sportcast-interview:-the-success-of-betbuilder-with-fortuna-entertainment-group-(feg)-and-across-europe

SportCast interview: The success of BetBuilder with Fortuna Entertainment Group (FEG) and across Europe

Reading Time: 3 minutes

 

OpenBet’s SportCast business continues to grow from strength to strength. In the US, many of the region’s leading US operators utilise its same-game parlay product as demand increases exponentially for this exciting form of betting.

However, the pioneers of the original and leading BetBuilder product remain fully focused on penetrating new markets across the globe, including Europe where it already holds a commanding position.

Recently, SportCast partnered with Fortuna Entertainment Group (FEG) in a move which significantly strengthens its presence in Central and Eastern Europe. We caught up with SportCast Managing Director Ryan Coombs to find out more about the innovative company’s products in Europe and its plans for the future.

 

How important is this deal with Fortuna in expanding both OpenBet’s and SportCast’s presence in Central Europe? How many operators in total do you supply your content to in this region?

Teaming up with an operator of the stature of Fortuna Entertainment Group (FEG) is a huge milestone for the business. The launch greatly increases our presence in Central and Eastern Europe where our products are firmly establishing themselves as cornerstones in the sportsbook offering.

It was clear from day one that we share an aligned vision in bringing premium engaging experiences to the market. We’re super excited to see the undoubted popularity of our product suite continue to grow with Fortuna’s customers.

 

How common are BetBuilder products in this region of Europe, and how can they elevate the betting experience across both retail and online?

SportCast’s vision is to remove the boundaries that exist when placing any bet a customer chooses. Our BetBuilder products facilitate this for sports fans within a single event. The popularity of BetBuilder in the region is growing daily, where our sports coverage and player market depth are particularly appealing to the next generation of consumers who demand a fully personalised experience.

We are constantly looking at ways to add more sports and markets to our offering as demand grows. Our products are designed to integrate seamlessly both online and in retail and have achieved huge success in both avenues around the world.

 

The deal with Fortuna includes a pre-built, quick-pick solution of BetBuilder –  how does this version compare to the original and why is it appealing to certain operators?

The pre-built/quick pick BetBuilder solution is the perfect companion to the full BetBuilder solution – where a selection of the most popular BetBuilder bets are presented to the end user. Whilst browsing the selections, the product provides instant engagement that truly gets the creative juices flowing. This often results in the customer building their own story in the full BetBuilder solution.

Its engaging nature has led to pre-built bets being given prime real estate on the homepages of sportsbooks has been very successful for our partners.

 

Can you give us an insight into SportCast’s initial success with Fortuna? Have bettors appreciated this new type of betting experience?

We initially launched the pre-built BetBuilder bets product with Fortuna, which has been a great success so far. Adding the full BetBuilder solution completes the experience and we are greatly looking forward to seeing the results of both products interacting in tandem with each other.

 

Do you have any plans to further expand your product offering for the European market?

Absolutely, SportCast prides itself on staying ahead of the industry curve with its global coverage of sports and competitions. The demand and success of our products in the European market has seen us quickly move to shortly release further European competitions in the likes of Ice Hockey and Basketball, which we know will be hugely popular with our partners in the region. Finally, In-Play is the main focus for our team in the coming year, so watch this space!

aspire-global-strikes-key-platform-and-managed-services-deal-with-tier-1-operator-boylesports-for-their-planned-entry-in-the-netherlands

Aspire Global strikes key platform and managed services deal with tier 1 operator BoyleSports for their planned entry in the Netherlands

Reading Time: < 1 minute

 

Aspire Global has signed an agreement to provide its full turnkey platform solution including managed services to leading Irish and UK online operator BoyleSports for its planned entry in the Netherlands. BoyleSports is also Ireland’s largest independent retail bookmaker with over 350 retail branches throughout Ireland and the UK.

Aspire Global will provide BoyleSports full proprietary offering comprising the platform (PAM), casino games and sports betting through its BtoBet sportsbook. The agreement also includes Aspire Global’s full, localized managed-services offering with the powerful CRM system, AspireEngage.

Aspire Global will support BoyleSports with all Dutch-speaking customer support and fully-managed localized CRM promotions to its players. Aspire Global will provide all the relevant tools for the compliant onboarding of Dutch players as well as integrated solutions with all main payment providers.

