Gambling Insider: Sports Betting Focus 2023

SPORTS BETTING FOCUS

Company profiles from across the sector Hot topics: Match-fixing, esports and ambassadors Interviews: XLMedia, Tipico, Lord Lipsey & more

AFRICA: ON THE SPORTING TRAIL

EDITOR’S LETTER

COO, EDITOR IN CHIEF

Julian Perry

EDITOR

Tim Poole

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Emerging markets are a common point of discussion. In our industry, Latin America is oft-discussed; the US you could also ‘technically’ count as an emerging regulated market. Asia is more complicated, regulation-wise, especially when it comes to sports betting. But Africa – now that is a region that is always mentioned under the umbrella of emerging markets, yet one that is experiencing surging growth right now.

And this growth is not simply restricted to the digital sector, as our cover feature for this issue of Sports Betting Focus explores on page 26. With the help of Altenar’s Antonino Barra, we explore which African markets offer the most promise and how much potential the continent holds. In a warm-up to the headline act, consultant Ron Mendelson also discusses Africa’s potential growth on page 24.

Elsewhere in this issue, we review our GI Huddle video interviews from ICE London, where we spoke to Global Gaming Award winner Jesper Svensson, as well as Bayes Esports’ Amir Mirzaee and Peter-Paul De Goeij, who represents operators in the Dutch market. This section starts on page 10.

While football will, in European markets, remain king in terms of sports betting revenue, we also shine a light on more niche sports in this edition. Cueing off, we review the match-fixing scandal that has engulfed the world of snooker on page 20, before an eye-opening interview on esports betting (page 40) – and a greyhound racing interview brought directly by Gambling Insider from the House of Lords (page 44).

Feature-wise, we look into sporting brand ambassadors (page 16), US states and their di ering sports betting regulations (page 42), while there are also interviews with affiliate XLMedia (page 46) and operator Tipico (page 48) about sports wagering plans across the Atlantic Ocean.

As always in our Focus magazines, though, we also take pride in our company pro les, submitted by some of the industry’s sharpest players. In this issue, we bring you profiles from Kambi, BetConstruct, Sportingtech, BtoBet, NSoft, Sporting Solutions, Evoplay, IGT PlaySports and Sportradar. Here, we give sports betting suppliers the opportunity to show o the latest products and services that are actively transforming the sector.

So, with our blend of in-depth insight and in-focus pro les, we feel we’re bringing you a 360-degree view of the sports betting industry at large. Enjoy our Sports Betting Focus – but do know that it’s only half-time, so to speak, with our H2 edition to come later this year.

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WITH THANKS TO:

Kambi, BetConstruct, Jesper Svensson, Amir Mirzaee, Peter-Paul de Goeij, LSports, Sportingtech, Ron Mendelson, BtoBet, NSoft, Antonino Barra, Evoplay, Sporting Solutions, IGT PlaySports, Kelly Sanders, Lord David Lipsey, Kevin Du ey, Phil Goldfarb, Sportradar

Gambling Insider magazine

ISSN 2043-9466

Julian Perry, COO, Editor in Chief Tim Poole, Editor

CONTENTS

10 GI HUDDLES

Gambling Insider speaks to Betsson Group CEO Jesper Svensson, Bayes Esports COO Amir Mirzaee and NOGA Managing Director Peter Paul de Goeij at ICE London 2023

16 ARE SPORTSPEOPLE BEING KICKED OUT OF ADS?

Gambling Insider assesses the regulatory approach towards sporting brand ambassadors, using the Netherlands and the UK as case studies

20 SNOOKERED

Gambling Insider reports on the match-fixing scandal that has rocked the snooker table

24 THE POTENTIAL OF AFRICAN GAMBLING IN 2023

Gambling Insider contributor Ron Mendelson, of Fast Offshore, discusses the current state of play across Africa – and where the continent can grow from here

30 ON THE SPORTING TRAIL

Gambling Insider looks at the gambling industry’s current state of play in Africa

40 ESPORTS Q&A: COMPETING WITH TRADITIONAL BETTING

Thunderpick Head of Strategy Kelly Sanders discusses how esports betting can sit alongside traditional sports betting in the future

42 THE SPORTS BETTING STATES

Gambling Insider takes stock of the latest US states to legalise sports betting

44 LORD OF THE GREYHOUNDS

Lord David Lipsey, Premier Greyhound Racing Chair, discusses how greyhound racing needs to evolve and what he is doing to help the struggling sport regain the attention of large audiences

46 A RENEWED FOCUS

XLMedia’s President of North America, Kevin Duffey, speaks to Gambling Insider about his career, XLMedia’s ambitions and the US affiliate market

48 RAISING THE BAR

From Tipico’s pullup bar competition to their hyperlocal focus, Ohio Market Manager Phil Goldfarb talks about Tipico Sportsbook’s plans for engagement

In focus: Kambi Harnessing the power of third-generation sports trading

Successfully launched for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Simon Noy, SVP Trading at Kambi, explores how fully automated algorithmic trading is revolutionising the sportsbook, alongside its implications for front-end delivery

The buzz and enthusiasm for artificial intelligence and algorithm-driven products throughout the entire spectrum of the technology sector has been unmissable over recent months. Conversations around the potential of AI and machine learning were common through the halls of recent conferences such as G2E and ICE London, and as the scale of the sportsbook offering expands, the potential such solutions carry to evolve the landscape of the sports betting industry is beyond question.

At Kambi’s Capital Markets Day in January, the Group expanded on the concept of the ‘limitless sportsbook.’ End-user behaviour is increasingly focusing on products that essentially only complex algorithms and AI are capable of delivering, and as the scope of the offering grows, presenting this content in more engaging, entertaining and seamless ways to the bettor will be crucial to ensure a satisfying consumer experience.

Core to delivering the limitless sportsbook is the company’s third-generation algorithmic trading capability.

What is third-generation trading?

In simple terms, algorithmic trading means the pricing and changing of odds without human intervention. Having been in development for several years, the growth in computing power, the richness and depth of available data and the strength of Kambi’s algorithms and modelling have enabled us to bring to the market the next generation of trading capability – a shift from machine-assisted human trading (second-generation/industry standard) to human-assisted machine trading (third-generation/Kambi standard).

To this point, a great deal of sportsbook product creation has been guided by a trading department’s ability to price and risk manage certain bet offers. Algorithmic trading removes these limitations, while also enabling human expertise to be leveraged more effectively, deployed to those decisions where it can have the greatest impact.

Trading with algorithms – true automation – enables us to greatly expand the number of available bet offers, fuel the creation of new products and expand the breadth of the combinability we are able to offer through the Kambi sportsbook. Now available across all top football leagues and set to be rolled out across other data-rich leagues and sports, the technology was successfully launched ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, stress-tested at scale in powering Kambi’s entire pre-match offering.

Underlining its effectiveness, we were able to have a full pre-event offering for the knockout rounds – something which would normally take a sportsbook several hours – ready within 90 seconds of the final whistle being blown in the group stages. Furthermore, the proportion of Bet Builders placed as a percentage of total bets was up 50% compared to UEFA Euro 2020, highlighting the importance of the enhanced combinability that Kambi’s third-generation trading unlocks.

Algorithmic trading is now driving around two-thirds of pre-match soccer turnover, and this figure is only increasing.

The importance of front-end expertise

As previously alluded to, the capabilities that algorithmic trading affords the sportsbook in terms of creating new products and enhancing combinability, so that the right bet can be presented to the end user at the right time, heralds a unique set of challenges from the perspective of sportsbook packaging; and how we present the offering to the end user. As the offering expands, the traditional, spreadsheetstyle sportsbook UX will increasingly struggle to present the offering to end users in a digestible way.

As such, expertise in front-end delivery has never been more crucial. The product needs more focus on personalisation and engagement features than ever before, to both attract players and see them retained in the long-term. This was a crucial factor in bringing the industry’s leading providers of front-end technology, Shape

Games, into the Kambi Group in 2022. The fully native nature of Shape’s technology means it can cater effectively to operators’ intensifying demands across areas such as differentiation, personalisation and empowerment, and as regulation expands across the globe, a front-end which can offer the highest levels of flexibility and customisation will be increasingly critical. Third-generation trading, and its implications for product creation and front-end delivery are vast and here to stay. This progression in trading automation through AI and powerful algorithms will be the standard in years to come, and as the richness of data grows alongside this, second-generation trading will struggle to keep pace with the products third-generation trading can unlock. Operators cannot afford to risk playing catch up as player expectations and behaviours continue to evolve.

Simon Noy

In focus: BetConstruct

BetConstruct is a global award-winning technology and services provider for the online and land-based gaming industries. BetConstruct’s innovative and proven offerings include Online and Retail Sportsbooks, Classic and Virtual Reality RNG & Live Casinos, Poker, Skill Games, Fantasy Sports, Social Gaming Platforms, Sports Data Solutions and more – all ready to be launched and managed through SpringBME, its pioneering Business Management Environment. The company’s fully managed Spring Platform provides everything needed to build a successful business with its 50+ products, 30+ services, 200+ third-party content providers, powerful backoffice tools and reduced operational costs. All partners benefit from the BetConstruct Spring Platform with its powerful backoffice tools and all-inclusive services. From standalone set up to turnkey and white-label solutions, BetConstruct offers its partners unparalleled opportunities to succeed.

BetConstruct announced the beginning of a new era of Resonance by endorsing the Fastex ecosystem. Combining the crypto and gaming industries laid the foundation for a new wave of resonance, and success for

business development and new opportunities. Convenience, flexibility, saving time and money: this is the basis of the ideology behind the creation of the Fastex ecosystem. It has an extensive range of centralised and decentralised products: Fastex Verse, Fastex Exchange, Fastex Pay, ftNFT marketplace, Fastex Chain and FTN (Fasttoken).

Delivering over 80 solutions with 50+ licences

and certificates, 15+ offices worldwide, 30+ gaming and sports betting awards, 500+ payment methods, 70,000+ monthly live matches and 140,000+ Pre-Match events to 300+ partners, BetConstruct is confident in declaring our magnitude is your advantage! The company’s diverse offerings, products and capabilities make it a clear choice for partners seeking a competitive edge.

Driving the customer experience

Betsson Group CEO Jesper Svensson joins Gambling Insider Editor Tim Poole at our GI Huddle booth during ICE London 2023, discussing Jürgen Klopp, Latin America and a healthy World Cup

At ICE London, Gambling Insider turned its N1 stand into a live studio, where some of the industry’s biggest and most influential CEOs, executives and consultants took part in GI Huddle video interviews. Svensson joined us to reflect on his executive of the year victory at the Global Gaming Awards London 2023 – and more.

Hello viewers, I’m here with what an old industry friend, Jesper Svensson, CEO of Betsson Group. At this year’s Global Gaming Awards London, you were named Executive of the Year; how did that feel and how did you celebrate?

I felt very humbled and honoured. I think these are the right words because it was a jury of about 50 different C-level Judges

in the industry. So to be voted by that group of people is quite amazing and I was very happy. How did I celebrate? Let’s say I had a pint or two...

On a previous GI Huddle, one where we both wore a Liverpool shirt – better times than the start of this season, as we had just won the league – there was actually a comment from one of your staff saying you’re the Jurgen Klopp of iGaming. How does that make you feel?

I’m far from that! But what an amazing comment. I wish I was that; for someone like me, who is a lifelong Liverpool fan and really looks up to our club, I think it is amazing. Even right now, though we were in bad form, he’s a fantastic man,

“THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE IS CHALLENGING, AND YOU NEVER WANT TO BE FALLING BEHIND ON CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE BECAUSE THEN IT’S OVER”

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JESPER SVENSSON CEO, Betsson Group

great coach and inspiration for everyone. If I was even close to a little piece of that, that’s an amazing comment – I have to find that person and thank them.

The questions will get more challenging, don’t worry... but I think you might find this a welcome one. You’ve won the Executive of the Year, Betsson has had delivered some very positive financial results, so clearly Betsson’s doing a lot right. What is it exactly that you’re getting right at the moment?

Well, what we see today is the result of decisions that were taken many years ago. That’s always how it works in this industry. We are growing fantastically well in Latin America at the moment. I think we are one of the fastest-growing companies there and I would say LatAm operations are the driver of our growth. But we have been focusing on this region for a long period of time and we are now starting to see the benefits of that.

Being live in so many different markets across Europe and Latin America also means we’re not too exposed to one single country. And that’s a good space to be today, when there are a lot of regulatory changes. So I would say the reason for the growth we see today is very much driven by Latin America.

Okay, a more challenging question – as promised. It’s, in fact, the same question but from a different point of view: what can Betsson do better? Are there any areas where you feel you’re not where you want to be, and you need to improve?

Yes, there’s a lot, always a lot. We believe in what you call incremental gains in many ways: to try to be a little bit better in all the different areas where we’re operating and the totality of that should have a good impact on the business. I think the challenge we have is what most companies face today. We have more than 20 different local licences and there is a lot of demand from regulators for compliance, and this takes a lot of resources product-development wise.

To juggle between all those things and also driving the customer experience is challenging, and you never want to be falling behind on customer experience because then it’s over. So far, I think we are managing it well, but that is a space I would like us to be much better in; so that we can drive both the customer experience and easily enter new markets, managing all our demands from regulators.

You mentioned Latin America and it’s something a couple of other interviewees this week have discussed in terms of huge potential. There’s a lot of growth, but as individual markets within LatAm become more competitive, what kind of pressures will that bring for a brand like Betsson?

