Tag Archives: Sports betting

DIY or third-party: the sportsbook technology debate
July 25, 2022

DIY or third-party: the sportsbook technology debate

Bookiecity

The debate over whether operators should build their own technology or use a third-party solution has raged for decades, but it appears to have grown more intense as the US market opens. However, as Daniel O’Boyle reports, it may not be a question with a clear answer

It’s said that if you want something done well, you should do it yourself.

That appears to be an adage many sports betting operators have taken to heart.

Hop on any earnings call for a US operator, and there will no doubt be plenty of mentions of “proprietary sportsbook technology”.

The demand among operators for in-house solutions is backed up by their money. In 2020, DraftKings merged with SBTech, valuing the supplier at $634.1m. Last year, Caesars acquired William Hill for $3.7bn, mostly for its proprietary technology.

Meanwhile, theScore announced a long process to build its own sportsbook technology, which surely played a major part in Penn National Gaming acquiring it for $2bn.

“I don’t want to get distracted b..

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Mississippi betting handle declines for third consecutive month in June
July 22, 2022

Mississippi betting handle declines for third consecutive month in June

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Consumers in Mississippi wagered a total of $25.1m (£21.0m/€24.6m) on sports betting during June, a drop on last year and also the third consecutive month of decline in the US state.

Handle for the month was 41.8% lower than $43.1m in June 2021, while the total was also down 14.0% from $29.2m in May of this year.

Revenue for the month reached $2.1m, a 34.4% drop from $3.2m in June of last year and down 47.5% from $4.0m in May 2022, marking the second straight month of decline.

Coastal casinos remained by far the venues of choice for players in the state, with bettors wagering a total of $17.3m on sports during the month, while the casinos were able to generate $1.3m in revenue.

Player spending at central casinos reached $4.5m in June, with revenue at these venues hitting $464,667, while northern casino handle was $3.3m and revenue $339,142.

Baseball was the most popular sport to bet on across all venues in the month, with coastal casino customers wagering $8.8m, central casino pla..

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LatAm now Betsson’s largest market amid European decline in Q2
July 21, 2022

LatAm now Betsson’s largest market amid European decline in Q2

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Betsson disclosed revenue of €186.3m (£158.9m/$189.5m) from its second quarter results, which saw Latin America become its largest market – while revenue in western Europe fell by almost 40%..

Pontus Lindwall, CEO at Betsson [pictured above] said the business saw progress in most areas throughout the quarter, and spoke highly of its sportsbook progress.

“Betsson’s second quarter featured continued good growth with all-time high revenue and further investments to support our expansion,” said Lindwall. “The group’s organic growth was 13%, mainly driven by Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where we see long-term growth potential as these markets still have a low share of online gaming.”

“The sportsbook business showed a strong development in the quarter – gross turnover increased by 20% and the margin was 8.3% (8.5%) – leading to all-time high revenue.”

Latin America is now Betsson’s largest market. In Q2, it accumulated revenue of €45.7m, up significantly by..

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STS revenue declines despite higher stakes in Q2
July 20, 2022

STS revenue declines despite higher stakes in Q2

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STS – Poland’s largest bookmaker – reported a drop in net gaming revenue despite an increase in wagers in Q2.

In Q2, wagers were up 1.0% year-on-year to PLN1.11bn, despite Q2 of 2021 including the rescheduled Euro 2020. However, net gaming revenue – which includes gambling taxes as well as winnings – declined by 16.6% to PLN138m.

The business had 375,000 active users during the quarter, down from 417,000 in the same period of 2021. In addition, it reported 92,000 new registrations, down 22.7%, and 66,000 first-time depostors, down 19.2%.

Looking at the first half of 2022, net gaming revenue came to PLN296m, very slightly up from the same period of 2022.

The increase came as total wagers with the operator dipped sightly to PLN2.19bn.

“In the first half of this year, we achieved very good operating results,” STS chief executive Mateusz Juroszek said. “We have slightly improved NGR – the value of amounts staked by the customers, less the winnings paid and gambling and lottery tax – c..

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Key industry players partner for women’s sports research
July 19, 2022

Key industry players partner for women’s sports research

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A group of leading industry groups and businesses have joined forces to carry out long-term research exploring the growth in women’s sports.