BoyleSports plans to operate in the Dutch market through its own license. The operator is today licensed in the UK, Ireland and Gibraltar and plans to submit its Dutch license application shortly.

Mark Kemp, BoyleSports CEO, said: “While planning for our entry into the regulated Dutch market, we were in search of a partner who could provide us with a future-proof, high-quality, turnkey solution. We have in Aspire Global found the perfect partner who will support us with leading technology, exciting games and all the localized player support we need. This will enable us to focus on the player experience and branding of our new business in the Netherlands.”

Tsachi Maimon, CEO of Aspire Global, said: “The partnership with BoyleSports is a significant confirmation of the strengths of Aspire Global’s complete iGaming offering. We are very excited about this opportunity to support BoyleSports – one of the industry’s most established brands – when planning to enter the newly regulated Dutch market.”

genius-sports-agrees-to-major-expansion-of-live-streaming,-official-data-and-fan-engagement-partnership-with-bet365

Genius Sports agrees to major expansion of live streaming, official data and fan engagement partnership with bet365

Reading Time: < 1 minute

 

  • Genius Sports to provide bet365 sportsbook with full suite of premium streaming and official data solutions, including global soccer competitions and the NFL
  • This agreement expands their existing long-term partnership which helped to establish the market for official sports data on competitions such as the English Premier League

Genius Sports Limited, the official data, technology and commercial partner that powers the ecosystem connecting sports, betting and media, has secured a major expansion of its long-term partnership with bet365.

As one of the first sportsbooks to implement Genius Sports’ live streaming service, bet365 has now agreed to a major uplift in the Company’s premium video content including low latency broadcasts from several top tier global soccer competitions and the NFL to bet365 customers outside the U.S. Genius Sports’ expanded streaming solution will deliver unique new content to help enhance bet placement and customer retention for bet365.

All streaming content will be combined with Genius Sports’ leading portfolio of official data across thousands of events per year, including UK football and the NFL. This includes access to the fastest, most accurate data on the English Premier League as well as the NFL’s real-time statistics through its proprietary Next Gen Stats (NGS).

To further enhance bet365’s marketing and player engagement strategy, Genius Sports will deliver its official data-driven marketing campaigns, driving deeper engagement and lower cost of acquisition across display, video and connected TV.

“The expansion of our partnership with bet365 further validates Genius Sports’ long-standing strategy to power live betting experiences backed by the highest quality official data and video content,” said Mark Locke, CEO of Genius Sports. “This agreement is particularly significant for our live streaming service which combines premium content from competitions with thousands of other low latency broadcasts from sports right around the world.”

betby-partners-with-hero-gaming-for-global-solution-rollout

BETBY PARTNERS WITH HERO GAMING FOR GLOBAL SOLUTION ROLLOUT

Reading Time: < 1 minute

 

BETBY, the innovative sportsbook supplier, has agreed a deal with Hero Gaming that will see the operator roll out BETBY’s complete solution across various key territories worldwide.

Hero Gaming brands Simple Casino and Boom Casino will be adding BETBY’s innovative sportsbook solution in their portfolio.

The operator group will have access to BETBY’s end-to-end, AI-driven sportsbook solution, with markets on over 900,000 live events a year, as well as the provider’s pioneering Betby.Games range of esports titles, available round the clock.

BETBY’s partnership with Hero Gaming comes off the back of successful agreements with a number of emerging operators and will see the supplier gain significant traction in regulated markets as it looks to continue the rapid global expansion it has achieved since 2018.

Chris Nikolopoulos, Chief Commercial Officer at BETBY, said: “We’re delighted to enter this agreement with Hero Gaming, one of the industry’s most exciting operators whose passion for creating great betting experiences is clear to see, and we look forward to rolling out our full solution with them.”

Sam Brown, Hero Gaming’s Chief Commercial Officer, said: “Continuing our impressive growth trajectory is a crucial goal for us in the year ahead, and expanding into sportsbook is one way that we can achieve this.