I think it’s very competitive already and it probably always was, and I think you need to

look at it like in Europe – it’s market by market. There are similar traits, of course, when it comes to content and how it works; but if you take the fundamentals, for example, payments are different market by market, then money in and out is still key over there.

So if you do that well, you have a great opportunity. I think we established ourselves in that region many years ago and that is the advantage we’re having. It’s really about understanding the local nous of the markets we’re going into and the fruits of that labour.

On Latin America, I’ve just realised that, when we spoke a few months ago, you tipped Argentina and Lionel Messi to win the World Cup. Well done!

Thanks! Many people tipped the same, though, but what a beautiful World Cup it was for Argentina and for Messi. I was always a Messi fan and I know there is a divide out there between another player [Cristiano Ronaldo] and him, but how suitable, you know? He truly deserved it, so well done to Argentina.

A word on the World Cup for betting – because we have heard a couple of operators say it was a good tournament but, taking place in winter, it could not replace the Premier League; meaning it wasn’t as lucrative as it would have been in the summer...

World

and a World Cup is still a World Cup – it’s summer, when there is nothing else. But if they

I disagree on that, actually: we had a really good World Cup. From an activity point of view, we saw really, really strong numbers and a World Cup is still a World Cup – it’s so much bigger as a single event than any other competition will ever be. It has a more visible effect when it is in the middle of the summer, when there is nothing else. But if you take the end of the year – November, December – they are usually good months for gaming and I think this gave that an extra boost, so we’re happy.

As we often do at the end of these interviews, our final question will look ahead. What are your goals and main focuses for the rest of 2023?

ahead. What are your goals and main

building a really strong sportsbook and we’re

probably the biggest challenge we face now.

I keep speaking about Latin America, right? But we do invest a lot into the region and we hope and expect continued growth there; that’s a big focus for us. We keep building a really strong sportsbook and we’re going into the B2B space, as well. That’s also a big, big focus, of course, but it is a lot about juggling between all the different jurisdictions and driving the customer experience. That is probably the biggest challenge we face now.

As always, thanks very much for joining us!

As always, thanks very much for joining us!

Shaking up the esports sector

Amir Mirzaee joined Gambling Insider at ICE London. From industry trends to industry flaws, the Bayes Esports CCO spoke about the heart of the esports betting sector – and what must truly change

Amir, thanks for joining us. You recently moved from the COO position to CCO. Tell us about that. Thanks for having me. I’m very excited to be here again at ICE London and I recently took over the role of CCO. We also had a third C-level executive join the company, which we’re very excited about; it’s an old colleague of mine from my Google days. I spent about 13 years at the company, joining to take over sales and marketing. Basically, filling externally facing commercial roles to support us, you can see that 2023 for us is all about going out big and making our message heard. There are exciting times ahead for us with these appointments.

What are the latest e-sports developments and trends in the US?

I think esports betting in the US continues to be something where folks have high hopes. I think you have to consider the US as a continent in itself, right? It’s like Europe, each state is basically its own country, its own market. Over 30 states, I think, allow for online betting. Out of those 30-plus, we have nine states that allow for esports betting. I think the most known for it are New York, Colorado and Ohio as the frontrunners. We hear Ohio is doing great in terms of volume, actually, and in terms of turnover. What’s also surprising is Nevada is opening up in terms of esports betting. In general,

“THESE SCRAPERS TAKE THAT AND SELL IT TO BETTING OPERATORS. NOT JUST SMALL BETTING OPERATORS... I’M TALKING FLUTTER, YOU KNOW, I’M TALKING WILLIAM HILL”

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AMIR MIRZAEE CCO, Bayes Esports

I think the US is turning more pragmatic in the sense that you need to lower the barriers of entry, especially for younger companies.

You know, the markets, state-by-state, are still structured in a way that even suppliers of content, data and products go through very extensive screening; which just kills any kind of innovation at its core. I expect that once the regulations and the requirements drop for suppliers, regarding products, we’ll see innovation pick up very rapidly. We’ll see more companies get funded in that space and then also an influx from all the European companies. Right now, it’s selected companies from the European or international space.

Your CEO Martin Dachselt has been on Huddles before and spoke a lot about the importance of data. What can you tell us about data scraping?

If we’re looking back at history, it’s not that long ago, maybe four or five years, that a phone application had just allowed you to connect with what is happening live within a match. For this, you need that data to be collected. It’s part of that magic that happens in our heads, whereas the actual infrastructure needs to be presented in a way to show that the person who collects the data makes it available. What these guys want to do is to develop technologies to scrape data off of any kind of video feed they would see. So any kind of mechanisms to collect data and sell it, without the knowledge or permission of the data holder, is what scrapers are all about.

It’s a disconnected ecosystem. On the other hand, you have the games publisher. They have their intellectual property (IP), their game titles, sports leagues and so on. Then somebody that’s not related to them collects that data without consent. And an incomplete way has to be imperfect, right? In esports titles like Counter-Strike and League of Legends, there are data points that aren’t even seen on the screen. Scrapers can collect data like a certain gold count per player and so on. These scrapers take that and sell it to betting operators. Not just small betting operators... I’m talking Flutter, you know, I’m talking William Hill. I’m talking these massive companies. There’s a genius force of scrapers that go out and sell this great product, right? Based on that, you run into several kinds of issues.

One of the most obvious issues is integrity. At the end of the day, you don’t know what’s happened, right? There’s something happening in this match, something changing, nobody will know what will happen. Down the

chain, you have players changing and the odds change. Your probability is changing because something happens. You don’t know whether a match has been recorded or not when it gets put on. Maybe that match took place yesterday, and you’re seeing it now on Twitch and scraping it off of their people. The result is just you’re the only one not knowing as a betting operator, which is a horrible scenario. So integrity wise, you have a big issue that leads to regulatory issues in the US.

For this reason, you need to have the data straight from the source in some kind of way. It also needs to be validated so that the score you’re settling on is actually correct. If you don’t do that, you just lose your licence. This is because, quite simply, it’s illegal betting, which a lot of folks don’t know. Then, of course, it’s this part of not being future proof. This generation want something more interactive, fast paced and so on. Our infrastructure is arguably the most well-performing in the market right now. We understood that we basically couldn’t use what Sportradar were using, so, as the most established player, we built our own live data infrastructure, and we’re still adapting it.

How do you push the benefits of esports betting to those just used to traditional sports betting?

I think at this particular stage, what strikes me is you don’t need to have that conversation with the likes of bet365. You don’t need to have that conversation with Pinnacle, for example, or with bet365. I think it’s a simple case of sitting down and seeing what will happen. The products are there, the content is there, the turnover is there. You just need to take it seriously. It’s all very good to find and meet folks who can educate you on the topic. Everybody in the space is more than willing to do so and then find the right product mix, as well as have somebody help with user acquisition and the setup of strategy.

I really think we have a leg up in terms of being an esports specialist rising in the ranks of companies and becoming more valuable to our clients. I think most of the esports odds suppliers are fairly young, and they’re still not at an age where they would influence the bigger companies, the bigger groups on that level. If I talk about Flutter – and I need to come back to that example, because it’s my belief that this is a massive group with no esports strategy... they’re buying from PandaScore, right? I mean, how does that go together?

Regulation: Navigating the Netherlands

Speaking to Gambling Insider at the GI Huddle stand, Peter-Paul de Goeij, Managing Director of the Netherlands Online Gambling Association (NOGA), discusses regulatory issues in the Dutch market that will affect sports betting companies

How is the market in the Netherlands shaping up since it became regulated in October 2021?

The Netherlands market has been open since 1 October 2021. A highly anticipated market, it took a lot longer than expected to regulate – almost 10 years. Now that the market is open, we’ve been faced with some unfortunate developments in the regulatory field. We have some of the strictest regulations in Europe but I think it’s good. It’s good to regulate the market very strictly. But what we see in the Netherlands now, and throughout last year, is that too much advertising led to a pushback on the industry from the Dutch population, which pushed politicians to clamp down on advertising.

Last year, I said there was going to be a ban on untargeted advertising for high-risk gambling. The process of this has now almost finished, resulting in a ban on targeted advertising for online gambling. This is slightly different from high-risk gambling because it doesn’t include land-based gambling, right? So land-based gambling will be excluded from this ban. Untargeted advertising means any advertisements on television, linear television and radio press – but the ban is only for online gambling. So land-based gambling can still advertise on television, radio, etc. But this creates a tilted playing field. So that’s the first problem.

The second problem is that you need to ensure advertising is still allowed. Let’s say the targeted advertising, which will take place online predominantly, does not get to vulnerable groups and vulnerable groups who are under 24. This will prove to be very hard because you cannot guarantee that members

of a vulnerable group won’t see advertising for online gambling even if you target those who aren’t in a vulnerable group. So that’s another challenge. It’s worth noting that we haven’t seen the final text of the decree as it will be enacted. But we anticipate enactment by mid-March 2023, which will probably then come into force by 1 April or 1 May. But then it will be done and over for

Managing Director,

“AS IT STANDS NOW, THE AMOUNT OF PLAYERS BETTING LEGALLY IN THE NETHERLANDS IS 85%, WHICH IS A GREAT SUCCESS”

PETER-PAUL DE GOEIJ

Netherlands Online Gambling Association (NOGA)

Photography by: Leonard Fäustle

untargeted advertising. Another important thing to mention is that sponsoring television programmes and sports is still allowed; this may also become illegal under the targeted advertising law. As you can understand, sports clubs and federations aren’t too happy about that. This poses a direct threat to their financing, of course. At NOGA, we are surprised at the effects of channelisation. As it stands now, the amount of players betting legally in the Netherlands is 85%, which is a great success. This is certainly higher than some of the numbers we’ve seen from the likes of Sweden. But of course, we are now seeing the effects of regulations, especially as they’ve only been in place since 2021.

Is there a chance that operators present in the Netherlands are put off by impending advertising regulations... could they withdraw from the market? Is this a threat to positive channelisation rates?

Naturally, I would say that operators would be focusing on channelisation first. So if consumers get put off by too many regulations and marketing rules that are too strict, it’s bad. If you put too many locks on the door, don’t be surprised that people turn to the next door, right? That’s my first and only interest. So far, I haven’t seen too many companies bailing out of the Dutch market. I’m saying this with some stress, because it’s important to look at why they’re bailing because it’s a sign of the market’s health. If big, recognised and trusted brands are saying, well, we’re not going into the Dutch market because there’s no viable business to be had there, then that is alarming, because I think that will have its effect on channelisation eventually.

Loss limits could also be a big area when it comes to channelisation. Can you talk us through the latest on that area in the Netherlands?

The current situation in the Netherlands is that the law says any operator with a licence has to offer the player a chance to set limits. That’s mandatory. But it doesn’t say anything about what the limit should be. So we ended up with a situation where some operators chose to just leave all the possibilities that the platform could provide a limit for. For instance, platform X could offer space for nine digits, so players could set a limit of 999,999.99, simply because that is the number of digits in the coding of the platform. That is not an effective limit. You know that’s not responsible gambling. Another example is that a player could set a time limit of 24 hours a day. That’s not a limit. It’s what I always call a limitless limit. This has led to pushbackfrom the Dutch Parliament, which decided to look at Belgium to find a solution. Belgium has hard financial limits of €200

($211) per month. I’m not sure whether the Netherlands is going to end up at €200; it seems rather arbitrary to me. It’s a huge issue that needs resolving, especially with regard to enforcement monitoring. How will it work? I don’t know, and it doesn’t even include the regulations that will be coming for advertising. Of course, I’m concerned this might have a detrimental effect on channelisation. If this isn’t enough, there’s a third issue in the mix, and that’s the Netherlands’ high standards of duty of care. The Netherlands is one of the front-running jurisdictions when it comes to regulating duty of care in its laws and regulations. I think it was quite a new concept when we first started discussing this, but that was 10 years ago. There are more laws now that apply to providing a duty of care.

If you were to ask me to describe, in a sentence, what the duty of care is that you need to provide a customer, I would say it’s to make sure a player does not play too much, for their own good. And then you’ve got to ask, well, how much is too much for someone’s own good? When should you intervene? We don’t know. It has certainly not been laid down in legislation and regulations. Nobody knows exactly what falls under their duty of care. The only thing we can establish and agree on is when it goes wrong. Clearly, if someone is able to play €100 and €50,000 within a short time frame, something has gone wrong with an operator’s duty of care to a customer. But I think that’s the wrong approach. It should be the other way around; it should be proactive. This is another area where we have to come up with a solution. These things all come from Parliament in the Netherlands.

At NOGA, we stand ready to work with the Government to increase our duty of care, because I think it’s a very important part of our legislation. It’s my wish that we achieve our aim of creating a clear framework of what a common understanding of the market consists of, when to classify a gambler as a problem gambler and what a problem gambler is, because every operator has a different answer. So we need to get this cleared up and agreed on. This is something that should not only be done in the Netherlands, it should be employed more unilaterally across Europe – but it doesn’t mean the Netherlands shouldn’t do it. You know, if you want to do easy work and you want to do easy business, you should not get into the gambling industry, and you certainly should not get into regulation because it’s far trickier and more complex than it may otherwise seem from the outside. There’s never a dull moment with regulation.

Are sportspeople being kicked out of ads?

