During the first week of operations, Lottery.com said it sold more than seven million tickets for Texas lottery games.
Meanwhile, Lottery.com also signed an exclusive affiliate agreement with International Gaming Alliance (IGA) to supply official Texas lottery tickets in the Dominican Republic.
Despite this ambiguous view of the future economic backdrop, 60% of gaming executives who were asked characterised current business conditions as good, and 35% as satisfactory. This compares with expectations of future performance, with only 20% of expecting conditions to improve, while 64% said that the environment would be broadly the same.
“Gaming’s record momentum has continued into 2023 and that is clearly reflected by the attitudes of gaming executives around the country,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. “While projections of slowing growth across the American economy are muting expectations for gaming in the medium term, our industry is well-positioned to weather any potential headwinds.”
The AGA’s Industry Outlook – presented partnership with Fitch Ratings – provides a snapshot of current and future economic shape of the industry based on a number of key indicators, including executive sentiment, casino visitation plans, gaming revenue and other economic signals.
The AGA said the results from its gaming executives survey showed “cautious attitudes for growth” over the next six-months. The majority of executives expect that the pace of new employee hiring, revenue growth and customer activity to decrease over the period, rather than increasing.
Rivalry will raise the financing by issuing up to 6,666,666 subordinate voting shares at a price of $1.50 per share. The business said that online bookmaker Pinnacle, alongside a number of other technology and payments stakeholders, would be participating in the financing round.
Rivalry co-founder and CEO Steven Salz said that the terms and strategic value of the stakeholders taking part in the round represented “a vote of confidence” in the company’s team and market strategy.
“Our playbook is built around a generational opportunity to capture and engage a next generation audience through world class creative, proprietary and engaging products, and market leading brand equity in esports,” said Salz.
“We are growing rapidly with a successful strategy in place and talented team behind us, and with this funding we anticipate both continuing our pace of growth and our trend toward profitability.”
The business said that the proceeds of the offering would go towards enabling Rivalry to “accelerate” its operational objectives and pursue strategic growth opportunities.
“As a leader and innovator in online betting, Pinnacle is constantly looking for like-minded partners to help further grow the industry and our global footprint,” said Paris Smith, Pinnacle CEO. “That is what led us to Rivalry, and it is impressive how in a short period of time, they have carved out a powerfully unique position in the field of online betting.”
The business’s announcement of new funding comes hot on the heels on Rivalry’s preliminary full year and Q1 results, in which the company reported an all-time high quarterly revenue of $12m.
In 2022, Rivalry reported that revenue was $26.6m for the year, a 140% increase from the $11.0m that the company announced in 2021. The business earned this revenue on a betting handle of $232.8m – a 198% rise compared to the $78.2m the company achieved in 2021.
Rivalry made a $31.1m net loss, a 28.0% increase compared to the $24.2m the company recorded in 2021. As of 31 December 2022, Rivalry had $16.4m in cash and no debt.
Turning to Q1 results, the business reported a betting handle for the three-month period ending 31 March of $120.2m, an 199% increase from the $80.0m the company recorded in the same period the previous year.
On these stakes, Rivalry announced an all-time quarterly high revenue total of $12.0m, a 151% increase from the $4.8m the business achieved in 2021.
The company’s net loss stood at $3.5m for the quarter.
“Our market strategy and operational excellence continues to build upon consecutive record-setting quarters, driving a strong finish to the year and a robust Q1, while simultaneously demonstrating sequential narrowing losses on our path to profitability,” said Salz.
“Underpinning our growth is significant brand loyalty among the Millennial and Gen Z audience and true product innovation in online betting, enabling every marketing dollar to go further, enhancing retention, and creating a distinctly unique platform.
“Rivalry continues to be economically rewarded for taking an inventive approach to the betting experience and tailoring it for a demographic with unique consumption habits.”
The results are for the three-month period ending March 31, with Gambling.com’s full first quarter results for 2023 expected to be released on May 18 .
Charles Gillespie, CEO and co-founder of Gambling.com, said that the preliminary results exceeded Gambling.com’s predictions, in part due to an increase in activity in certain markets.
While the terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, Yahoo did make clear that, as part of the deal, Wagr will be fully integrated into Yahoo Sports.
The betting platform has previously attracted a number of high-level investments, including support from Seven Seven Six – spearheaded by Alexis Ohanian, Reddit co-founder – the Kraft Group and the owners of the New England Patriots.