“The inclusion of BETBY’s esports and virtual titles adds an entirely new dynamic to our portfolio, and we can’t wait to see how our customers react to these products.”

oddsmatrix-breaks-eur-100-million-mark-per-month-for-total-bets-in-q4-2021

OddsMatrix breaks EUR 100 million mark per month for total bets in Q4 2021

Reading Time: < 1 minute

 

Leading iGaming platform provider EveryMatrix is pleased to announce record turnover for its sportsbook solution in Q4 of 2021.

OddsMatrix reached a great milestone in Q4 2021, surpassing a monthly average of over EUR 100 million total placed bets, almost double of Q4 2020.

OddsMatrix also received plenty of new and unique functionalities in 2021, such as the BetBuilder feature, available for seven sports with more to come, and a new Do It Yourself feature that allows operators to create their own tournaments, events, and odds.

The year’s final quarter also saw a massive increase in bettor engagement with FIFA and Basketball sports simulations. The overall increase in bettor engagement that our product experienced can be attributed to growing the existing clients and launching new ones.

OddsMatrix is the EveryMatrix sportsbook solution, designed to provide all the necessary tools to help operators expand their sports business and increase profits. It combines modern front-end and sophisticated back-office to offer complete customizability, support, and monitoring.

Ebbe Groes, Group CEO of EveryMatrix, says: “This is a great accomplishment for us, and the numbers don’t lie! OddsMatrix is a great product, and it’s performing even better than we forecasted.

“Our product experienced exponential growth in the recent years, and the talented OddsMatrix team is constantly at work to improve and expand upon what we achieved so far with the product.”

888sport-becomes-an-official-partner-of-rb-leipzig

888sport Becomes an Official Partner of RB Leipzig

Reading Time: 2 minutes

 

RB Leipzig and 888sport – one of the world’s leading sports betting providers – have agreed a partnership which will last until at least 2023 and the partnership will begin at the Bundesliga home match against FSV Mainz 05. 888sport has become an Official Partner of the Red Bulls.

Alongside significant TV-relevant advertising presence (such as Cam Carpets next to the goals, LED-board animations), 888sports will primarily be present on our digital channels. As well as the branding at the stadium, 888sport will become the presenter of the RBL predictor game, which gives fans a chance to win special prizes such as signed shirts, VIP tickets and season tickets for next season over the course of the campaign.

This will be 888sport’s first involvement in the Bundesliga, which makes it crucial that the partnership is designed in a way which fits both parties’ brands. The positioning of the multiple award-winning sports betting provider is one which is based on a readiness to innovate and the resulting reputation as a pioneer in the technology sector. 888sport wants to expand further in the German market and its motto “Safer. Better. Together” demonstrates its commitment to safe and responsible sports betting.

Matthias Reichwald, Chief Commercial Officer of RB Leipzig:

“As in the rest of football, we are always looking to strengthen in the area of partnerships, especially those who fit our philosophy and orientation. We have found one of these in 888sport and we’re proud that 888sport sees us as a suitable partner for their first entry into the Bundesliga.

888sport is an established brand who would like to grow further on a national and international level, which exactly corresponds to our vision, and now we can take on this challenge together.”

Kieran Spellman, Vice President Head of 888sport:

“We are proud to announce this long-term partnership with RB Leipzig, one of the most ambitious football clubs in Europe, and become their official partner. The team has developed at a rapid pace and shown how you can climb to the very top of Europe playing attractive, offensive football, having already come second in the Bundesliga and reaching the Champions League round of 16 last season.

We can’t wait to support the club with their future development and do our part to help RB Leipzig continue to establish themselves as one of the top three teams in Germany. This comes alongside the regulation and successful licensing for 888sport in the German online sports betting market. This partnership is a signal of 888sport’s long-term commitment to Germany.”

 

Pedro Barreda, Director International Marketing & Head of Sponsorships of 888sport:

“We’re looking forward to working with RB Leipzig and to being part of their journey for at least the next one and a half years. 888 are a world leader in their field, and RB Leipzig are one of the top clubs in European football, so this partnership is a perfect fit and will strongly support us with our ambitious plans for the newly-regulated German sports betting market.”

laure-boulleau,-new-ambassador-of-the-sports-betting-operator-vbet!

LAURE BOULLEAU, NEW AMBASSADOR OF THE SPORTS BETTING OPERATOR VBET!

