WOLF is a tech company built around creating community-led, online entertainment for Arabic speakers. For the last five years, it has been leading the app world in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with its WOLF Qanawat proposition – a social app providing live audio entertainment.
Recognising when it’s time to pivot, evolve and lean into new app development and features has been key to WOLF’s strength and success, and its recent move into gaming is an example of that.
With a huge user base of several millions, and a core of more than 100,000, this community engagement and entertainment app is maintaining growth by focusing on what its users currently want more of – gaming. With summer 2025’s launch of Carrom – a game where players use a striker to flick discs into corner pockets on a board, potting pieces before opponents do – WOLF Qanawat is now focussing on creating a strong gaming offering for its users.
The brilliance of the Carrom in-app game is that when new users exit the game they are already in the WOLF Qanawat community, which offers interaction with other users, the chance to form friendships and the opportunity to explore, build their confidence and get involved in what that community is doing.
Gaming joins sports as one of the most popular topic areas in the app. As well as Carrom’s launch, earlier this year, the Sports Hub became the next iteration of the Football Hub, evolving and growing so that it now encompasses all the sports WOLF Qanawat users love, after noticing that the hub community was expanding its sporting interests from a mainly football focus into many other activities.
This strategic pivot now gives users a space to chat and create shows around sports that include Taekwondo, kickboxing and MMA in the hub, as well as forming great friendships and becoming part of new communities through the chat function. The Sports Hub focuses on staging many sporting shows, with over 3,500 events created so far this year, resulting in driving almost 40,000 unique users into one channel alone.
The beauty of gaming is that it acts as an easy ice-breaker for users, especially new users, who start playing, having fun and interacting with others in the community, creating a desire to become part of it. The simplicity of this transition lies in the app’s intelligent chat function that co-exists with the games users play.
For WOLF, the current aim for the Qanawat app is to build an exciting gaming proposition as its next phase of community entertainment, and by the end of 2025 users will see some great new additions.
The new Gaming Hub, launched in mid 2025, is starting to build out all the games that users want to play; created, tested and perfected through WOLF’s data-driven strategy, user insight and detailed feedback. Players can expect to see tailored and unique versions of popular games, all requiring 2 to 4 players per game, which will continue to generate connection and cohesion.
All of the new gaming favourites are sure to excite current users and entice new users as gaming becomes ever-more popular. It’s key for app devotees who want to take some time away from everyday life and lose themselves in healthy competition, new challenges and the chance to form new friendships in the app community through the gaming chat function.
For 2026, there will be another phase for the Gaming Hub, where even more enticing games are added, with social media links, opportunities for spectator involvement and monetised gamification mechanics to offer users an elevated in-app experience.
These new gaming additions are a strategic move, formulated and tailored thanks to the talent, industry knowledge and expertise of several of WOLF’s management team. In particular, Gary Knight, WOLF CEO, has a long and esteemed history of working in the gaming industry at both SEGA and EA, and Neil Casini, WOLF Qanawat’s Head of Games, brings experience gained at Eurocom and Light Pillar Software, working on WatchOS, iOS, X360, PS3, PS2 and Wii game and app creations; both bring their impressive sector experience to this new direction.
Gary Knight says: “We constantly strive to give our users the best app experience, listening to what interests and excites them, and gaming is definitely our next big focus. We are creating a Gaming Hub that will entice, engage and reward. Our aim is to continue evolving gaming in-app, ensuring current and future users continue to find fun, friendship and monetisation all in one place. Watch this space for Gaming Hub updates – there are many more fantastic games and experiences in the pipeline!”