Gambling Insider assesses the regulatory approach towards sporting brand ambassadors, using the Netherlands and the UK as case studies

Gambling on sporting events is a practice almost as old as civilisation itself. Evidence of people betting commodities on an outcome they cannot control has been found throughout history and is part of the human experience. Rudimentary dice were found in the pyramids in Egypt, we know ancient Chinese culture had a heavy emphasis on games of chance and long before all of that, archaeologists have discovered suspected evidence of betting with early man.

And not much has changed.

In 2023, sports betting may be found on your mobile with a variety of options and sportsbooks to choose from, but the principle remains the same: betting on an outcome one can’t possibly know for sure. However, one thing that has changed significantly from Egyptians throwing dice or Chinese gamblers sitting in an ancient kingdom is how the practice is marketed and regulated.

These days, sportsmen and women are part of multinational promotional campaigns that engage with a huge international audience. At all the major sporting events in the world, gambling companies are there to encourage people to have a flutter on the outcome. This year, FanDuel announced that NFL icon and retired right end Rob Gronkowski would take part in a live advertisement during the Super Bowl, which saw him attempt a field goal during half-time.

And it’s that modern trait that is the most enticing for modern players, the appearance of sporting people in commercials. From the aforementioned Gronkowski to football management legend José Mourinho, so many of those that work in sport have now advertised sports betting – which is now drawing the ire of the industry.

THE NETHERLANDS & ADDICTION

In the Netherlands last year, legislation was passed by the Government to prohibit the use of celebrities for gambling companies. The reason for the new legislation is obvious, the Government said: famous faces can’t be used to push people into gambling or – as it justified it when passing the law – influence the youth. This all stems from the concern of addiction, of course – which is a significant issue for many countries trying to find a balance between allowing their citizens to gamble while also protecting them from the hell of being an addict.

Much of why the Netherlands decided to draw people to legalised gambling in the first place was because many were already gambling on illegal sites; so, pushing them to legal sites was a way of keeping a closer eye on an entire industry – as well as earning tax money from it. However, after the country legalised online gambling in 2021, gambling ads flowed forth like at the parting of

the Red Sea. Adverts were over-used.

So, the country banned the broad use of celebrities and sportspeople in gambling advertising. The Dutch regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), which oversees the ban, commented to Gambling Insider exclusively, saying that “providers of games of chance are no longer allowed to use persons who are publicly known (past or present), or with whom consumers wish to identify or associate themselves for any other reason, in advertising for games of chance. Role models include people such as professional athletes, actors, models and influencers, but also politicians and people who otherwise serve as role models in society.”

The move was sharp and swift, following a period where advertisers used extensive marketing with sporting faces to attract players to sports betting platforms in the Netherlands; the golden age ended and regulations forced companies to find new ways of advertising.

UK INTRODUCES BAN

The UK is another place where the advertisement of gambling using sportsmen and women has now been banned. However, the difference between the UK and the Netherlands is that the UK’s gambling market is significantly bigger (despite strong growth in the Netherlands). For years, companies got away with using footballers to push their products to the general public – however, in April 2022, the UK Government declared no more, banning the use of sports and reality TV stars, as well as anybody under the age of 25, in gambling advertisements.

The ban came into effect later that October and meant marketing executives had to think even harder about how to get their message across the screen. Much like the Netherlands, the UK Government said it implemented the law to protect those under the age of 18. The new legislation was embraced by the Gambling Commission, with a spokesperson exclusively commenting to Gambling Insider: “We welcomed the introduction of the Committee of Advertising Practice’s (CAP) tougher rules

which prevent gambling ads from being of strong appeal to under 18s. We work very closely with the ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) and if gambling firms break those rules, we can take tough action, including fining the offending firm.”

In 2019, footballer manager José Mourinho appeared in an advert for Paddy Power, where he humorously petted a dog and once again, as he had when he first became Chelsea manager in 2003, proclaimed himself ‘the special one.’ Under the regulations in 2019, Mourinho was allowed to feature in the campaign, which caused a stir in some quarters.

At the time, Matt Gaskell, clinical lead for NHS Northern Gambling Services with clinics in Leeds, Manchester and Sunderland, said footballers and managers should be banned from such campaigns: “We need to divorce gambling from sports and from football.”

After Mourinho appeared in the campaign, his ad appeared to trigger a wave of concerns from responsible gambling organisations. Two years later, the UK’s ban came into effect. Due to the sheer size and value of the UK market, a ban on sporting personnel has a significantly bigger impact than it does in the Netherlands. However, there are still ways to get around the ban – Smarkets demonstrated this recently by using former Manchester United defender Gary Pallister in its campaign for its sportsbook, SBK.

By using a player that retired two decades ago, Smarkets are no longer subject to the terms of the

ban – as Pallister has very little following amongst the youth.

THE BALANCING ACT

Using sportsmen and women in gambling advertisements is a great way of drawing in a crowd, the problem with it is that it also inevitably draws in the youth. The immortality of youth has led everybody to make stupid decisions at times, and when gambling is involved, the hedonistic lifestyle of young people in general may play a role in not knowing when to stop.

It is this very feeling that the regulators are trying to protect young people from, and when many see their favourite football players advertising a gambling brand, it is highly likely to lead to a rise in younger people placing wagers. Of course, this needs to be balanced with the fact that gambling companies have a right to operate as businesses and pick people each will feel will represent their brands – which, 99% of the time, will be sportsmen and women.

The balance, then, is very fine, too much one way and you have the state telling businesses what they can and can’t do on a micro-management level, who can and can’t be involved in the advertising of gambling. However, too much the other way and you could potentially end up with a problem gambling epidemic amont an age group that would cost vast sums to try and bring back in line. It seems, then, the old adage is true: ‘Too much of a good thing...’

“Using sportsmen and women in gambling advertisements is a great way of drawing in a crowd, the problem with it is that it also inevitably draws in the youth”

In focus: LSports Betting big on LatAm

LSports CRO Yoav Ziv speaks to Gambling Insider about the sports data provider’s LatAm expansion plans and recent key strategic steps taken to establish its presence in the region Being a leading sports data provider comes with responsibilities. One of them is to constantly feel the market and identify opportunities to grow and expand. In that context, Latin America, undoubtedly one of the world’s fastest-growing betting markets, has been a major target in LSports’ long-term strategy since it started. Recently we’ve started to walk the talk with several key strategic steps that underscore our regional intentions.

PURCHASING DATA RIGHTS

We’ve recently signed a landmark 10-year partnership with the Brazilian Basketball Confederation (CBB), making LSports the sole source of data for the country’s premier basketball league until 2031. This collaboration will include data generation for sports betting platforms while also allowing our partners to have exclusivity of video streaming for the sports betting market. We aspire to build a new standard of engaging Brazilian basketball betting experience and we’re certain we’ll meet this target. But we’re not stopping there. The CBB deal is just one of many planned partnerships in various sports and countries in LatAm that we intend to announce very soon, so stay tuned.

STATSCORE ACQUISITION

In November 2022, LSports announced the acquisition of Statscore. This strategic move bolstered our product offering and complemented our data collection process, allowing it to run full cycle thanks to Statscore’s broad and established scouting network. By deploying these scouts at various sports venues in LatAm, LSports aims to capture new data and verify the existing one, thereby creating a comprehensive and accurate data pool that sportsbooks all over the region could rely on 100%.

BOOTS ON THE GROUND

LSports has recently established an official presence in LatAm for the first time since its founding and now has representatives in Brazil and Argentina who provide full support of sales, customer support and customer success services to clients. In addition, LSports will be present at various tradeshows in LatAm during 2023, where our team will

showcase the company’s flagship products. This will provide us an excellent opportunity to connect with potential customers and partners, and better understand the region’s sports betting needs and pain points.

FULL LOCALISATION

LSports prides itself on having the widest sports fixture coverage in the market. This is true for every region in the world, let alone in LatAm, where we support every sport,

league and competition you can imagine. All our products are fully localised for North American crowds to supply our customers (and their customers) with the best experience. The trust LSports has gained and the traction it has achieved in LatAm are evidenced by the fact that our AI-based betting tips tool, the BetBooster, is already being used by some of the top sportsbooks in the region; including Estrella Bet and Rivalo, and is generating much interest from others.

Yoav Ziv

Snookered

Gambling Insider reports on the match-fixing scandal that has rocked the snooker table

It’s an age-old question that is still debated to this day: is snooker a game or a sport? A case can certainly be made for both sides, with many labelling it a sport given the fact there are superstars who output physical exertion while playing, along with the money and drama involved. But, while many sports have focused on speeding things up to keep excitement levels at an all-time high all the time, a single frame alone in snooker can take well over an hour, as was the case when Mark Selby met Yan Bingtao (more on him later) in the second round of last year’s World Snooker Championship, with the duo playing out the longest frame in Crucible history at 85 minutes and 22 seconds. Player outfits, meanwhile, remain somewhat old-fashioned and rigid, with Judd Trump – who was world number one at the time – recently calling for players to be allowed to wear more trendy clothes while playing. In an age where cheerleaders, music, flashing lights and robotic cars carrying balls have infiltrated many other sports, snooker has remained true to itself and its humble traditions. But that is not to say that the dark arts of sports have not poked their head into

this somewhat gentlemanly activity.

Gambling has sneaked into pretty much every sport and snooker has been no different, with world number one Ronnie O’Sullivan now a main promoter of gambling in snooker, even appearing at ICE London 2023 as part of his ambassador role with Delasport. But not even the wizard himself could have predicted what was to recently unfold in snooker, with an ongoing match-fixing scandal currently overshadowing much of the action on the table (or baize).

THE TIMELINE

The recent bad press actually began away from match-fixing, when in October 2022 Liang Wenbo was banned by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) – the sport’s governing body – pending the results of a misconduct investigation after being convicted of domestic-related assault. But soon came the alleged illicit gambling activity, with the Chinese national followed by compatriots Lu Ning, Li Hang, Zhao Jianbo, Bai Langning and Chang Bingyu, who were all suspended in early December as part of match-fixing allegations.

2021 Masters champion Bingtao’s

suspension quickly followed, with Chen Zifan becoming the eighth player on the list. And in January 2023, fellow Chinese nationals Zhao Xintong – 2021 UK Championship winner – and Zhang Jiankang were added to the investigation, becoming the ninth and 10th Chinese players respectively to be placed under the spotlight.

Gambling Insider reached out to the WPBSA and the World Snooker Tour (WST) for a statement, but given that the investigation is ongoing, both opted not to make any comment to ensure it is not prejudiced in any way. Both instead redirected Gambling Insider to the WPBSA statement on 18th January 2022 which, among other things, read: “Following a detailed investigation by the WPBSA Integrity Unit, working closely with Sportradar, the WPBSA has decided that 10 snooker players have a case to answer” in respect of various alleged breaches of the WPBSA Conduct Regulations.

It continued: “The players are currently suspended from attending and competing on the World Snooker Tour and in other WPBSA-governed events until the conclusion

of the hearing or hearings and the determination of this matter. This matter will be referred to a formal hearing before an Independent Disciplinary Tribunal that will take place at a venue and on a date to be confirmed.”

Gambling Insider did, however, receive comment from Michael Waring of SnookerHub, an organisation that aims to organise the UK’s amateur snooker information and make it accessible to all. “I can’t, of course, comment on the details of the current investigation but I am sure this won’t be the last time there are problems with betting and match-fixing,” said Waring. “There have been players banned before and some are still serving those bans. If here are criminal gangs involved, as has been suggested by many, I doubt they will be concerned about the future of the player(s) involved. And if players have received what they perceive to be credible threats to their families, they are unlikely to refuse to go along with the demands. There doesn’t appear to be any solution to the problem but any players that do get caught should receive the appropriate punishment. The powers that be will simply have to get better at catching those involved.”

TWO SIDES TO EVERY STORY

As is always the case in life, there are two sides to every story, and it has been interesting to see how those within snooker itself have reacted to the scandal. Everyone inside and often outside the world of football will always perk their ears up and listen to whatever it is that legendary figures Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are saying, regardless of how insignificant their words at the time are.

The same can be said of one of snooker’s legendary figures, Jimmy White, who aired his concerns immediately after Bingtao’s suspension, labelling it as “a really bad day for snooker.” Thanks to White’s reputation and indeed the situation as a whole, there will be many taking that same view. His counterpart Steve Davis – a six-time world snooker champion – called the situation “embarrassing.”

While the WPBSA undoubtedly shares that view, it has not taken such a critical line, instead arguing that snooker is played sportingly the majority of the time. Speaking after the ban handed to Bingtao – the most high-profile player involved in the ongoing scandal that has rocked snooker – WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson said: “We really are making huge progress and the sport is played in the best of spirits 99.9% of the time.

“Unfortunately, this morning there was

a strong decision to suspend Yan Bingtao as a result of new evidence that came to light in an ongoing inquiry, which started in October with the suspension of Liang Wenbo.

“It involves a few players and those players will remain suspended. We will not have any concerns over the sport being played in the arena. People are buying tickets and TV rights, and watching our sport all over the world. It will be played in the spirit it should be played and we’ll ensure that, hence these suspensions.”

The WPBSA may just be entitled to such an opinion, with the strong track record over the past decade given further validation by

Chinese nationals have not solely been in the spotlight, with Englishman Stephen Lee banned for 12 years in 2013 after being found guilty of seven match-fixing charges. He could make a potential return in October next year when his ban finishes but would have to repay £125,000 in outstanding legal fees. Interestingly, Lee has always denied the offences.