Reading Time: 2 minutes

 

SPORTFIVE and VBET (SoftConstruct Group) are proud to announce the arrival of Laure Boulleau as the new VBET ambassador, a major actor in the world of online sports betting.

VBET becomes the first French sports betting operator to choose a female ex-footballer as its ambassador. Diversifying its speech by choosing Laure Boulleau is very important to VBET. VBET was Official Partner of AS Monaco since 2020 before becoming the 1st partner of the program created by SportEasy and Puma to sponsor 100 amateur clubs in France.

Beyond her exemplary career in football as a French international and PSG player, the current football consultant – Laure Boulleau is the perfect embodiment of the VBET DNA.

Throughout this partnership, VBET will rely on Laure Boulleau’s excellent image in the world of football analysis, but also on her community of over 1.7 million subscribers on social platforms. Different betting-related activities, numerous contests, and challenges will be suggested.

Laure Boulleau commented on this partnership:
“I am very happy and honored to become the first women’s football betting ambassador with VBET. We’re in for a wonderful adventure with the teams. We share the same vision of premium content and the desire to engage our respective communities.”

David Ozararat, CEO of SoftConstruct France / VBET Group added:
“Having Laure by our side was the only choice, and we are very proud to have such an exemplary female athlete as our ambassador, who’s recognized for her sharp analysis of matches at the highest level. Thanks to this partnership with Laure, we will soon be offering our players exclusive and innovative experiences.”

Laurent Moretti, Managing Director France of SPORTFIVE concludes:
“We are very happy to have accompanied VBET in the choice of its new ambassador in order to diversify its sports coverage. Our final choice was Laure Boulleau, a former French international football consultant who perfectly embodies the VBET values and DNA.”

bk8-has-become-the-official-global-betting-partner-of-huddersfield-town-for-the-remainder-of-the-2021/22-season

BK8 has become the official Global Betting Partner of Huddersfield Town for the remainder of the 2021/22 season

Reading Time: 2 minutes

 

BK8 were founded in 2014 and primarily operate in the Asian market, but is now targeting expansion into other territories. The company has a lengthy relationship with football, previously working with the likes of John Terry and Robin van Persie.

This new partnership will see the company’s logo become visible on several club assets, including match day perimeter board advertising and on the players’ non-match day training kit.

Town join the likes of La Liga clubs Valencia CF, Athletic Club de Bilbao, Villarreal CF, RCD Mallorca and Elche Club de Fútbol in establishing a partnership with BK8 this season.

Huddersfield Town Chief Executive Mark Devlin commented:

“We have spent a lot of time speaking to BK8 in order to understand their values.

“We’ve come to know the central team at BK8, and how they want to operate as a company. BK8 have made a lot of positive moves in recent months and their work with former England footballer Kelly Smith and her charity bears testimony to their efforts.

“We’re confident that they have acted positively and will continue to contribute to grassroot football. Therefore, we are glad to enter into this partnership with BK8 which potentially could grow in the coming years.”

BK8’s European Managing Director, Michael Gatt, explained:

“We are absolutely delighted to have partner with Huddersfield Town as their Official Global Betting Partner and we are thrilled that they have been able to see the positive changes we have made as brand in recent months to make this possible. In fact we do have plans to work with Huddersfield in some grassroots activation in coming months.”

CEO of Outlast Sports, Salauddin Sinnakandu, who brokered the collaboration for BK8, added:

“After the La Liga and Kelly Smith activations we put in place, this deal is very much the next phase of the brand’s strategy to engage in the football market in the UK. Being part of that community, specifically in Europe and Asia, will be the focus in the coming months.”

olympique-de-marseille-retains-jbo-as-its-official-asia-betting-partner

OLYMPIQUE DE MARSEILLE RETAINS JBO AS ITS OFFICIAL ASIA BETTING PARTNER

Reading Time: 2 minutes

 

JBO has extended its ongoing partnership with French Ligue 1 giant Olympique de Marseille as its Official Asia Betting Partner.

Accordingly, JBO continues its close collaboration with Olympique de Marseille (OM) across a series of key activations and content-marketing opportunities, as the leading French club positions itself for a return to Champions League football next year.

The deal adds more muscle to OM’s progressive and ambitious expansion over the past 12 months, growing its global footprint into more emerging markets, empowered by the operator’s mantra to engage, educate and entertain.

