb-q22026xpressrelease.htm
5. Grandstand Ltd, Form 6-K, “Gambling.com Group Is Now Grandstand,” July 22, 2026 — company name change; trading under the ticker symbol GRSD effective July 23, 2026. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001839799/000183979926000128/exhibit991-pressreleasexgr.htm
6. Track360, “Affiliate Commission Rates Benchmark 2026,” July 18, 2026 — CPA and RevShare rates by tier; hybrid models accounted for 45%; qualification requirements applied to 4 out of 5 deals; data covering Q3 2025–Q2 2026. https://track360.io/blog/affiliate-commission-rates-benchmark-2026
7. Entain Partners, “Terms and Conditions,” revised May 4, 2026 — definitions of net revenues, Customer (£10), and Inactive; Clauses 8.2, 9.3, 9.5, and 9.7–9.9; country-specific appendices for Greece, Colombia, Brazil, and Portugal; RevShare of up to 35%. https://www.entainpartners.com/
8. bet365 partners, “Terms and Conditions” (ROW, April 1, 2026) — definitions of net revenue, Customer, and Active Customer; Clauses 4.1, 5.1, and 9.1. https://www.bet365partners.com/en/termsandconditions
9. FDJ United Affiliates (Kindred (London) Ltd), “Affiliates Program Agreement,” Global T&Cs, March 2026 — net revenue definition including a 35% administration fee; Clauses 6.6, 6.7, and 6.16. https://static.fdjunitedaffiliates.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/04180342/Global-TCs-March-2026.pdf
10. Super Partners (Super Group), “Terms and Conditions,” 2026 — net revenue (Clause C.22); negative carryover and high rollers (Clauses 7.14–7.16); tiered commission rates (Clause 7.17); CPA (Clauses 7.18–7.20); amendments to terms (Clauses 20.8–20.9). https://www.superpartners.com/terms/
11. Super Partners, homepage and FAQ — brands include Betway, Spin Casino, and Jackpot City; CPA rates vary by country and traffic type. https://www.superpartners.com/faq/
12. 1win Partners, homepage (accessed October 22, 2026) — RevShare starting at 50% of GGR; CPA of up to $250; seven-day CPA hold period. https://1win.partners/
13. HMRC, “Remote Gaming Duty (Excise Notice 455a)” — tax rate of 40% effective April 1, 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/excise-notice-455a-remote-gaming-duty/excise-notice-455a-remote-gaming-duty
14. HM Treasury / HMRC, “The Tax Treatment of Remote Gambling: Summary of Responses and Government Response,” November 2025 — Remote Gaming Duty (RGD) increase from 21% to 40% effective April 2026; remote betting duty of 25% effective April 2027. https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/tax-treatment-of-remote-gambling/outcome/the-tax-treatment-of-remote-gambling-summary-of-responses-and-government-response