WHAT NEXT FOR SNOOKER?

So, while there are precedents, they are on a much more infrequent scale when compared to sports such as football and tennis, which have regularly been in the news in recent times when it comes to match-fixing. An FA Cup tie between Oxford United and Arsenal was under investigation at the beginning of this year, while the end of 2022 saw Brentford and England international Ivan Toney charged with over 250 alleged breaches of betting rules. Earlier last year, a total of 10 people were arrested by Irish police as part of an investigation into alleged match -fixing, with the 10 males arrested in Dublin, Cork and Limerick on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud in connection with football matches in the League of Ireland.

figures from the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA), the leading global voice on integrity for the licensed betting industry.

Snooker’s name has barely been mentioned in annual IBIA suspicious betting activity reports over recent years. That said, the current scandal is by no means unprecedented, as alluded to by SnookerHub’s Waring. China’s Yu Delu was banned from snooker for 10 years and nine months following a match-fixing inquiry back in 2018, while his compatriot Cao Yupeng also pleaded guilty to fixing and was banned for six years, although three and a half years of his sentence were suspended.

In Yupeng’s case, a total of 38 betting accounts using computer software attempted to place £250,000 ($300,800) in one second on the result of one of his matches, but the attempt failed miserably when Asian-based bookmakers’ own computer programmes raised suspicions, foiling the plot which could have landed a £1m profit.

In recent tennis rulings, Chilean coach and ex-player Sebastián Rivera was banned from the sport for life after being found guilty of numerous match-fixing offences. He was found guilty of 64 offences, the most ever detected for a player by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) or its predecessor, the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU). Another recent case involves Bulgarian tennis chair umpire Stefan Milanov, who was banned for six months by the ITIA in December 2022 after admitting to placing multiple bets on the sport.

The likes of tennis (33), esports (16), football (13) and table tennis (10) were as usual big hitters in IBIA’s Q3 2022 data. Given that snooker represented just one of 76 suspicious alerts in the quarter, the lowly figure certainly seems innocent enough in the wider scheme of things, but the powers that be will not be one bit pleased with the current situation within snooker.

The sport took steps as recently as October to help the less successful players that may be struggling financially – and so perhaps more susceptible to match-fixing – by offering an advanced prize money scheme. The scheme means all 130 professionals on the WST are guaranteed minimum earnings of £20,000 for the 2022-23 season, but it doesn’t seem to have quite gone to plan when trying to curb match-fixing in this sport (or game, however you may view it). In terms of a timeline, the disciplinary hearings are scheduled to start on 24 April, during the World Championships. Let’s see how the fate of modern snooker lies once we know more.

Happier times: Yan Bingtao wins the Masters

In focus: Sportingtech

Based in six offices around the world, the Sportingtech team has more than 10 years of experience in delivering solutions to the global betting and gaming industry. Managing Director Bobby Longhurst took on the top role in 2022 and brings over 20 years of commercial leadership experience from previous high-profile roles in the industry. He has since overseen launches into a host of new territories, delivering Sportingtech’s ambitious plans to extend its reach in emerging and regulated markets worldwide. As a result, it has now enhanced its footprint in Latin America and Africa after a number of hugely successful product launches.

With constant technological developments, the brand’s newest solution allows operators to seamlessly introduce a sportsbook offering into their existing front ends, while accommodating their current UI via an iFrame solution. Its single integration

proved to be very popular, with plenty more due to integrate the solution to widen offerings in the coming months.

As well as the introduction of new products to the industry, big plans are in place to develop the company’s platform to provide operators around the world with the most customisable and flexible turnkey solutions.

This will optimise and grow the brand quickly and easily, enhancing its reputation in new and emerging markets. The constant advancements will continue to showcase the platform as the industry’s gold standard.

Another successful launch of the platform with a new operator in Brazil further cemented the company’s standing in South America. Rapid growth is expected as the appetite for engaging betting opportunities increases in the region, alongsidge the growing ability to provide the solutions and technology to cater for the ever-changing needs of customers.

With bettors looking for a more customisable sports betting product, the flagship platform can provide this with leading data and widgets, as well as a range of options to give bettors control over their sports betting website with more than 100 sports, 1,300 betting markets, 500,000 pre-match and 400,000+ live events per year available.

To cater for the ever-changing needs of bettors, who want their sportsbooks and casino content to be easily accessible, there are over 9,500 games including slots, live dealer, bingo, poker and more available from 100+ leading casino games providers, giving players the best online casino content and gaming experience available anywhere, any time.

also provides operators the same great benefits as full turnkey customers. This is significant because there are a lot of operators who see the benefit of a sportsbook but are not yet sure if the time-consuming process of building their own is worth the time and investment required. Already live with several partners, it has

The platform made an immediate impact across Africa in 2022 after an agreement with 888AFRICA. The operator went online in four hugely diverse African markets – Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and Zambia – within a couple of months, both navigating many disparate elements and showcasing the speed at which products can go live.

While there is a clear focus on providingleading online solutions, the land-based offering from Sportingtech can elevate any brand’s retail product. These can be custom-built around a brand’s needs to provide a fully integrated turnkey retail experience across online and land-based sites with its multi-tiered system supporting an estate model for agents, shops and cashiers.

Whatever the vertical, Sportingtech has the knowledge and expertise to enhance the offerings of operators across the globe, as the brand continues to grow at pace and maintain its position within the industry.

There is a growing appetite among operators and their customers to provide a product that is tailored to them. Sportingtech is keen to ensure its offering continues to stand out in a competitive market, and that its solutions always enable businesses to thrive by meeting the individual needs of each operator partner.

“Another successful launch of the platform with a new operator in Brazil further cemented the company’s standing in South America. Rapid growth is expected as the appetite for engaging betting opportunities increases in the region, alongside the growing ability to provide the solutions and technology to cater for the ever-changing needs of customers”

The potential of African gambling in 2023

As the online gambling sector continues to grow around the world, operators are always on the lookout for new jurisdictions and regions to expand into. Africa has flown under the radar for quite some time, but the reality is it is a prime market for consideration. But what opportunities are there, which jurisdictions should be considered and what is driving growth and interest?

THE CURRENT STATE OF PLAY

Africans make up some 11.5% of global internet users, and a large number of them are using online gambling and betting sites. Since 2020, the sector across the continent has boomed, and it has put Africa on the map as a critical jurisdiction for the future

growth and development of the sector. At the end of 2022, the African gambling market was worth some $2.2bn for the online sector alone, and this number is expected to shoot up by the end of this year. But what is driving growth? There are several answers to that question. Firstly, poverty is declining, albeit slowly. This does mean, however, that more people are joining the middle classes and earning disposable income to spend on betting and gambling. This goes hand in hand with the digital transition, which sees more people using smartphones and having access to the internet. Currently, 64% of the population has smartphones, which will rise to 70% in 2025. In terms of internet access, almost half of these users have regular access to the internet.

This is helped by the development of online payment solutions for Africans that cut out traditional banking institutions and facilitate quick and low-cost online payments.

Together, a perfect storm is brewing, piquing the interest of international online gambling operators.

KEY MARKETS IN AFRICA

The key markets in Africa are South Africa and Nigeria. In the case of South Africa, its online and offline sector is expected to surpass $2.3bn by 2023, due in part to the fact it has the highest GDP on the continent, which gives a big boost to people’s purchasing power. In fact, half of all gambling revenue in Africa comes from South Africa, in particular the sports betting sector at some 24%.

Gambling Insider contributor Ron Mendelson, of Fast Offshore, discusses the current state of play across Africa – and where the continent can grow from here

According to various studies, around half of South Africans bet on sports, particularly rugby, horseracing, football and cricket. Experts say this is set to double over the next five years, meaning the region should definitely be on your radar.

Another key jurisdiction is Nigeria, home to 200 million people. Its economy is growing and it has been identified as an important place for the online gambling sector. In 2022, it accounted for around 7% of Africa’s gambling revenue and around 30% of the population say they bet on a daily basis – equivalent to 65 million people. Not all of these are betting online, which hints at a huge untapped market. English football and European football are the most popular sports to bet on, with the Spanish LaLiga coming in third.

You should also keep your eyes on Kenya, a country where online gambling has been regulated since 2019. It is a leading market in the region, with an annual gambling revenue of up to $300m. Increased smartphone penetration and new mobile payment services are fuelling growth, in particular sports betting. There are currently some 7 million Kenyan nationals registered on at least one betting site; but they also enjoy poker, roulette and slots.

A NEED FOR REGULATION

As online gambling in Africa continues to grow, so too are concerns that regulations need to be put in place to protect players. A recent study from the British Academy and Global Challenges Research Fund found that governments in the region are struggling to keep up with the expansion of the sector, fuelled by increased connectivity and access to smartphones. Researchers found that in the 41 countries where gambling is legal, only two had published reports on its impact.

The study raised concerns

that this shows government unawareness of potential harms and the measures needed to protect players in the expanding market. They argue that as the sector continues growing, the creation and update of regulation is needed to help foster growth in an ethical and sustainable way. Another concern in the region is the proliferation of unregulated gambling advertising, particularly in ways that are accessible to youth.

The study noted that 10% of Ethiopian youth were compulsive gamblers and more than 90% of Ugandan teenagers had at least one problem with gambling. In addition to this, a lack of supervision, monitoring and analysis in African countries means that there is little in the way of reliable statistics.

This makes it challenging for players, regulators and operators to know how to

manage the development of the online gambling sector. The study’s researchers concluded that robust policymaking is essential to prevent further harms to youth and adults across the continent.

FAST OFFSHORE BIO

If you are an online gambling operator that wants to work with the African market, we can help. We work in many jurisdictions that offer licences which enable you to provide your services to local markets. Through setting up online gambling corporate structures in offshore jurisdictions, you can reap the rewards of this burgeoning sector and establish yourself as an early leader, before the boom starts.

As a corporate service provider with over 25 years of experience in iGaming, we can take care of all your needs. From company incorporation and structuring, licensing, payments and compliance, we provide a full A-Z service tailored to your needs.

“Africans make up some 11.5% of global internet users, and a large number of them are using online gambling and betting sites”

Ron Mendelson

In focus: BtoBet

Based in four offices around the world, the BtoBet team has considerable experience in delivering sports betting solutions to global regulated markets with the company placing emphasis on key regions such as Europe, Latin America and Africa, and new markets such as North America. The experience gained at the forefront of these advanced landscapes allows BtoBet to have a deep understanding of the requirements of the market, and anticipate bookmakers’ and operators’ needs.

The main distinct element that distinguishes BtoBet from other iGaming and sportsbook platform providers is its cutting-edge proprietary technology that allows operators to tailor their user experience according to each and every player profile. Such a personalised betting experience is possible with in-depth data harnessing reliant on a very wide bank of filters and parameters. This allows operators to not only offer a personalised experience on a micro-level but also maximise their player lifetime value through an increased rate of engagement.

EMPHASIS ON FLEXIBILITY

By undertaking a scalable and fully customisable approach with its sportsbook platform, BtoBet ensures the flexibility that operators require

to be unique in the market, differentiate their brand and give them the opportunity to personalise their offers through an interconnected omnichannel environment.

The Neuron 3 sportsbook platform is built from the ground up, having the operators’ requirements in place and is a sportsbook solution that seeks to leverage the operators’ market knowledge, with the product evolution and roadmap mirroring the customers’ feedback.

Among its main points of strength, it provides partners with a highly customisable UI with over 200 configuration options, thus ensuring a sportsbook’s unity in terms of appearance and experience when compared to competitors.

Parallel to its technological solutions, BtoBet also allows operators to leverage its knowledge and expertise through its managed trading services, a sportsbook management

solution that simplifies the day-to-day operations for bookmakers through an ad hoc suite of services that reflects a particular bookmaker’s requirements.

FULL RETAIL SOLUTION FOR EUROPEAN AND NORTH AMERICAN MARKETS

An expansion of its GLI-33 certified sports betting Neuron 3 platform, new retail solutions have been built for mature markets such as Europe and the North American market, and will connect land-based estates seamlessly to any online operation.

The new SSBT solution is highly modular, allowing different display options based on business preferences, and provides players with the operator’s full online betting offer. The introduction of the new OTC solution, with its advanced user account management and ability to control the odds displayed in multiple TV devices, provides operators with a complete retail sportsbook solution, enabling them to deliver a superior betting experience.

All the bets placed on both the SSBT and OTC are visible in the dedicated backoffice via a detailed reporting system, enabling managers to have a complete overview of their betting operations, thus ensuring a highly competitive retail sportsbook.

The solutions are not solely aimed at those bookmakers with a retail network, but also casino operators which can now offer their own sportsbook and control their brand and player experience, to seamlessly cross-promote and drive revenues across their entire business.

Dima Reiderman, BtoBet’s Managing Director commented that it is the company’s aim to be the one-stop shop for operators looking for a quality, flexible and superior sportsbook performance, whether online or retail. He added that BtoBet constantly seeks to support its operator partners to drive incremental revenues; and he is confident that BtoBet’s premium retail solutions, with their heightened functionality, will help that further.

Ensuring operators’ competitive advantage with a flexible sportsbook solution

In focus: NSoft Revolutionising the Betting Industry with

Cutting-Edge Technology

The company participated in ICE London 2023, where it showcased its latest products and technologies to industry leaders and experts, and is moving through 2023 stronger than ever

With a strong focus on sports betting and everything closely connected to it, NSoft offers a comprehensive Sportsbook; the Seven iGaming Platform; Casino slot games; Virtual sports games; Virtual lottery and bingo games, and AI Vision for retail KYC, CRM and analytics.

