Betting News Archives

August 12, 2022

Flutter CEO: we are well-placed to “capitalise” on UK reforms

Flutter chief executive Peter Jackson said that he expects his business to ultimately be a winner from the results of the UK Gambling Act review, as Flutter’s scale will help it navigate changes while smaller businesses may exit the market.

The comments came during Flutter’s earnings call for the first half of 2022, following results in which the business revealed that its FanDuel brand had turned a profit during Q2.

Jackson (pictured) argued that in both the UK and Australia, Flutter’s businesses had “outgrown regulations”.

He discussed the introduction of point-of-consumption taxes in these markets as an example of a regulatory challenge that had a short-term negative impact, but made Flutter brands stronger in the long term.

“Our scale and operating leverage have allowed us to mitigate the impacts, both through operational efficiencies, and also through market share gains as smaller operators were required to exit from the market.”

In the presentation, Flutter also noted that ..

August 12, 2022

Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company pens sports betting deal with Betr

Betr, the new micro-betting business founded by Simplebet co-founder Joey Levy and social media personality Jake Paul, has entered into a partnership with Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company (HOFV).

Under the 10-year agreement, which will initially focus on Ohio, Betr will become the official mobile sports-betting partner of HOFV, subject to it securing the necessary licenses.

As part of the deal, HOFV will gain a limited equity interest in Betr, as well as having access to revenue sharing and opportunities for cross-marketing, branding, and engagement with consumers.

HOFV is the only resort, entertainment and media company centred around professional football. The business earlier this year also announced a sports betting partnership with Rush Street Interactive.

“This new partnership amplifies two of our key business verticals in gaming and media to further our strategic goal of continually creating new and unique sports content and experiences for our fans and guests to ..

August 12, 2022

The winners have taken it all

iGB op-ed: Daniel O’Boyle argues that market shares within US sports betting have already shaken out four years on from PASPA’s repeal, with little room for rankings to change or new players to emerge.

It’s become a popular observation that at some point – likely in the late 2000s – much of Western popular culture became “stuck”.

If you watch a film or television show set in 1980 and 1990, it would be obvious which is which, with the fashion, technologies and soundtrack. But something set in 2010 would look an awful lot like today. Rather than something new, we’ve spent much of the last decade and a half chasing nostalgia.

In US sports betting, there’s no doubt that there will continue to be innovation: products will vastly improve and new ways of betting will emerge.

But in terms of market share and which brands matter, we may have reached the point where we’re stuck.

The leaders emerge

In fact, we got most of the way there before PASPA was even repealed: FanDuel and DraftKing..

August 12, 2022

RushBet scores expanded partnership with LaLiga in South America

Rush Street Interactive’s (RSI) RushBet has expanded its South America-facing partnership with Spain’s LaLiga top-tier club football competition.

RushBet will serve as LaLiga’s exclusive wagering partner throughout the continent, building on a partnership agreed in November 2021, under which RushBet had been serving as the league’s partner in Colombia.

The agreement will run for three seasons and grant RushBet intellectual property rights for the league’s top two LaLiga divisions. These rights will include use of team names, shields, players’ pictures and competition logos.

RushBet will also gain access to ex-LaLiga players, while its sportsbook customers will have the chance to participate in exclusive experiences such as meet-and-greets with former players.

Other aspects of the deal include RushBet receiving merchandise such as jerseys and balls to give away at special events, as well as access to speciality hospitality packages. In addition, RushBet will work with LaLiga on a ra..

August 11, 2022

BetVictor and TalkSport team up to launch TalkSport Bet

Sports betting operator BetVictor and radio broadcaster TalkSport have partnered to launch a new sports betting brand, TalkSport Bet.

TalkSport Bet will integrate BetVictor’s sports betting software and TalkSport editorial branding.

The new brand will also be featured on TalkSport show sponsorships, advertising and affiliate partnerships.

