Comprehensive Future of Affiliate Strategy Track Unveiled for the September Summit in Lisbon
The Affiliate Leaders Summit is set to address pressing industry challenges head-on, ranging from stringent advertising regulations and artificial intelligence disruption to international expansion opportunities, through its dedicated Future of Affiliate Strategy track.
Scheduled for Wednesday, September 30, 2026, during the broader SBC Summit at the Feira Internacional de Lisboa in Lisbon, the track will convene top-tier affiliate executives, platform operators, media leaders, and performance marketing specialists to examine how shifting regulations, new technologies, and evolving audience behaviors are transforming the sector.
Highlighting the urgency behind this year’s agenda, Rasmus Sojmark, CEO and Founder of SBC, stated:
“Affiliates have always been quick to adapt, but right now there’s just so much coming at them at once. AI is changing how people find brands. Regulation keeps shifting. Attribution is getting harder to pin down. Having the right knowledge has never mattered more. The Affiliate Leaders Summit, and this track especially, is about looking ahead, helping affiliates arrive prepared and ready to make the most of these changes.”
Key Panel Sessions and Industry Debates
The curated conference track features four high-profile sessions designed to dissect the most critical pain points and growth vectors facing performance marketers today:
- Ad Crackdowns = Affiliate Minefield: Opening the track, this session examines how affiliates can sustain conversion rates amid tighter advertising restrictions and strict platform enforcement. Featuring industry leaders Vadim Aidlin (CEO, Mamuta Media), Laila Bertagnolli (CEO, Deal Machines), Rene Gabriel (Sales Director, Livesport), and Leanne Muleba (Chief Operations Officer, Matching Visions), the panel explores viable traffic sources, compliant content strategies, and the severe commercial risks of falling behind new rules.
- Future Shock: The Predictions Affiliates Don’t Want to Hear: Focusing on long-term sustainability, this debate challenges traditional assumptions regarding acquisition models, SEO, attribution, and CPA structures. Panelists Pierre Cadena (COO, Catena Media), Stephen Clibbon (Head of Affiliates, VL Partners), Jenny Gonzalez (CEO, Rocahead), Elena Granishevskaia (Head of Affiliate Marketing, M88 Mansion), Milorad Matejic (COO, Gentoo), and Yonit Shvinkelstain (Co-Founder, Leverage) will analyze how AI and growing platform control impact traffic sources and profitability.
- The Future of Affiliation: Where Is the Next Billion Dollar Opportunity?: Exploring paths toward lucrative business exits and multi-market scaling, this discussion covers optimization across emerging verticals such as prediction markets, sweepstakes, AI-driven search, and creator economies.
- Content That Still Cuts Through: What Audiences Actually Engage With Now: Addressing shifts in consumer habits, this session investigates how traditional long-term reviews compete against short-form video, live streams, and community engagement.
Additional conference sessions will address multi-jurisdictional compliance, international market penetration across Latin America, Africa, and Asia, alongside specialized presentations aimed at introducing a new generation of bettors to horse racing.