Seven Platform: A Highly Adaptable Solution for Betting and Gaming Business Operations

The Seven platform is the backbone of NSoft’s operations. It includes modules, applications and APIs that serve as a base layer for laying products on top of it and offering them to betting and gaming operators.

betting terminals under the Stark brand work with any betting software, with a wide range of customisation options regarding the peripheral. The branding is white label, and the crew has packed an entire bet shop in a beautifully designed and custom-branded metal frame.

A strong addition to controlling terminals is a system that helps you monitor all aspects of your terminal-based betting operations – wherever you are in the world, you are remotely connected to every device.

Casino Slot Games: New Titles Every Month and Exciting Features for Players

In addition to sports betting, NSoft also offers a wide range of casino slot games, with new titles released every month. The company constantly adds new features to make the casino experience more entertaining for players. Developing the Boost gamification tool is a significant step towards enhancing the player experience.

AI Vision: The Power of AI Video Analytics

Seven is the first betting platform on the market to integrate the power of AI video analytics. Vision, an AI video management software, is integrated into the Seven betting platform, joining valuable business data to understand day-to-day operations and strategic planning better.

land-based onsite CRM tool providing you with automated notifications, so you don’t have to do almost any manual work.

Revolutionising Sports Betting with “Seven” Platform and AI “Vision”

NSoft offers a comprehensive sportsbook that covers over 40 Live Betting sports, 550 football leagues and more than 890,000 Live Betting events each year. Operators can choose between MTS (our fully automated service that does everything for you) or Self-Managed application (our powerful tool for bookmakers that enables full flexibility, odds and risk management, and is an excellent choice for big brands).

Entertaining Players with Virtual Sports, Lottery and Bingo Games

NSoft offers an extensive range of virtual sports games, lottery and bingo games to keep players entertained. The company is committed to creating a diverse range of gaming products and services to cater to all players’ needs. The lottery and bingo games provide a traditional gaming experience with modern technology enhancements, making them more exciting and engaging for players. The all-time best is NSoft’s bingo-type game called Lucky Six.

Seven is omnichannel, feature-rich, scalable, jurisdictionally compliant and available on all delivery channels – retail, terminal, mobile and web. It is a highly adaptable solution for managing core betting and gaming business operations, and was developed using cutting-edge technology.

Betting Terminals: Premium Self-Service Terminals for Land-Based Betting Business

NSoft betting terminals cover the hardware part of the business. Premium self-service

The tool provides insights into the detailed demographics of players displayed within one universal admin interface. It is used for business intelligence and retains analytics and a fraud prevention solution. AI Vision is a tool no other platform has, providing NSoft with a competitive advantage in the industry.

NSoft’s “Vision” AI video system is exceptionally useful in retail betting operations as it gives operators deep insights into high-spending VIP clients, as well as problematic ones. It works as a

Additionally, virtual sports games are designed to give players the feel of real-world sports betting with the added convenience of betting anytime and anywhere. With the Seven platform, clients can easily integrate virtual sports games, lotteries and bingo games into their existing platform, providing players with an all-in-one gaming experience.

Whether you are an existing operator or a newly formed start-up, NSoft has the expertise, technology and products to help you succeed in today’s competitive market.

“Virtual sports games are designed to give players the feel of real-world sports betting with the added convenience of betting anytime and anywhere”

Africa: On the sporting trail

Africa. The cradle of civilisation. The birthplace of mankind itself. The huge, diverse continent has its own way of doing things; it always has – and that includes gambling

Sporting events are, naturally, a big deal in Africa. The vuvuzelas can still be heard ringing in the ears of football fans from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, alongside Senegal’s prideful chants at winning the African Cup of Nations in 2022 – as can the celebrations of the Springboks following the team’s Rugby World Cup victory in 2019. The fact is that almost every country in Africa has a special relationship with sports, from the children that seem to always be playing football in the background of various documentaries to the adoration for the South African Springboks Rugby team.

Even in the most recent 2022 FIFA World Cup, Morocco’s path to the semi-final – the furthest any African team has ever managed to get in the illustrious competition – was met with a widespread outpouring of love. So, with the significant attention paid to sports in Africa, Gambling Insider explores how the sports betting market has grown in recent years to meet with the intense sporting obsession the continent has.

THE SUPPLY-SIDE VIEW

Antonino Barra, Head of Sales at Altenar,

spoke exclusively to Gambling Insider about the African market and how the retail market is growing and evolving across the continent. Exactly how much is retail sports betting growing in Africa? In response to this question, Barra first discussed how Altenar has moved into the space. He said: “The tradition for retail is still embedded in Africa’s betting landscape, and we’ve seen that greater attention has been placed on physical points of betting as there’s less internet penetration throughout Africa. Altenar has tailored its sports betting solutions to the challenges faced by Africa’s betting market, which often includes the need for access points through retail. “This has been achieved by Altenar’s Agent System, which has created a healthy ecosystem of commission-based incentives to bring new and excited players to sports betting, and the ability for those already -seasoned players to have a place where they can indulge their favourite pastimes.

“The sports betting Agent System creates the opportunity for operators to find and allow a set of local partners to build their own network. This consists of super agents can and subsequently of agents (freelancers

/physical shops), who then find their own players to register to this network by having them either create an online account within the system, or create a cashier account for the person who will be placing the bets on behalf of the retail clients. This helps to bring state-of-the-art technologies to a retail-heavy betting landscape. Your local agents can track performance, reports, betting patterns and logs through the Agent System for each player. On top of this, we have our betting terminals as well.”

AFRICA’S BIGGEST MARKETS

Of the 54 countries in Africa, Barra highlights the four that show the biggest promise in the retail sports betting market. Unsurprisingly, South Africa is the largest of the four, with Barra saying: “South Africa has the continent’s largest gambling sector, with some forecasting that total gaming income could exceed $2.3bn by 2023. South Africa, while not as populous as some of its contemporaries, punches above its weight owing to Africa’s third-highest GDP.”

Coming in second is Nigeria, which “has by far the highest population and GDP in

Africa, above the 200 million and $443bn milestones. It’s no surprise that the nation has the largest gambling market in Sub-Saharan Africa by GGR, accounting for 7% of the continent’s total,” according to Barra.

Third is Tanzania, a country that “chose high-tech solutions to make the reporting process as user-friendly as possible, including the implementation of an API that automatically records every wager placed on internet platforms, and the trend shows a tendency toward significant and stable growth during the next couple of years.”

Finally, taking fourth position on Altenar’s round-up of the biggest African sports betting markets is Ghana. “For some years, the Ghana Gaming Commission has been working on a comprehensive regulatory framework, which has produced a highly friendly climate for onshore operators. The cost of licences awarded by the Gaming Commission varies based on the type of business permitted. The one for sportsbooks will cost around $40,000, while the one for casinos will cost around $50,000. In addition to licence costs, operators must charge VAT on their services.”

The big four countries in Africa look set to solidify the trend of retail sports betting across the continent by establishing how to grow the market for bettors. But which methods will become the blueprint is yet to be seen – which will, in some small part, come to define Africa’s relationship with sports betting as a whole.

APPETITE AND RETAIL

Barra’s insight into the African market then turned to what Africans are looking for in regard to retail sports betting, and the differences found between the appetite of African players and their European or American counterparts. “Nowadays, sports betting in Africa relies primarily on soccer and horseracing, with no major differences in terms of betting behaviour with the Europeans or the Americans. The difference is made at vertical level; indeed, if it is true that in North Africa there is a considerable interest

in horseracing – which goes as far as the fifteenth century – Africans are said to have been betting on football for over 70 years.

“Besides, and despite sports betting thriving in African markets, young, tech-savvy African players are increasingly turning to virtual sports, drawn by the possibility of unlimited betting that this fairly new vertical entails. This is, for example, an opposing trend to Europe and America, where the average punter is more prone to switch to either esports or fantasy football or, on the other hand, convert from.”

Then, moving into discussing if there are any places in Africa where retail is slowly picking up, Barra said: “This can be quite the tricky question, as we see a call for retail in some of the largest betting landscapes in the world, even if these countries have fully adopted online betting and gaming. For this, there’s potential for a reclaim of retail throughout the UK, Spain and other betting landscapes like these. However, I do not think it will fully return to retail. It can depend on the pastimes of a country on whether retail may begin to pick up – in the UK, for instance, we may see a greater call for terminals in points of contact like pubs, where traditionally bettors will play these types of games.”

When it comes to the wants and requirements of the African retail sports betting market, the variations between it and the Western markets are not as significant as they first appear. More business is being driven by online markets than in retail, due to the influence of national pastimes in different cultures. However, the highlighted difference between young African bettors and those in the West in turning to virtual sports is a departure that could see the African market evolve in new ways to support the trend.

A COMPLETE MIXTURE OF RULES, REGULATIONS AND RECKLESS ABANDON

The difficulty in summing up Africa’s regulations comes from the fact that it has every form of gambling regulation found on Earth. Some parts of it are exreme, with a near-total ban on anything to do with wagering, whereas other parts

have next to zero restrictions and allow people to fall prey to problem gambling without anything to stop them. It seems that with every nation you look at in Africa, it had drastically different views on gambling than those that surround it. Of course, there are areas that broadly share the same feelings on the practice – West African countries, for example.

In Nigeria, sports betting is fully legal and the population of 60 million people there enjoy the practice – as well as lotteries and land-based casino gaming. However, games such as roulette, dice-based games and cards games are illegal.

But, despite the confusing mix of regulations across the continent, Barra believes the situation is getting steadily better, saying: “It’s increasingly improving, especially as we see providers and operators like ourselves enter the space whose expertise are routed and founded in highly regulated markets and with conscious betting and gaming in mind.” Of course, it is up to every individual country to deal with gambling regulation; however, in the case of Africa, the vast differences in legality may create a confusing picture.

LOW LEVELS OF HELP FOR PROBLEM GAMBLERS

Despite the expansion of retail sports betting on the continent, there have been major difficulties.

“Besides, and despite sports betting thriving in African markets, young, tech-savvy African players are increasingly turning to virtual sports, drawn by the possibility of unlimited betting that this fairly new vertical entails”

As a result of the industry beginning to have a vastly bigger impact, problem gambling has become somewhat rife among some bettors. The issue is that many countries have little to no help for those suffering from the effects of problem gambling, which is usually due to the poor infrastructure and data collection other parts of the world have in place to combat it. The issue was highlighted by Dr Darragh McGee at the University of Bath, who said in his academic report: “The findings point to a lack of regulation, transparency, and protection from gambling harms across Sub-Saharan Africa, despite evidence that the industry is rapidly expanding. The need to address this regulatory void and prioritise a public health approach is urgent. Decisive action by policymakers across Africa can safeguard against the kind of runaway excess and harms that have been an avoidable by-product of gambling in markets such as the UK.”

Meanwhile, Professor Gerda Reith, of the Gambling Research Glasgow collective based in the University of Glasgow, added: “The rapid expansion of the gambling

industry into Sub-Saharan Africa is especially worrying when the regulatory frameworks that might control them are often weak or poorly enforced, as this research has found. This trend raises serious concerns about the potential impacts of harm on the health and wellbeing of vulnerable populations, many of whom live in conditions of poverty and unemployment. Urgent, joined up action by national and international policymakers is badly needed in response.”

Where most Western countries are putting the issue of the health and wellbeing of gamblers first in regulating gambling markets, Africa as a continent is struggling to do so – with South Africa currently the only fully regulated market to

have had more time to try and combat this than neighbouring nations.

THE MARKET STATUS

Africa is a large and complex place when it comes to retail sports betting, as it adapts to regulations being put in place in individual countries that are rapidly different from those of their neighbours in some cases. While retail sports betting has been a mainstay in some markets, much like it has in the UK, for many it is a new concept that does have to combat online betting. But, while online offers unlimited potential for growth in Africa, don’t rule out retail. It has always married itself to sports betting and, in Africa, there are myriad opportuinities for retail betting to blossom on the sporting trail.

“Yes, Africa is obsessed with sport – it wants to bet on it, no matter what is being played – however, in its obsession, Africa is carving its own sports betting future”

In focus: Evoplay

Betting Mechanic offers online casinos a unique opportunity to attract a wider audience beyond traditional casino players. By leveraging the appeal of sports betting, casinos can open up their offerings to an entirely new demographic of players.

As an international sporting tournament with countries from all over the world involved, the World Cup is an unparalleled opportunity for sportsbooks and casinos to reach a global audience. Both audiences share a passion for a thrilling betting experience, and with cross-selling products that offer both a betting feature and a football -specific setting, you can tap into the demand of this diverse audience. And what better time to capitalise on such a vast opportunity than during the biggest sporting event of the year – the World Cup?

EVOPLAY’S CASE STUDY

At the last World Cup, Evoplay took the global football experience to the next level with its specially designed football games for the World Cup and all fans of gambling, betting and football! The Evoplay Football Pack includes three instant games – Penalty Shoot-out, Football Bet and Penalty Series – three unique games that align with the global sports event, drawing inspiration from football matches, the stadium’s atmosphere and the hit of adrenaline bettors feel while wagering on sports.