“We’re delighted to be partnering with such a well-respected sports brand, ” said Brent Almeida, CCO of BetVictor. “TalkSport Bet will take the great things about TalkSport radio and add a betting experience to offer players more ways to enjoy sport and engage with their favourite sporting events.”

“We are fully committed to creating a safe and entertaining gambling experience with everything a sports fan could want in a betting brand.”

This is BetVictor’s most recent white label deal, following on from partnerships with Parimatch, Heart Bingo, and BildBet- its venture with newspaper Bild in Germany.

“TalkSport is the world’s biggest sports radi..

August 11, 2022

Massachusetts Governor signs sports betting bill into law

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker has signed into law a bill legalising and regulating sports betting in the US state.

House Bill 5164 will permit any operator of a land-based casino or racetrack in the state to apply for a licence, while an additional seven online-only licences will be made available. Every licence comes with a $5m fee.

Online betting will be taxed at 20% and retail at 15%, while consumers will be able to bet on a wide range of events including college sports, with the exception of matches involving in-state teams.

In addition, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) will be designated as regulator of the state’s new sports wagering market.

“On behalf of my fellow commissioners and the staff of the MGC, we appreciate the confidence the Legislature and the Governor have in naming us as regulator of this new industry,” MGC chair Cathy Judd-Stein said.

“For the past several years, we have been monitoring sports wagering legislation and taking appropriate steps ..

August 11, 2022

Entain to buy SuperSport, prepares for wave of Eastern Europe acquisitions

Online giant Entain has agreed to acquire a 75% stake in Croatian market leader SuperSport for €690m, in what it expects to be the first of many acquisitions in Central and Eastern Europe.

Entain will partner with Czech investment firm EMMA Capital to create a new venture named Entain CEE, in which Entain will own a 75% stake.

This new business – intended to make acquisitions in Central and Eastern Europe – will then acquire SuperSport, which is the largest betting and gaming brand in Croatia.

While Entain cited SuperSport’s 54% market share as one reason for doing the deal, it also suggested that the deal will just be the start of a flurry of M&A activity targeting Central and Eastern Europe.

The Entain board said the business would create “an exciting platform” in this region, led by SuperSport CEO Radim Haluza.

“The combination of Entain’s global scale, access to capital and content, EMMA’s regional knowledge and connectivity, alongside the expert local operational knowledge o..

August 10, 2022

Better Collective scores sports betting content deal with Sport1

Affiliate giant Better Collective has entered into a sports betting content partnership with German multi-channel sports platform Sport1.

The partnership will launch this month and be co-branded with Wettbasis, a Better Collective brand and part of the group that will provide all content to the Sport1.de website.

Better Collective said that the new deal gives the group an additional marketing channel to operate, market and manage customer contacts to betting operators in the German market.

“We look forward to getting started and I know that my colleagues at Wettbasis.com are working hard to be ready with appealing and engaging content for the Bundesliga season and in good time for the World Cup in football that is coming up in November,” Better Collective co-founder and chief executive Jesper Søgaard said.

Sport1 managing director Matthias Kirschenhofer added: “We are thrilled to partner with Better Collective as the premier international sports betting media group for a completely..

August 10, 2022

Predictions, exchanges and the rise of political betting

Operators have long dismissed political betting as at most a PR loss-leader – but is the calculus changing? iGB spoke to Smarkets head of political markets Matthew Shaddick to hear about the shifting landscape.

When political betting goes wrong, it really goes wrong. In the 2020 US presidential election, with conspiracies spreading from the White House to the message board, protests began assembling outside state houses and ballot-counting venues throughout the critical states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, where the race was agonisingly close. It was the first stirrings of what was to become the so-called “Stop the Steal” movement – the last-ditch organisational effort to save the Trump presidency.

It was also the beginning of what is often known as the “shenanigans” – the weaponisation of an array of legal and legislative tools to muddy the water and frustrate democratic majorities; a catalogue of failed dirty tricks that culminated with the insurrection at the United St..