This week’s round-up of the latest mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, and account moves include ChatGPT, Better Collective, Yahoo, Taboola, and more.
Deal Desk rounds-up the latest moves across the global affiliate and digital marketing industry and why it matters.
This week, Adform has partnered with ChatGPT to test ads in Europe; Better Collective has teamed up with Yahoo; and Goal.com is working with Taboola to bring personalised content recommendations for audiences.
OpenAI selects Adform to rollout ChatGPT ads
OpenAI has partnered with adtech platform Adform to support its rollout of ChatGPT ads in Europe.
Adform clients including Volkswagen and Vodafone will soon start testing ads inside the AI platform. Advertisers will now get the opportunity to connect their existing campaigns with ChatGPT, and will be able to evaluate performance with “one integrated view” to help understand their engagement.
Stefan Sommer, chief growth officer at Adform, said: “The arrival of ChatGPT ads in Europe opens an important new advertising environment for brands and agencies, and we’re pleased to have been selected as a technology partner supporting the rollout.
“What makes this particularly interesting for our clients is not only the ability to activate in a new environment, but to understand the role it plays within their wider media strategy. Through Adform, advertisers can connect ChatGPT-driven conversions with their other Adform campaigns and build a clearer view of the customer journey.”
Leaders take
The partnership with Adform enables OpenAI helps expand its ad offering in ChatGPT – already live in 40 markets including the US, UK and Canada – across Europe. The AI platforms currently boasts over one billion users every week, many of which are highly engaged and submit active queries that advertisers can take advantage of.
Therefore, by running ChatGPT ads through Adform, advertisers can connect this emerging channel with their broader omnichannel activity and evaluate performance within one integrated view. This helps brands understand how engagement across the agentic web contributes to outcomes across the open web and the wider customer journey.
It follows Amazon Ads partnering with OpenAI to trial offering ad inventory in ChatGPT to some users in the US.
Better Collective brings sports betting data to Yahoo
Better Collective and Yahoo Sports are coming together to deliver sports data on odds, lines, and betting stories to fans. The partnership will also deliver early access to betslips with are deeplinked to licensed betting operators.
Yahoo Sports will use Better Collective’s data and technology to distribute Action Network coverage within its betting content hub. The integrations look to pair Yahoo’s extensive reach with Better Collective’s data and expertise.
The playbook will help fans compare odds, access betslips, and deepen their research with enhanced insights from editorial content.
Jesper Søgaard, co-founder and co-chief executive of Better Collective, said: “We are incredibly proud to partner with Yahoo Sports, one of the most iconic and trusted brands in digital sports media. This partnership is a major milestone for Better Collective, bringing together our sports betting data, technology and Action Network’s premium content with the massive reach of Yahoo Sports. Together, we have a unique foundation for delivering value and insight to sports fans while creating new opportunities for our sportsbook partners.”
Jarrod Schwarz, general manager, Yahoo Sports, added: “Betting odds and lines are increasingly important elements of sports storytelling, as they help fans better understand matchups, injuries, momentum, and more. We’re thrilled to team up with Better Collective to enhance our coverage with comprehensive betting analysis and data helping make fans smarter about the sports they love.”
Leaders take
The partnership between Better Collective and Yahoo Sports creates a bridge between mass-market sports media and highly intent, transactional sports betting. By bringing Better Collective’s sports betting data and technology (like the Playbook tool), and premium Action Network content to Yahoo Sports’ huge audience, this deal reshapes how sports bettors are reached online.
As a plus, Better Collective will also benefit from editorial content, including from sports betting analysts Ben Fawkes, from Yahoo Sports. Together, this offers advertisers a massive opportunity to reach engaged audience in what is a developing sports entertainment ecosystem.
Taboola and Goal.com team up to power content discovery
Adtech firm Taboola and Goal.com have teamed up to bring audiences personalised, multi-platform content recommendations in Taboola Feed and as well as Taboola Header Bidding, which helps publishers earn revenue across display ad inventory.
The deal comes as the 2026/27 Premier League season gets under way, with fans heading to Goal.com for the latest live scores, breaking news, video, and analysis.
Adam Singolda, founder and chief executive of Taboola said: “Goal.com has already shown they are a key destination for sports fans globally, delivering timely and fan-centric content. Partnering with Taboola opens the door to even more ways to keep their massive readership engaged, to attract more readers, to monetise and more.”
Leaders take
This deal with Goal.com is part of a wider partnership Taboola has with its parent company, Footballco, and operates across its portfolio of editorial websites. For readers, this partnership will bring more relevant recommendations and personalised content, enhancing their experience with Goal.com. It means for marketers, particularly affiliates, there is an opportunity to offer a tailored links and ads.
Other notable deals
Sunderland FC announced that Shuffle, a centralised cryptocurrency casino and sports betting platform, will be the club’s newest sleeve partner in a multi-year deal.
Global TV Experts has launched operations in the US, tapping into the extensive and trusted US TV ad medium. Peter Sengenberger will head up the expansion, bringing experience in igaming, media planning, and marketing.
Solas has partnered with Super technologies in a bid to bring seamless compliance to users while embedding reviews at each and every stage. This will allow teams to catch issues early and fix them as they go.
Acxiom has integrated with Azerion’s independent omnichannel demand-side platform (DSP), HAWK. This integration will look to enable advertisers to deploy Acxiom’s audience intelligence, matched with HAWK’s planning, optimisation, and activation capabilities.
Square in the Air, a marketing agency, has rebranded. The new theme, complete with new colours, logo, website, and design – is outlined by its new attitude – ”Hit Square”.