Evoplay combined a betting feature with the exhilarating atmosphere of a football pitch and a familiar sportsbook interface where players can get real-life betting experience here and now. Evoplay’s Chief Commercial Officer Vladimir Malakchi commented: “At Evoplay, we are proud to have created a football pack that has generated a lot of excitement among our partners. The pack offers an immersive gaming experience that combines the thrill of football with the excitement of online slots.

“Our games have the experience of a real sports fixture and betting feature that will satisfy all types of audiences. Experience the thrill of

Penalty Shoot-out with our specially-designed game. Players can choose which corner of the goalpost the football will hit, as well as which country to play and the outcome of the game. With our games, alongside the Betting Mechanic, players will feel like they’re right in the middle of a real World Cup match!”

STATISTICS THAT GOT THE BALL ROLLING

The World Cup has revealed that the Betting Mechanic is a major success, with all key metrics increasing during the games. This shows the betting system has been a hit with players and sports bettors around the world.

“Our partners have been particularly impressed with the betting feature, which adds an extra layer of excitement to the gameplay,” added Malakchi. “We are thrilled to report that the feature has received overwhelmingly positive feedback, with many players commenting on how it enhances their overall gaming experience.”

“The future of Gaming is Now” - Evoplay noted. And we can bet it is so for all of us – casinos and players, sportsbooks and their bettors. We’re on the edge of a new era – Casino Betting.

The betting mechanic is transforming the casino industry by opening it up to a much wider audience - sports bettors. This captivating and exciting feature enables players to place bets on the likelihood of a specific situation occurring, making it an engaging addition to their gameplay

“Betting Mechanic: A game changer and a cross-seller this World Cup”

In focus: Sporting Solutions

Andy Wright, CEO of Sporting Group, the market leading supplier to the global sports betting industry, discusses what makes Sporting Solutions, the Group’s B2B division, a pioneering provider of software services

Sporting Solutions has been very active in North America. After launches with Alberta Gaming Liquor & Cannabis (AGLC) and Ontario Lottery & Gaming Commission (OLG), what are your longer-term ambitions for this market?

Those two very successful integrations were launched within a week of each other and create a great platform for us to promote our products and services further in the North American and Canadian market. We see the North American market as a key priority for us in the future, as we continue to focus on our managed services platform and our market leading trading services.

As a sports betting technology supplier, what’s the question you are frequently asked by operator partners and how do you answer it?

There are always questions about the time to market and requests for a tailored offering. Our recent launch in Alberta is an excellent example to demonstrate how Sporting Solutions meets such demands. In this instance, not only did we deliver the solution in record time, but if you compare Ontario and Alberta’s offering, it’s clear how vastly different they are. So, we’re confident that with our highly configurable front-end widgets, we can satisfy the most differentiated offer on any operator’s whiteboard. Our nautral trading capabilities enable partners to determine their own pricing strategy and attitude to risk management.

In what ways has the rapid growth in sports betting across the US changed the way Sporting Solutions does business?

We have expanded our sales force to get in front of our potential partners and are now looking at additional offices in North America to house our growing presence there. There’s no doubt about it, our development pipeline has a more stateside feel to it. However, the main point for me, seeing how the market is maturing and the requirements from local operators, is that each state essentially represents a new territory, a new country,

with separate localisation, personalisation and regulatory needs. We’re also hearing a certain level of dissatisfaction from operators regarding third party platforms and services. In addition, we are uniquely placed for larger lottery providers with sport licences and can leverage the reputation of Française des Jeux (FDJ) as a trusted omnipresent operator to capture that new business.

What does partnering with a nationally recognised operator like FDJ bring to the table?

First and foremost, trust and reliability. As a top 10 gambling company globally, partnering with FDJ provides immediate credibility, through reputation alone. Also, the pre-existing relationships it has opens many doors for us. Additionally, the sheer scale of FDJ as a company has provided Sporting Group with a lot of support for our staff through a very difficult time over the last couple of years, particularly with the pandemic. We are very fortunate to be associated with them.

What do you consider to be the most under-exploited areas in sports betting technology and how are you working to take advantage of this?

Certainly risk and compliance tools and services are under indexed in the supply space. You only need to look at the gold rush of acquisition in the US. As that matures,

the regulators, on a state-by-state basis, may start looking in the rear-view mirror in terms of how these customers are acquired. Any operator should be able to stand up to scrutiny in the future and be able to say it is operated responsibly, to avoid huge penalties or anything worse. We’re working on tools where operators will be able to demonstrate this with confidence and continue to compete in acquiring customers. We aim to get closer to existing and new partners by building true collaboration and a better understanding of their needs in this space in the future.

What for you is Sporting Solutions’ key differentiator from its rivals?

Obviously, there are a lot of suppliers very established in this space, but I believe Sporting Solutions has a different blend of what operators require across the full value chain. We’re not interested in competing in the data rights space, but instead are fully focused on our market-leading reputation in pricing and risk management to win business. Plus, we’re able to demonstrate the reliability of a platform demonstrated by FDJ in France and its stability to progress our platform and our managed services strategy.

“We have expanded our sales force to get in front of our potential partners and are now looking at additional offices in North America”

Andy Wright

In focus: IGT PlaySports

Gaming operators seeking an incremental revenue stream, and a proven player acquisition tool, should consider introducing sports betting via IGT PlaySports. With a presence in North America, IGT PlaySports offers a versatile omnichannel sports betting technology, and services portfolio that includes top-tier sports betting hardware and software.

POWERFUL, VERSATILE AND MARKET-READY

The IGT PlaySports platform is one of the most powerful technology stacks in the rapidly expanding North American sports betting market. It is the sports betting platform of choice for more than 80 gaming venues across the North America. In 2022, IGT PlaySports extended its footprint to 11 additional jurisdictions, spanning 16 customers — making IGT one of the largest and most influential sports betting suppliers in North America.

Backed by the versatility and market readiness of the PlaySports solution, IGT has helped leading B2C brands, commercial and tribal casinos, racetracks, arenas, and lotteries establish and grow their sports betting enterprises; and is poised to continue this positive momentum moving forward.

MAJOR SUCCESS WITH MAJOR SPORTS BETTING PROVIDERS

IGT PlaySports maintains strong partnerships with well-respected commercial sports betting providers such as FanDuel, PointsBet, Resorts World, Boyd Gaming and SuperBook.

Backed by IGT’s legacy in the gaming industry, PlaySports continues to hold a strong presence in tribal jurisdictions across the nation, including partnerships with Snoqualmie in Washington, Oneida in Wisconsin and Two Kings in North Carolina. In January 2023, we expanded our North American presence to include Ohio, which proved to be a major success for IGT due to new kiosk deployments with our partners at UBetOhio, FanDuel and BetSkyBox.

With the recent kiosk deployments in Ohio, IGT’s PlaySports technology is currently available in 29 US jurisdictions and more than 80 venues, including the FanDuel Sportsbook at The Meadowlands and Maryland Live! – two top-producing sportsbooks in the US.

THE CHOICE IS CLEAR

Customers tell us they choose IGT for three key reasons:

• The B2B sports betting solutions built and certified specifically for the North American market, including our around-the -clock, US-based Trading Advisory services tailored specifically for North America.

• A highly scalable platform allows operators to differentiate with retail and mobile capabilities, expanding their ability to reach players in multiple ways.

• A proven partner in profitability provides full organisational support in compliance, product development, operations and training, backed by our extensive industry experience.

CUSTOMIZABLE PROMOTIONS AND PLAYER PERSONALISATION

Personalisation of the user interface remains a continued focus. The deep integration between

our player account management (PAM) platform and special offers allows for highly tailored sports promotions, which ultimately helps drive the best ROI for our customers and maintain customer satisfaction. We were the first sports betting supplier to enable operators to extend promotional offers to players.

24/7 EXPERT ADVICE

IGT’s in-house Trading Advisory Team provides PlaySports customers around-the-clock expert odds making with localised pricing for pre-game and in-play bets, continually offer monitoring and optimisation, and on-call expertise in every aspect of day-to-day sportsbook operations.

To address the growing demand for our trading advisory services, in 2022 we introduced a new trading application that uses multi-layered technology that enables our trading team to seamlessly manage multiple sportsbooks simultaneously.

IGT’s PlaySports customers also benefit from compelling and original promotional bets, exclusive parlay, combination wagering and player retention/acquisition strategies designed by the advisory team’s content managers.

A TRUSTED ADVISOR, FULLY DEDICATED TO OUR PARTNERS

IGT PlaySports goes beyond the transactional relationship with its customers, and serves as a trusted advisor and partner in the sports betting business. The most common feedback we receive from our partners is in praise of our high-quality customer service. Our dedicated team of Relationship Managers focuses solely on interaction with customers, and provides assistance across every phase of sportsbook launch and management.

GET IN THE GAME WITH IGT PLAYSPORTS

IGT PlaySports is an innovation leader in the US.sports betting market. No other supplier takes the individual and relationship-first approach. Backed by decades of experience, operators have confidence they are receiving top-quality solutions from IGT PlaySports, to support their business goals and move the player experience forward.

Get in the game with the winning combination of leading B2B sports betting technology and comprehensive market-ready solutions. IGT PlaySports offers everything sportsbook operators need to drive growth and build all-star success.

Esports Q&A: Competing with traditional betting

Thunderpick Head of Strategy Kelly Sanders introduces the company and discusses how esports betting can sit alongside traditional sports betting in the future

What can you tell us about Thunderpick, your role at the company and how you found yourself as Head of Strategy?

traditional sports betting for nine years before transitioning into esports, which is new and exciting for me. The biggest difference between the two is the player. In traditional sports betting, you don’t necessarily have to be a fan of the sport you’re betting on. You’re just looking for the betting opportunity or entertainment. However, in esports, we’re seeing a big shift where the people betting are often also players and major fans. This means marketing to them will be different from what traditional sportsbooks have been doing.

Brands that want to do well in this space need to be extremely authentic and knowledgeable because esports players are in big communities and are very vocal, especially on social media and other channels like Discord. Sponsoring teams and getting involved in tournaments will also be a huge part of marketing esports betting.

Unlike traditional sports leagues, gambling is allowed in the majority of esports leagues, allowing gambling partners to have a voice in the league. The opportunity for growth is huge, with numbers going into the billions

still offering sports and casino as secondary

something to fill the sports betting void

Thunderpick was founded a few years ago, just before the Covid-19 pandemic started. It was built as an esports-first betting platform and really took off when the pandemic struck, as most sportsbook operators leaned into using esports betting, since traditional sports were not available during that time. As the company emerged from the pandemic, it started to see major growth. The reason for this is that other brands, which mostly offer multiple products, went back to their bread and butter, which was traditional sports. In contrast, Thunderpick continued to focus on the esports-first platform, and this resonated with players who saw the authenticity of the brand, which was built for esports players with their needs in mind. That’s why the company wants to keep its unique selling point in the space, focusing on being esports-first, while still offering sports and casino as secondary products. While competing with multiproduct platforms, Thunderpick wants to excel at esports and maintain its position as a leader in this area. The brand was created by esports enthusiasts, including people who have played esports in the past and those who currently play it. Now, with over 60 employees, including an entire marketing team and trading platform, Thunderpick is poised for significant growth in 2023 with a planned marketing campaign. It’s worth noting that there was a spike in esports betting during the Covid-19 pandemic, but it has since subsided. So now it is about building esports betting as its own entity, rather than it simply being something to fill the sports betting void created by Covid-19.

How can esports betting platforms better market themselves to gambling operators, when traditional betting dominates sportsbooks? There are a few ways to look at this. To give you a brief history, I worked in

How can esports betting platforms

and exponential growth expected in the next few years. The money will come from betting volume, sponsorship investments and prize pools, with sponsorship generating at least 60% of revenue. The value of an esports player is actually quite huge when compared to a traditional sports player.

What are some of the benefits of esports betting over traditional betting?

It’s hard to say which is better, sports betting or esports betting, because they are so different. If you’re looking at sports betting, the less experienced better will usually go for prop betting, which is more fun to bet on. However, in the esports world, you can have a personal connection to the players because you often watch them play live and you are watching from familiar platforms. This creates more of an emotional connection to the players, and there are different types of bets available, such as betting on different maps or skins of the game. You can also personalise the skins and even stream the game and bet live, all from your desktop.

Interestingly, while we see a lot of sports betting activity from mobile phones, about 90% of esports betting activity comes from the desktop. This is because you are in your own

virtual world, connected globally, and can talk to players all over the world while enjoying the game from the comfort of your own home. There have been fun marketing campaigns, such as when DoorDash ran a campaign during a major esports tournament, and esports players really connected with it because they could order food to their homes while playing and watching their favourite games. This shows that marketers are changing their strategies to target esports players, and the popularity of esports is only going to grow as more people catch on to the “secret” of esports. It may even be treated as a traditional sport by the end of the year, with more media coverage and a formatted sports calendar. What is needed to convince operators that a gap can be bridged between traditional sports bettors and esports bettors? Or should operators accept that a whole separate platform is needed for esports bettors?

In the betting world, there are obviously different types of bettors, right? There are those who do it for entertainment and then there are those who do it solely for revenue as a source of income, and these are the sharp bettors. The regular betting companies typically target the recreational bettors since

they are more numerous and will likely generate more profits over time. However, when it comes to esports, it’s really more of a hobby, something people enjoy. There are experienced bettors who do it for income and who might do research on odds to make money off these betting lines.