Entain, Stats Perform, the International Betting Integrity Association and the All-In Diversity Project will work in collaboration with the German Sports University of Cologne to conduct the research.

The initiative will focus on the links between the popularity of women’s sports, betting on women’s sports and rising numbers of female sports bettors.

The group will work to publish its findings ahead of football’s Fifa Women’s World Cup 2023, which will take place in Australia and New Zealand.

Confirmation of the new research project comes as the 2022 Uefa European Women’s Football Championship is taking place in England.

The tournament is currently at the quarter-final stage, with England, Spain, Germany, Austria, Sweden, Belgium, France and the Netherlands having progressed from the group stage.

The final will take place on 31 July at Londo..

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Gambet is a “failed operation”, DC councilmember says
July 18, 2022

Gambet is a “failed operation”, DC councilmember says

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A council meeting in Washington DC has branded Gambet as a “failed operation” after the sports betting monopoly has failed to bring in its projected revenue.

At a meeting on July 13, DC council chairperson Kenyan McDuffie said that Gambet’s issues were present from the time of launch.

“Since its launch in 2020, DC’s sports wagering program has experienced repeated operational challenges,” said McDuffie. “The challenges directly contributed to delays in getting retail locations up and running, as well as the inability to generate a robust customer base for the district’s mobile app, Gambet DC.”

Read the full story on iGB North America.

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High school Spire Institute among Ohio betting licence applicants
July 18, 2022

High school Spire Institute among Ohio betting licence applicants

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A number of new organisations have applied for Ohio sports betting licences, including Bet365 and Tipico as online providers, and high school Spire Institute – alongside a number of professional sports teams – for a proprietor licence.

Spire Institute is an Ohio sports-focused high school, with its athletic programs attracting top recruits including basketball star LaMelo Ball. The organisation also offers a general sporting development programs and operates sporting complexes on its grounds, outside of its presence as a high school.

Under Ohio’s sports betting laws, sporting organisations or land-based gaming venues may offer betting in the state, partnering with online operators for an online product.

It has partnered with Out the Gate, a startup sports betting operator that says it uses an in-house trading solution and plans to accept “all action” with lined that “lead the market on US sports”. Out the Gate is led by Christopher Kape and Robbie Manis, formerly of data provider Do..

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Genius to distribute NCAA data in new partnership with Scorebreak
July 15, 2022

Genius to distribute NCAA data in new partnership with Scorebreak

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Sports technology business ScoreBreak has announced a new partnership with data distributor Genius Sports covering collegiate sports data, soon after the business became the official supplier of data from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

ScoreBreak operates a video synchronisation engine that will work in tandem with Genius’s official statistics, allowing customers to access the stat-driven video content from any internet-connected device.

ScoreBreak COO Wes Sims emphasised the value the service would provide to sports professionals in a statement.

“As we continue to introduce ScoreBreak to new and exciting sports verticals, we look to identify signature partnerships to help push our product to the next level,” said Sims.

“We believe that matching ScoreBreak with Genius Sports will provide an unmatched experience for coaches and athletes, putting us on a path to equip every athletic program in the country with the tools and insights they need to win in real-time..

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Detroit casino revenue down 8.8% YoY in June
July 15, 2022

Detroit casino revenue down 8.8% YoY in June

Bookiecity

The three commercial casinos in Detroit, Michigan, posted $98.6m (£83.4m/€98.2m) in total revenue during June, an 8.8% drop on the same month last year.

Revenue from the MGM Grand Detroit, MotorCity Casino and Penn National’s Hollywood Casino at Greektown was down from $108.1m in June 2021 and also 9.3% lower than $108.7m in May of this year.

MGM retained top spot in the Michigan city with a 49% share of the market, ahead of MotorCity on 34% and Greektown with 17%.

Breaking down the monthly performance, table games and slots were responsible for $98.2m of all revenue for the month, but this was 7.2% lower than in June of last year.

MGM led this area of the market with $48.3m in revenue, up by 4.3% year-on-year. However, revenue at MotorCity was down 9.8% to $33.5m, while Greektown’s revenue dropped 26.6% to $16.4m.

The three casinos paid $8.0m in gaming taxes, as well as $11.7m worth of wagering taxes and development agreement payments to the City of Detroit.

Turning to retail sp..

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