Bally Casino UK adds sports betting to product mix
Gaming-led operator integrates Kambi-powered sportsbook three months after fellow Bally’s brand Jackpotjoy expanded into the vertical
Bally’s has launched a UK-facing online sportsbook for its Bally Casino website and mobile apps as the firm looks to diversify its revenue streams.
The launch with Bally Casino comes after Bally’s added sports betting to the product suite of bingo-led Jackpotjoy at the end of May.
The Bally Casino sportsbook, which is powered by Kambi, is accessed via a tab at the top of the desktop site and a dedicated icon at the bottom of the iOS and Android apps.
The sports betting offering from the Stockholm-listed supplier includes the usual host of pre-match and in-play markets, bet builders and pre-packaged accumulators.
The addition of online sports betting to Bally Casino comes almost a year after the brand launched in the UK, on 17 September 2023, replacing Megaways Casino in the process.
The operator is licensed to offer sports betting via Bally’s Gamesys subsidiary, which has held a licence from the Gambling Commission since May 2016.
Bally’s bosses announced in May their aspirations to launch online sports betting in the UK, with CEO Robeson Reeves saying the product expansion would “complement” the existing igaming offering.Jackpotjoy, which launched in 2002, was historically a bingo-focused operator before the addition of online sports betting ahead of Euro 2024 this summer.
As per Bally’s Q2 earnings report, UK revenue rose 9% to $169.8m, while the market accounted for 74% of the International Interactive division’s revenue.
Additionally, UK actives and average revenue per user were both up 4% year on year during the quarter.
At the time, Reeves said: “The strength of our UK market reflects continuing igaming share gains and the initial results from accelerating the soft launch of our online sports betting offering.”
While the UK was a bright spot for the Interactive International arm, overall revenue slipped 7.4% on the back of a poor performance in Japan.
Reeves told analysts that the weak yen had impacted consumer spend in the long-standing grey market.
The use of the Kambi sports betting product in the UK mirrors Bally’s efforts in the US, with the relaunched Bally Bet live in nine US states by the end of July.
Bally’s transitioned to third-party supply deals in the US, including White Hat Haming for the PAM, after the $125m acquisition of Bet.Works in 2021 to underpin a proprietary tech stack failed to meet expectations.
Bally’s declined to comment on the launch when approached by EGR.