From a recreational standpoint, though, we know that about 80% of people play video games, so education on how to bet on video games is also important. I’m still learning about the different maps and insurances, and it’s really a different offering than what traditional sportsbooks provide. For instance, while we might offer a 100% match bonus to traditional sports players, esports players want combo boosts and map insurance. It’s a completely different type of entertainment with different ways of betting and consuming it. You can’t just offer it as another product; you need to build it out as a new platform to go after a different type of consumer and provide them with what they want. If you don’t, esports fans will see through it and feel like you’re just trying to make money off them without offering what they want.

That’s why Thunderpick continuously goes back to what esports players want and how we can adapt to their needs, whether it’s providing a live feature so they can stream the game and bet at the same time, or considering how they want to consume esports on their desktop. This is how the bridge between traditional sports betting and esports betting can happen. Some of the biggest competitors might have abandoned esports after the pandemic, but brands like Thunderpick are continuously building a product that provides what esports players want and need, ensuring that we keep them as customers.

Do you think, therefore, that a demand for third-party suppliers to provide operators with solutions will only grow?

Sure, definitely. I mean, bringing in third-party suppliers will become more important to the big operators in the sense of giving them a product that will actually be useful to the sports player and bettor. It’s not only about providing a wide range of betting options, but also how to bet on them. For example, on Thunderpick’s esports page, the match page is designed to include buttons, the list of games going live, the match of the day, the different odds you can bet on and opening up a streaming option to watch it live. This is the kind of experience that esports players are looking for, and we continue to work on improving these features.

In my career in the gambling industry, esports is an exciting area. It feels like a startup world that is about to blow up, and there are big things to come for Thunderpick. I believe we are entering the market at a great time and hope to have some major announcements to share with you in a few months.

The sports betting states

Across the US, states have been opening up to legal sports betting and the massive revenue it can generate – thereby also collecting the tax from the practice. Now, in 2023, 20-plus states have legalised online sports betting, with several more having retail-only sports wagering and others looking to launch after having voted in favour of sports betting.

However, despite the success of the 30-plus states that have thrown open their doors to the long-illegal practice, some are still not convinced of the benefits it has upon society. Gambling Insider has taken five examples from the current sports betting market in the US and highlighted the differences in their current legal state.

OHIO (STATUS: LEGAL)

On 1 January this year, Ohio officially launched sports betting to its citizens with a flurry of generous offers from the likes of BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel to entice customers to their platforms. For Ohioans, the day couldn’t have come quickly enough, as many that were nursing hangovers from the effects of New Year’s Eve found joy in finally being able to

place bets on sporting events – which they did in droves, as wave after wave were places on day one alone.

In short, Ohio’s launch was the most successful in US history, with 234,000 geolocation transactions registered within the first hour of it going live. The success of Ohio’s launch seems to show a trend across the US that the more sports betting is becoming legalised, the more popular it is getting.

MASSACHUSETTS (STATUS: FULL LAUNCH IN MARCH 2023)

During the last session in the Massachusetts State Government, the parties agreed to legalise sports betting with a legislative package that suited all parties involved – and that’s how the sports-mad state finally secured sports betting for its citizens. As Massachusetts has the New England Patriots, the Celtics, the Bruins and the Red Sox, the fight to legalise the practice of sports wagering always seemed like it would end with approval – though it took a moment to get there.

The date set for the full launch of online sports betting was 10 March 2023, with retail

sports already live as of the 31 January. The state is also home to DraftKings’ headquarters, which is located in Boston – a fact that pushed the sportsbook to heavily campaign for legal sports betting in the state. All that’s left for the Bay State now is to watch as the famously sporty region gets to grips with placing wagers.

CALIFORNIA (STATUS: ILLEGAL – FOR NOW)

Then, there’s California, the state that so many thought would have legalised sports betting by now, yet – due to its Native American population and the tribes’ grip over gambling laws in the state – it hasn’t. That isn’t to say there isn’t going to be legalised sports betting there in the near-future – but recently, the voting down of proposition 26 & 27, which would have paved the road for sports betting in California, left the practice facing a more challenging road to legalisation. Should another ballot be proposed, it could see success in the Golden State – though it is going to be a fight.

The sheer size and wealth of California means there will be a time when sports betting becomes available to its citizens, especially with

Boston, Massachusetts

When the Supreme Court overturned the federal law that banned sports betting across the US just over four years ago, few would have predicted the speed with which most states would legalise the practice

so many other states opening up – while some compare it to US gambling’s White Whale. The ultimate prize for the industry. The juiciest and fattest (monetarily) steak for the industry to feast upon.

FLORIDA (STATUS: LIMBO)

In sports betting terms, Florida is purgatory, a place where the law is currently near-illegible to anybody attempting to decipher whether they can legalise sports betting or not. As of now, the legalisation of sports betting in the state is in complete limbo. However, should it become legal in the next few years – as is still expected despite the current imbroglio – its value in the US would be high, due to the presence of sporting teams such as, the Miami Dolphins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The problem right now is that a pending appeal by the Seminole Tribe, which had exclusive rights to the sports betting market – until that agreement was struck down by a federal judge – is jamming up the process. Other efforts have been made to get the legalisation of sports betting on the ballot for 2023, which failed after it didn’t get enough signatures. However, should the tribe’s agreement with Florida be renegotiated or thrown out of the appeals court, sports betting could become legal all over the Sunshine State very quickly. Otherwise, hopes will hinge on getting the motion put on another ballot for 2024 – which, as has already been proven, could be difficult in the republican-led state.

Cleveland, Ohio

UTAH (STATUS: ILLEGAL – EXPECTED TO REMAIN SO)

Due to the conservative nature of Utah, gambling in the state is not even a subject under discussion. Some are campaigning for the state to legalise the practice, which could see results if the states around Utah decide to adopt it. However, without significant pressure from outside, the state is unlikely to legalise gambling in the near future. Utah is the only state in the continental US that has no legal gaming legalities at all. So, online sports betting is a million miles away for the state’s residents at the moment. This may never change.

THE DIFFERENCES

Since 2018, every state has had the chance to decide for itself if it wants to open up to sports betting – with the vast majority taking the opportunity in some form or another. Some have taken time to consider if it is the kind of practice that is wanted by the state’s citizens, while others have taken time to see how it can be implemented with existing gambling laws. Due to the benefits of opening up a new source of tax revenue and the vast sums that follow, most states have legalised it as a way of drawing on a greater

amount of tax dollars. The issue for many states that haven’t yet legalised it are the deals in place with gambling entities such as tribes, which don’t want to see gambling taken from the reservations and brought online, where anybody can wager from a phone.

California falls into this pit, as does Florida – albeit in a more complex set of circumstances – two states that are being heavily leaned on to legalise sports betting due to the vast amount of money that sportsbooks could make from them. However, there are steadfast holdouts. Some states are completely unwilling to entertain the idea of sports betting because of the belief that wagering of any kind is wrong. Utah is one of these, a state that has zero interest in sports betting and doesn’t seem to show any inclination to change that stance.

It will take years for sports betting to become embedded in the US, for the excitement to wear off and for the markets in each state to stabilise. Then, the hold-out states might start to feel the pressure – as the fiscal strength of the states around them begins to look more and more attractive.

“It will take years for sports betting to become embedded in the US, for the excitement to wear off and for the markets in each state to stabilise”

Lord of the greyhounds

What is the current landscape for greyhound racing in the UK and what are you currently working on?

There are currently 19 official tracks, along with an unofficial track in Wales, which host various racing events throughout the year. These events are broadcast on televisionsin homes or on screens in betting shops. It would be too complex to delve into all the intricacies of the broadcasting, but there is a group called TRP who handles the coverage.

As a joint venture, we have established a company that will manage nine of the best tracks of the 19, in addition to five other excellent tracks that will remain independent but will sell us their broadcasted pictures. Essentially, we purchase the rights to use their footage and commentary, and then sell it to betting shops and offer it on our own account. This product is incredibly valuable; we are excited to bring it to market.

How is the sport now and what is the current popularity among bookmakers?

Greyhound racing has been in long-term slow decline, for two reasons. Firstly, the inner-city areas where greyhound stadiums used to exist have become more valuable for housing or other purposes. For example, Wimbledon is now a housing estate and Walthamstow is also going that way. Secondly, the traditional audience for greyhound racing was workingclass men who, until the advent of betting shops, could only place bets by going to the stadium as it was illegal otherwise. However, greyhound racing has many advantages from a bookmaker’s and punter’s point of view, such as a quick-fire rhythm, which makes it very attractive. So, it is still a considerable percentage of the betting shop turnover and there is also increasing online betting on greyhound racing from home.

Regarding the care for greyhounds, when

this job was offered to me, one of the things the gentleman said was: “It is your job to keep our feet to the fire over welfare.” Some bits of welfare have been very good but, in general, welfare has been much improved. However, there is still more to be done. I took this job because Premier Greyhound Racing’s primary objective is to improve welfare, making it nice for the dogs, ensuring they are enjoying themselves, and making it a pleasant experience for both people and punters.

Lord David Lipsey, Premier Greyhound Racing Chair, sits down with Gambling Insider inside the House of Lords to discuss how greyhound racing needs to evolve and what he is doing to help the struggling sport regain the attention of large audiences

“Greyhound racing is in long-term decline... but still a considerable percentage of betting shop turnover’”

Therefore, improving welfare is a significant part of the job I’ve been asked to do.

How does the UK market differ compared to other markets worldwide? Is it a leader in greyhound racing in terms of regulations, perhaps? There are huge worldwide variations. In the US, for example, greyhound racing has recently been virtually eliminated due to extremely militant animal welfare advocates. In Australia, however, greyhound racing thrives; it looks great. But you’re quite right, we’ll be launching mostly in the UK. However, the ambition is to have the British greyhound racing product available in every interested country in the world. We haven’t set a limit to the size of this business, and we expect it to be big because it has the same advantages in South Africa or Australia as it does in the bookmaker’s shop here in the UK; depending on a different time of day when the races are finished. So, there is no limit to the ambition and we hope it will be a nice little earner. From my point of view, welfare is very important. I have no doubt about this. The more money it makes, the more money we should be able to put back into welfare and facilities for customers, and therefore the more money it will make. We’re trying to get out of what has been something of a vicious circle into a virtuous circle of growth and prosperity that people will love.

In an ideal world, what would greyhound racing and its relationship to sports betting look like in the future?

I suppose it would be a thriving research ecosystem, where greyhound racing dominates sports betting, but that tends to be focused on particular time periods when there is a big football match, for example. Of course, most of the business in the shop will be on football, but here is a product that’s constantly available. We’re going to have circa 50 meetings a week, and hopefully 400 races a week on which people can bet at a time and place that suits their convenience – and have a great time doing it. That seems like a perfectly honourable ambition to us.

What other messages and aims do you have as Chair of Premier Greyhound Racing?

I must say when I took it on, they had a much smaller job in mind for me, simply because it was only me to start with and we’ve had to build up from that. I hugely enjoy my evenings at greyhound racing, such as in Sheffield on Saturday, which was a great night that I haven’t seen in greyhound racing for 20 or

30 years.

There was a huge crowd, lovely track and wonderful food. So I enjoy that side. But actually, at the age of 74, to be asked for the first time in my life to run a prosperous business is pretty exciting. I won’t be doing it at this rate forever. But I’ve had the most enjoyable year. The final thing to say is I love greyhounds and greyhound people. They’re the nicest in the world. They’re always very pleased to see you. I haven’t had an egg thrown in my face yet, so as long as that continues, I shall go on cheerfully doing the job as long as I want.

You’ve referred to darts quite a lot in terms of the sport you can try to mirror in terms of its resurgence. Do you think that’s a fair comparison? Greyhound racing could follow in the footsteps of darts, which was down and out. It was hardly ever seen on television and declined in popularity as a sport or pastime. People played darts not for the sport, but for drinking. It was nearly extinct. But they got a grip on themselves and turned the sport around.

They got the right television coverage and I see absolutely no reason why we can’t do the same with greyhound racing. In terms of being a sports entertainment product, I believe greyhound racing can really follow in the footsteps of darts. I have no doubt about it. So, it’s those new audiences that we have to try to cultivate and attract, while at the same time retaining the old audiences that have kept us going for so long.

A demographic like that is something you want to target?

Absolutely yes, but it’s not the only demographic. When I was at Sheffield on Saturday night, everybody there, from kids to adults, really loved it. A man of my own age was celebrating his birthday with a party of family – and it was just like a live community occasion.

Lord David Lipsey

A renewed focus

XLMedia’s President of North America, Kevin Duffey, speaks to Gambling Insider about his career, XLMedia’s ambitions and the US affiliate market

Could you tell us a little about your appointment and your career before

joining XLMedia?

I have a background in technology, media and digital publishing. I joined XLMedia through the acquisition of the Saturday Football company, where I was one of the Founders and leaders of a group of college football-centric websites for over 10 years. We were acquired in September of 2021, and I immediately got involved in all of our properties while also helping grow our affiliate business in this space. I believe I have a strong understanding and experience blending the worlds of sports and media audiences, which relates to the affiliate business model.

This is an exciting moment where those things have converged into the sports betting landscape that we have now here in the US, and I think we are extremely well positioned with how we have approached the industry and our sports audiences. I am excited about the role and how this business at XLMedia is rapidly evolving through some acquisitions, and we are hitting our stride in terms of internal alignment;

and building to capitalise on this space

“Every state has its own agenda and personalities at play in terms of state legislatures. We monitor all of it, including things that are proposed, even if we don’t think they’ll move forward”

Kevin Duffey

in the long term. So, I’m thrilled to be a part of it.

