Ex-LeoVegas sports head launches mobile betting hub
Andreas Bardun pledges to “harness the power of the modern smartphone” through Malta-based innovation hub
LeoVegas’ former head of sports, Andreas Bardun, has set up a mobile sports betting innovation tech hub in Malta with his business partner Richard Smith.
Smith previously worked for Betsson Group as head of mobile and held a similar role at bet365, while Bardun left LeoVegas in October to be replaced by Riku Jokela.
The tech hub has been set up to develop the “best possible mobile sports betting solution”, as well as advising operators on the best ways to approach mobile betting.
Work has also begun on a B2C sportsbook app.
Bardun believes many operators are failing to make the most of mobile sports betting because of an insistence on transferring desktop-designed sportsbook software to mobile devices.
“Sports betting is basically mobile and we think you need to start from scratch. You need to build it up from a mobile UX perspective with the user in mind,” he said.
“The market is very complacent and nobody is really changing to fit mobile- every company claims to be thinking about mobile and say they want to be mobile-first, but we haven’t really seen that kind of innovation.
“You should look at the phone first, work out its advantages and then build the product from that perspective.”
The hub will advise operators on how to implement mobile sports betting and will even build the appropriate software for interested parties.
First on the agenda is the launch and release of a B2C mobile sportsbook, with a particular focus on football and tennis – the two most-popular sports for live and in-play betting.
Screenings and mock-ups for the app have been approved and the team are waiting on a prototype with a release date expected just before the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
“We want it to be simpler, cleaner and more user-friendly, so that means scaling down the functions and features. It will be about easier access to the bigger leagues and the best markets,” said Bardun.
“We need to prove ourselves by building an app that shows what mobile sportsbetting should really look like, and then the product will speak for itself.
“We want to harness the power of the modern smartphone.”