Oddschecker expands US presence with Yardbarker Media partnership
Affiliate set to make its presence felt in the North American market as Yardbarker parent company secures $20m loan
Oddschecker has announced a media partnership with Yardbarker Media as it looks to expand its presence in the US following its sale to investment firm Bruin Capital last year.
The partnership between the odds comparison site and the digital media publisher has the primary focus of delivering “innovative technology and engaging content for online sports betting”.
Oddschecker will provide the US sports news site, a subsidiary of Playmaker Capital, with content marketing and SEO assistance in order to launch a new betting page on its site.
The focus is to create a multi-faceted platform that will cater to sports fans and bettors alike by providing up-to-the-minute sports writing alongside betting content and odds, with a view to distributing prices from leading online sports betting operators.
The association comes following the recent unveiling of Yardbarker’s sports betting-focused newsletter, Bark Bets.
It is hoped that the collaboration will go live in September to coincide with the launch of the 2022 NFL season.
Matt Mirman, Oddschecker US SVP, said: “With strong demand from sports fans for high quality, engaging and complimentary sports betting content, we’re excited about the significant potential that this partnership creates.”
Citing the burgeoning affiliate space in North America, Jordan Gnat, CEO of Playmaker said: “Our strategy options were buy, build or partner. With Oddschecker, the partnership choice became the clear path forward.”
Yardbarker, which was formed in 2006, distributes content via its website Yardbreaker.com, social media channels as well as third party syndication.
Elsewhere, Playmaker has entered into a credit agreement with Beedie Investments for a convertible loan facility of up $20m (£16.9m).
The firm received an initial advance of $15m with the remaining $5m available for subsequent advances.
Gnat highlighted the flexibility the credit agreement gave Playmaker, saying: “This opportunity to strengthen our balance sheet will allow us to continue to execute on our strategy of rolling up profitable digital media assets that cover sports in important markets, while growing our existing brands organically.”