What are XLMedia’s plans for US markets in light of the competitive landscape and barriers to entry for affiliates, particularly in relation to the crossover between media and betting? How do you plan to differentiate from established market players such as Catena Media and Better Collective?

It is undoubtedly a competitive landscape, and we are in a moment where the business is evolving. As everyone is aware, this industry is not unique in its renewed focus on profitability and sustainability. While there will be a land grab in new states as they unlock and open up in the future, it will increasingly be done through a lens of lifetime value of users and profitability. As we look at our own plans, we know we need to be aligned with where the industry is going. A big point of emphasis is on the quality of the user. As an affiliate, we drive users at scale in terms of volume, but we also need to drive a certain level of quality that will drive lifetime value to our partners. If we do that well, we will be very well positioned for a sustainable business and to be great partners to some of the operators in the States.

We are working on many things, all with an eye on building a sustainable business in the long run. This means working on sustainable commercial deals, whether it be rev share, hybrid or CPA deals. We want to be good partners where it’s a win-win situation, and our partners see great value from the users we send them. We are focused on our internal technology and capabilities in terms of driving high-quality users from sports audiences.

We’re excited about the convergence of large audiences and how to engage them in a way that drives conversion and engagement in the betting landscape. Operators want users that are highly engaged over time. Our team loves when new states open up, but we are also eager to continue building out our capabilities to drive sustainable volume and quality of users throughout the year; outside of state launch windows as well.

Will New York, which currently does not have a revenue-share model in place, eventually adopt one? Is it inevitable for states without rev share to end up implementing it?

Yeah, I think that’s an interesting question. Every state is so unique. Every state has its own agenda and personalities at play there in terms of state legislatures. We monitor all

of it, including things that are proposed, even if we don’t think they’ll move forward. It’s interesting to see the buzz and where things are; what’s being discussed etc. I think it’s obvious more work is needed and will happen in certain states. New York has been pretty unique and is a challenging environment in many respects. It’s interesting that we’ve seen how it can be effective when operators, affiliates and regulators work together to ensure a healthy industry in the state, both from a business sustainability standpoint and also a responsible gaming standpoint.

That point was just made in Massachusetts, how affiliates are actually a valuable and important part of the equation here when ensuring proper responsible gambling messaging. So I think that is a successful path forward. Now, which states will adopt rapture and which ones won’t – and how, it’s hard to say. We’ll see and monitor, but I do think the goal of every state is to have a healthy, sustainable industry, which means operators that have sustainable businesses. The goal is also to have responsible gaming and proper user protection in every state. At the end of the day, all parties are aligned in that way and, when given the opportunity to sit down and work together towards those solutions, things happen. Our view is that over time, things will trend towards revenue sharing increasingly. But as that happens, each state will go at varying speeds.

What are your thoughts on the potential for big moves in the affiliate M&A space over the next couple of years? Specifically, do you see consolidation as a necessary step for certain players in the highly competitive US landscape? And as a more general question, what do you think about Better Collective’s decision to take a greater than 5% position in Catena Media?

It’s certainly interesting. I think this industry will have ups and downs for sure, there will be new players that

enter and there will be consolidation that occurs. We are very, very focused on this incredible US market that we think has years ahead of it. And we know that every year can look a little bit different, right? So how our competitors are approaching it, we monitor, of course. And we find some of these moves interesting, but don’t necessarily have a comment specifically on it.

In terms of XLMedia’s plans in US territories in 2023, do you have any final thoughts on major trends and topics?

Yeah, it’s funny, I think our business and our model are pretty simple. It’s a good thing in business when you have a simple model. As I mentioned, there’s an increased focus on quality of user. So our view is that we believe in high-quality, highly engaged audiences on sports media properties and sports betting properties. And this, for us, is both owned and operated properties as well as media partners. Our goals are pretty simple, aligning more with the long-term goals of our partners for sustainability and for a long-term view on this business. And then internally, what can we do to improve how we engage and convert our audiences?

Then how can we grow our audiences in a manner that will lead to continued growth in the affiliate space? We think we are uniquely positioned with sports fans and sports audiences that we know are betting both in existing states, and future states where we have a really profitable long-term business here. As we operate, we continue to improve at how we engage those users toward that end. So it’s pretty simple. It’s aligning well with our operators. It’s engaging and converting our audience. It’s growing that audience in a way that makes sense for an affiliate business model, even while we diversify and explore other areas as well. But we know our core is the affiliate business model here in the US and view it as a really profitable business here for years to come.

“I think this business will have ups and downs for sure; there will be new players that enter and there will be consolidation that occurs. We are very, very focused on this incredible US market that we think has years ahead of it”

Raising the bar

From Tipico’s pull-up bar competition to its hyperlocal focus, Ohio Market Manager Phil Goldfarb speaks about Tipico Sportsbook’s US plans for engagement

Arnold Festival, the approach from day one was always: how do we tell our story with the Ohio audience? This really gave us an opportunity to talk to over 100,000 attendees over the weekend, with a majority of them being local Ohio residents. We really wanted to engage with everybody who represented Ohio and everybody there was interested in learning about the sportsbook. But I think like all brands, when the engagement starts happening with customers, we start seeing a mirror image of who our targeted customer is. Primarily it’s going to be males 21 to, say, 35-38. We had an opportunity to engage with the majority of them throughout the weekend.

To begin, how did the Arnold Sports Festival go?

It was fantastic. It was truly everything that we projected for the event and our partnership. It’s a very long weekend. The competition started early. We were there pretty much from Friday morning through late Sunday evening, so it was exactly what we wanted to see out of a partnership. A full, full weekend event. It was a lot of fun.

That’s good to hear. Were you targeting a specific audience while you were there?

You know, it’s interesting. I think when we first started thinking about the partnership with the

And while you were there, did you see any kind of an increase in bets on any of the more non-traditional sporting events, like the ones that took place at the Arnold Festival?

We did. It was interesting that the weekend actually overlapped with UFC 285. There are also over 60 events that take place at the Arnold Festival. A lot of the folks that were coming up and talking to us were interested, engaging with our products and registering with Tipico Sportsbook, just so they could have an account ready to place bets on UFC that evening. We saw an incredible increase of new customers coming through over the weekend and real-time betting

taking place. People wanted to register and take advantage of this incredible offer that we had for customers live at the event: ultimately putting money, and placing wagers, on an event that is happening in real time on Saturday night.

As a European sportsbook, how do you plan to stand out in the US market as you enter? For us the pillars and strategy really remain the same. Before we officially launched on January one, the approach was always to stay hyperlocal. We wanted to be the sportsbook that really represents the passion for sports fans of Ohio. So for us, it was a foundation of building a very strong and memorable brand, but also staying local. Those, to us, are really the key pillars: hyper

“We wanted to be the sportsbook that really represents the passion for sports fans of Ohio”

Phil Goldfarb

locality and emotion around sports with Ohio sports fans.

I know you mentioned hyper locality, but do you have any other states in the pipeline? There are four you’re in currently, correct? Correct. We’re always exploring. Four currently, but I think we are looking at what’s next for Tipico. When I talk about the pillars, and being hyperlocal and understanding the emotional connectivity with sports fans, that will be our approach now as we evaluate markets. But we’re incredibly excited to be in Iowa, albeit prioritising Ohio. This is a key market for us. We’re truly going all in.

As far as ‘going all in’ with other events, are there any other events you have coming up, or any other partnerships, like what you did with the Arnold festival?

It’s interesting. I would more or less describe the Arnold as a standalone event and weekend festival. But we built our partnership strategy. We really have a share of the voice that will be a full calendar for us in Ohio. For a whole weekend, we were at the Arnold festival Friday, Saturday, Sunday. On top of the event for the weekend, we have an incredible partnership with the Columbus Crew, Major League Soccer. They had their first home game of the year

recently. So now we were in front of 100,000 attendees at the Arnold Festival throughout the weekend, and we were also able to get in front of another 20,000 passionate sports fans with our exclusive partnership with Columbus Crew. When we talk about that partnership, Columbus Crew represents us as a brand. It’s an international sport, being football, but with ties to this community passion for sports. There’s something very unique about how we partner with Columbus Crew and that partnership really gives us longevity through the calendar year. They’re going to be playing through October and potentially with Major League Soccer Playoffs throughout the year.

And you’re going to be with them. We’re going to be with them throughout the entire course of the season. Beyond that, we’ve established partnerships with some of the more local credible brands. This ranges from local restaurants and breweries throughout the state of Ohio.

Anywhere sports fans are being passionate and spending their time.

Truly. I think, for us, the number-one focus is Ohio as a whole. But then how do we divide and conquer? We see Columbus as the bullseye and what we wanted to accomplish in the state, really

being the epicentre of all things Ohio sports, if you will. But we are just as active in Cleveland, and in fact, in Cincinnati. We have an amazing partnership with a brewery called Rhinegeist Brewery, and that partnership allows us to activate and create experience year-round with sports fans, specifically around Cincinnati sports. It gives us a voice in every market, and it gives us experience and activity in every market where sports fans are really itching to participate and engage with us and the sportsbook.

Speaking of creating that experience, our last question is whether you knew what the record was for your ‘pull-up – cash in’ game that you did at the Tipico booth at the Arnold Festival! We had multiple people last a full 60 seconds. The challenge was if you can rip and remain in the full pull-up position for 30 seconds, you receive a bonus bet credit. We had multiple people not only hit the 30-second threshold, but the 60-second threshold. We ended up pivoting, and we were able to change the contest to challenge people and see how many pull-ups they could do in this 30-second window. We had people do over 40 or 50 pull-ups in a 30-second span, which was incredible to witness live. But this is why they’re there.

In focus: Sportradar

With Florian Geheeb, Global Director Advertising Sales, Fan Engagement

Sportradar introduced ad:s, its data-driven digital marketing service, to the market in 2019. Four years later and the service goes from strength-to-strength. Florian Geheeb, Global Director Advertising Sales, Fan Engagement at Sportradar, discusses how the product has changed since its launch and what the future holds.

You launched ad:s in 2019, how has the service changed in that time?

When Sportradar launched ad:s in 2019, the focus was very much on delivering efficient marketing activities for our operator clients. To do this, we paired programmatic advertising capabilities with a Demand Side Platform (DSP) developed specifically for the betting industry. This combination allowed us to provide operators with highly targeted display campaigns that significantly reduced advertising waste.

we expanded the ad:s offering to support top- of-funnel activity such as brand awareness and consideration.

The result is the ad:s multi-channel performance marketing platform, which provides our clients with a greater range of options to optimize their digital advertising campaigns including paid social, connected TV and digital out-of-home. And, actually, paid social media advertising is performing really well for clients and I’m excited about its potential.

You work with over 100 clients for ad:s

– why do they choose Sportradar?

Operators work with Sportradar because we offer the industry’s only betting-specific marketing solution. For example, by integrating our DSP into their display marketing campaigns, operators can reach customers they would not otherwise be able to if they used a generic DSP provider. It’s hard for operators to acquire new customers in such a competitive marketplace, but with ad:s our clients can connect with relevant customers across multiple channels and jurisdictions that are regulated for sports betting.

positive ROI for clients. Our paid social media advertising team, for example, works in partnership with clients. They invest significant time getting to know the client’s business and how they can best use the ad:s technology to deliver against short-term and long-term goals. It’s a true partnership and that really is key.

What’s more, Sportradar continues to invest in developing bespoke technology for individual channels and betting industry -specific products. The industry doesn’t sit still and nor do we – we’re constantly innovating to provide our clients with the solutions they need to enhance targeting precision.

What can we expect from ad:s in the future?

Marketing efficiency has been a key driver of our services and we’ve looked to apply these technical capabilities across multiple customer acquisition channels and platforms, such as our programmatic video advertising solution. But as the market has evolved and our clients place equal emphasis on marketing effectiveness,

It’s this hyper-targeted approach that delivers results for clients. For some operators, ad:s’ range of services has achieved a reduction of up to a 60% in cost-per-acquisition, increased net gaming revenue (NGR) by 110%, and increased click-through-rates for rightsholder-operator sponsorships by 225%. Furthermore, a lifetime value analysis of the customers acquired through the ad:s platform shows that these bettors are generating more positive revenue for our clients’ businesses and actively use their services. So, the quality of the customers acquired through ad:s is incredibly high.

These advanced technical capabilities are underpinned by a world-class team of channel strategists who are focused on engaging sports audiences more effectively and delivering

In the near term, we’re going to build out our paid social media offering. With more than three billion people engaging with social media each month, it’s become a key channel for operators and we’re working to unlock its full potential for customer acquisition. The ad:s technology is deeply integrated into the META platforms of Facebook and Instagram, and we recently announced its integration into Snapchat. I anticipate expanding on to new channels as the year progresses.

Looking longer term, and as we move further into 2023, we’ll focus on developing a more insightful measurement of marketing performance. We’re creating a betting-specific, multi-touch attribution solution that provides operators with complete visibility of all their customer touchpoints.

This data and insight allows them to have greater visibility of their advertising spend, helping to prioritise their best-performing platforms and understand the true value of their customer cost-per-acquisition. This will ultimately reduce advertising waste and provide better value for their business.

“Looking longer term, and as we move further into 2023, we’ll focus on developing a more insightful measurement of marketing performance”