This summer, Sissel Weitzhändler joined 1xCare’s Advisory Board, alongside Simon Westbury, Chris Bird and Quirino Mancini. Following a stint as Allwyn’s Director of Compliance and Regulatory Affairs, Weitzhändler will be supporting 1xCare in its aim to to connect research, education, technology and well-being support across the global gambling ecosystem.

Ahead of appearing at European Association for the Study of Gambling congress this month, Weitzhändler sits down with SBC News to discuss why 1xCare was the natural next step in her career, how the body’s approach is focused on being robustly independent and why listening is just as important as speaking in the player protection sector.

Why did you decide to take up a spot on the 1xCare Advisory Board? 

Having worked in the industry for years, I was delighted when I was approached to join the Advisory Board, to help contribute to various safer gambling initiatives which I believe is worthwhile and timely. 

I joined with my eyes open. An Advisory Board is not there simply to endorse a programme, value lies in independent challenge, oversight and accountability. Governance proves itself when difficult decisions arise, particularly in how priorities are set, resources are allocated, outcomes are assessed, and concerns are addressed. There will be a lot of work and tests ahead, and I really look forward to working with my Board colleagues to help ensure that 1xCare’s ambitions translate into credible, practical initiatives and measurable progress for players. 

Could you walk us through your career experience and highlight how player protection has been a core focus during that time?

My academic background is in International Relations and I hold an MA in War Studies. It trained me to question assumptions, think critically and examine institutions, incentives, the gap between stated principles and underlying motivations, and how systems work in practice. That habit has shaped everything I have done since. In the gambling sector, my work has largely centred on making regulation operational while maintaining a commercial sound approach to business. 

That has included licensing structures, governance, risk, technical controls, AML frameworks and market-entry strategy. On paper, these can look like separate compliance matters. In practice, they are part of the machinery of player protection and fundamental to sustainable business growth. 

A weak AML framework, disengaged leadership or poorly governed licence does not only create regulatory risk. It exposes the business and, more importantly, the people the system exists to protect. 

Over the past 15 years, I have built and embedded compliance frameworks in businesses in ways intended to be sustainable and workable. I have seen first hand that protection works differently when it is built into how a business operates and embedded across the organisation, rather than bolted on at the end.

So, player protection has never been a separate specialism for me. It has been a significant purpose behind the systems I have spent my career building together with brilliant colleagues to get it right.

What are your main goals as you take this next step with 1xCare, and how will public policy initiatives shape the direction of the organisation? 

My main goal in taking this next step with 1xCare is to help ensure that we deliver across the four pillars we have committed ourselves to. As a member of the Advisory Committee, I will contribute to the organisation’s governance, policy direction and allocation of resources, ensuring initiatives are grounded in evidence, ethical standards and measurable impact.

Public policy will be a core part of that work. 1xCare’s model brings together research, education, technology, and support and well-being, with the Advisory Committee providing independent oversight across these pillars. My focus will be on engaging constructively with regulators, governments, NGOs and other stakeholders to identify where public-interest initiatives can make a practical difference, particularly through evidence-based prevention, education and harm-reduction programmes.

The direction should be proactive by helping translate policy priorities into initiatives that are practical and capable of producing transparent results. This includes supporting robust governance and accountability, assessing projects against their expected impact, and contributing to regular reporting on the activities and outcomes of the programmes 1xCare supports.

What strategy and processes will 1xCare have in place for the funding of research projects and how will those grants be given?

1xCare Advisory Board is currently shaping the details of how we will best implement our strategy. Our intention is to establish a clear, robust and transparent framework that supports high-quality, independent research with the potential to strengthen understanding of player protection, responsible gambling and harm prevention.

The future grant model is expected to be guided by principles of independence, relevance, methodological quality, transparency and measurable public benefit. This will include consideration of how research priorities are identified, how applications are assessed, what governance and conflict-of-interest safeguards are required, and how funded work is monitored and shared.

How do you ensure that academic independence is maintained across 1xCare-funded projects, even if those results paint the industry in a bad light?

Academic independence has to be structural, not aspirational. The key is a clear separation between the funder and research decision-making: projects should be selected for their public-interest value, methodology and potential learning, not because their findings may be comfortable for the industry. 

Researchers must be free to follow the evidence where it leads, including where it identifies shortcomings or shows that an intervention has not worked. If results paint the industry in a bad light, the answer is not to soften or hide them. It is to understand them, be transparent and use the learning to improve what happens next. 

Ultimately, independence has to be visible in practice through transparent reporting, meaningful evaluation and a willingness to change course where the evidence demands it. Otherwise, the work will not be credible, and it will not meaningfully improve player protection. 

What are you expecting to get out of the European Association for the Study of Gambling congress? 

The European Association for the Study of Gambling brings together researchers and clinicians whose work is independent of the industry, and that is precisely the audience whose scrutiny is worth having. I want to be a part of that. 

I plan to listen, learn and test our assumptions against the evidence and experience in the room. It is important that 1xCare’s approach is informed by perspectives that are independent, rigorous and willing to challenge the industry.

How important is it for you and 1xCare to be seen at these events and to contribute to the debate on player protection? 

I think it is very important for 1xCare to be present at relevant industry, regulatory and research events. Early engagement is particularly valuable as 1xCare develops its programmes, partnerships and research-funding approach. We hope to establish meaningful dialogue with stakeholders and contribute to the debate. 

These events provide a great opportunity for that and will help us better understand the issues being faced across different markets, hear directly from those with research and lived-experience perspectives, and identify where there may be opportunities for collaboration.