With this association restored and working in lock-step, the partnership between JBO and Marseille will organically strengthen and provide a platform from which to grow and engage both parties’ combined fan-bases across Asia. This shared focus centres around expanding existing Asian audience appeal, alongside leveraging the natural sporting synergies between two powerful networks, above all in the digital domain.

While JBO continues to develop its online offerings for sports fans around the region, this latest milestone renewal highlights its commitment to international growth and fostering fan-friendly engagement within a responsible gaming culture.

A JBO spokesperson welcomed news of the brand’s latest renewal partnership: “JBO has harnessed a suite of well-positioned international betting partnerships to drive awareness and participation around our progressive brand values across both mature and developing Asian territories – and this ongoing collaboration with OM is a firm tent-pole in our home camp. We’re always looking for ways to engage with our customers across digital channels and OM know how to inspire and deploy natural fan enthusuiasm.”

Nathalie Nénon-Zimmermann, Chief Marketing & Revenue Officer at OM, added: “We’re thrilled to continue our adventure with JBO as our Official Asia Betting Partner. It’s a brand which perfectly aligns with OM’s history and continued success. We share similarly-aligned values around the game for securing our goals in the most dynamic way possible.

“We look forward to bringing some top-class content and activity to Asian markets where our signature style can help fans find new and deeper ways in which to interact with the elite football they’ve come to expect from OM.

“In short, it’s fantastic to see Marseille creating wider interest from outside France, and JBO are the ideal team with which to grow our own brand via the unifying power of football.

“We can’t wait to grow our co-operation with JBO and to see this relationship organically evolve over the unfolding season to come.”

chris-nikolopoulos,-chief-commercial-officer-at-betby,-reviews-an-exciting-year-for-the-sportsbook-supplier,-and-looks-ahead-to-what-could-be-a-landmark-year-to-come.

Chris Nikolopoulos, Chief Commercial Officer at BETBY, reviews an exciting year for the sportsbook supplier, and looks ahead to what could be a landmark year to come.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

 

What do you think has been the key to your commercial success in 2021? And were there any highlights that stood out?

I think it’s all about our open approach to critical thinking and the way we treat existing and prospective partners. Time and time again, we see providers in the market that are afraid to think like an operator, which keeps them grounded in old-school practices and approaches. In business, just like in life, you can’t take nothing for granted and you must act fast and efficiently, which is why we constantly try to evolve and listen to our partners’ needs.

The sports betting industry is one where without constant innovation, flexibility and the desire to deliver on your partner’s needs, a business can become outdated very quickly. At BETBY, we are doing our best to achieve this goal, starting of course with the product itself, which we always keep front of mind and we constantly act to improve it. We have signed deals with over 25 new partners in 2021, and the feedback has been extremely promising.

Are there any products in the roadmap for the year ahead that we should look out for? Will you be targeting any markets in particular?

The development process never stops. Looking ahead, we will continue expanding our Betby.Games series while also focusing on delivering extra functionality of our core business and our fully managed sportsbook solution. That includes extra data feed integrations, more front-end layouts and various other specific functionalities that I would like to keep confidential until we reveal them to our partners. With regards to markets we are targeting, we have a lot of different regulated jurisdictions on our radar, both in Europe and across the globe, and by the end of 2022 we will certainly have expanded our international reach.

What industry trends, if any, have you noticed in 2021 and how has BETBY responded to them?

2021 has been both interesting and challenging, mainly because of the pandemic. We constantly try to analyse trends and remain connected with the industry, and we have been able to identify several trends in various aspects. For instance, the increasing focus on the US market is a trend among most of the established European providers. On another note, we have certainly seen a growth in supplementary betting products such as Esports, virtual, and various products that fall in between. Betby.Games itself is the most glaring example of that.

Lastly, do you have any predictions for trends or developments that we will see across the industry in the year ahead?

I believe that operators will be focusing more and more on operating within smaller, flexible teams with modern software and fresh ideas, as they will be able to cover parts of the business more efficiently than with old, legacy platforms which are trying to provide full turnkey solutions. There is no one-stop shop that can deliver everything anymore, we have already seen this for some time, and I believe it will continue to be the case in the future.