Betsson Sportsbook: Post G2E insights
Betsson Sportsbook North America’s B2B director Lance Agostino on recent changes to the US online sports betting landscape, the group’s approach to B2B sportsbook solutions, and key takeaways from G2E Las Vegas
EGR North America (EGR NA): Betsson as an operator conducted extensive research into the US OSB market before opening its sportsbook offering. In your opinion, how has the market changed over the last 12 months?
Lance Agostino (LA): The Betsson Sportsbook team started evaluating the US OSB market around 2020. At that time, the fundamental changes we needed to make when bringing the product to Colorado were a more robust offering on core US sports and a competitive parlay/same-game parlay feature. We’ve seen the success of those activities when we launched in Colorado and subsequently in Ontario. Now, on the product, we see personalization, better bet recommendation tools, micro-betting, novelty markets, and continued investment in user-journey flows. On the operator side, we have seen the impact of macroeconomic factors, such as interest rates, add headwinds for smaller groups performing feasibility studies or potential new entrants, whether from other international markets or startup capital.
EGR NA: What are the core tenets of the Betsson approach to B2B sportsbook services?
LA: The Betsson Sportsbook has six core tenets:
Offering and markets: Comprehensive coverage of sporting events globally.
Managed trading: Liability management, risk profiling, market monitoring – all the capabilities to run an efficient book managed by the Betsson trading team.
Flexible sportsbook UI/UX + front-end APIs: Operators can take a white-label solution or build on top with a full suite of APIs.
Features and bonuses: SGP, cash out, parlay insurance, risk-free bets, etc.
Content: The ability to display data visualization or stream games as operators see fit.
Backoffice and reporting: Daily snapshots and tools necessary to stay compliant and make business decisions.
EGR NA: Owning your own sportsbook technology is a very expensive luxury. In what ways can utilizing B2B sportsbook services like the ones offered by Betsson aid aspiring sportsbook operators?
LA: One of the themes from G2E this year was the rise of fantasy parlay or fantasy+ provider, as I’ve seen them referenced. Staying on the thread that some of them will convert to regulated operators, I believe an established sportsbook technology offers tremendous value to these groups. If, for the simple reason, their core competency is to attract players with the fantasy parlay product, I’m not convinced that expertise translates to core markets in regulated environments. Having a sportsbook technology to ‘plug in’ as they focus on the elements that helped them grow in the first place seems a prudent approach.
EGR NA: How important is having events like G2E to be able to showcase the Betsson Sportsbook technology?
LA: We understand our current positioning as slightly unknown in the North American market. Shows like G2E offer an efficient way to expose the brand, technology, and meet the team. The North American team, primarily based in Denver and a few resources in Canada, is a tremendous collection of experience from vendor, feed providers, and operators.
EGR NA: In what ways has your Colorado and Ontario B2C sportsbook launch aided the development of the Betsson B2B sportsbook offering?
LA: The operations act as our ‘window shop’. On the technology side, we can quickly point potential clients to the Betsafe app to see the product for themselves, which has been rated highly by Eilers & Krejcik. On the operational side, we share our findings, seeking alternative methods to reach and retain players. For example, we have a unique partnership with Kroger to promote the brand in King Sooper stores and support local rugby teams as the patch sponsor in Colorado. In Ontario, we have experience with the mix of igaming content to cross-sell sports bettors.
EGR NA: What for you are the biggest trends in sportsbook technology right now?
LA: A couple of trends we see and discussed at G2E:
Parlay everything – parlay appetite appears insatiable for US players.
Personalization and bet recommendations – advances in displaying relevant information to the right player groups and at the right time.
Micro-betting – Betsson Sportsbook has some micro- or quick-play markets, but the product enhancements and providers are improving rapidly.
Esports and other alternative content – Betsson continues to see the esports category grow and we expect others, including horse betting and non-core sports, to see an uptick with traditional OSB.
EGR NA: What’s up and coming for Betsson Group in the B2B sportsbook space over the next 12 months?
LA: The Betsson Sportsbook team will continue rolling out product enhancements to our live markets’ coverage, features such as same-game parlay and micro-betting, as well as an overall revamp to the customer experience journey. The B2B team continues to stay active in the North American markets and Europe, with recently announced BetHard and Latam markets. We’re excited for additional announcements in the coming months and product releases to reach more potential partners.
Bio:
Lance Agostino is currently the B2B director for Betsson Sportsbook in North America. Prior to Betsson, he had stretches with Scientific Games (now Light & Wonder), Inspired Entertainment, and most recently Willian Hill US (now Caesars).