Wagr was also the first social sports betting operator to receive a licence in the United States.
Jim Lanzone, CEO of Yahoo, said that the acquisition represents the future of Yahoo’s gaming products.
“The acquisition of Wagr is an exciting step in the development of the next generation of Yahoo Sports’ gaming portfolio,” said Lanzone.
“Wagr stands out for their innovative emphasis on community and social engagement in sports gaming, which aligns perfectly with the Yahoo award-winning fantasy platform that has brought tens of millions of fans together around their love of sports for over 20 years.”
Mario Malavé, co-founder and CEO of Wagr, said that the deal allows Wagr to extend its reach.
“Yahoo Sports offers us a stage to build products that will reach millions of loyal fans that have connected over fantasy sports for decades,” said Malavé. “The unique combination of Yahoo’s scale and engagement creates opportunities for virtuous product loops between sports media and gaming.
“Joining Yahoo allows us to continue delivering on our mission to connect fandom to social gaming while elevating our ability to execute through expanded resources, new partnerships and technological capabilities.”
The Unit specialises in product development across sports, casino, free-to-play and gamification platforms.
As part of the agreement, The Unit will design a personalised front-end system for customers of 10star’s trading platform. The front-end will be created with customer experience at its core, with easy accessibility for users.
Jim Swainston, chief technology officer at 10star, said that The Unit was the obvious choice when searching for a developer for their front-end.
“The 10star platform offers real-time risk management and pricing and requires a user interface that provides relevant information in an intuitive way, enabling trading teams to make the correct decisions under pressure,” said Smith.
“The Unit really stood out to us as partner, not just because of their highly-skilled development team and proven track record of delivery, but also their deep domain knowledge across industry verticals, which we at 10star believe is vital in creating a best-in-class experience for our users.”
Paddy Casey, co-founder at The Unit, hailed 10star as the “ideal partner” and praised the easy navigation of The Unit’s front-end design.
“10star’s proven success in trading and risk management make them the ideal partner for us and we are delighted to be able to provide them with our expertise and help further develop the trading platform,” said Swainston. “Our front-end solution is easy to navigate and sets a new standard for trading interfaces.
“In the current marketplace, especially in the US, we’re seeing that operational efficiency is as important as growth. 10star is now providing flexible optionality in unique pricing and risk-management to its clients and we’re thrilled to be helping them achieve these ends.”
Bhadani will assume the role of general manager and oversee Sportradar’s strategy for the region, strengthening client relationships and forging new partnerships across key business verticals.
An experienced executive, Bhadani is the co-founder of Rubicube Gaming Private, operator of the PokerStreet online poker ecosystem in Indiana.
Bhadani also worked in a number of sports marketing roles for Rhiti Group of Companies and RISE Worldwide, while he also spent time with Reliance Broadcast Network, Aviva Life Insurance and Vodafone.
Sportradar currently works with several leading Indian football leagues and state cricket associations, as well as the Board of Control for Cricket in India to help safeguard the integrity of both the Indian Premier League and Women’s Premier League.
Last week, Sportradar also entered into a partnership with the Delhi Capitals.
“India is a key market and will contribute significantly to our overall growth in the Asia Pacific region,” Sportradar’s managing director for the Asia-Pacific region, Oscar Brodkin, said.
“Prasun has the experience and ability to help us achieve our business objectives in India and at the same time prioritise the delivery of quality service and value to our partners.”
Bhadani added: “India has a rich sporting culture and sports fans here have deep passion and enthusiasm. It is an exciting time for a sports technology company like ours to be at the centre of the action.
“I look forward to supporting Sportradar in its goal to continue innovating the sports industry through impactful technological solutions.”
Under the deal, Stake.com will serve as the exclusive betting partner of both the men’s and women’s edition of the 2023 Volleyball Nations League (VNL) national team tournament.
Stake.com supported the VNL Osaka event in 2022, with the new deal expanding this to cover the entire competition.
“With our reach in multiple markets, including Brazil, Canada, and beyond, our partnership will offer an unparalleled platform to connect with a passionate and engaged fanbase from around the globe,” Volleyball World chief executive Finn Taylor said.
“We look forward to seeing how Stake.com will elevate the matchday experience for our fans and add even more excitement to the tournament.” said Finn Taylor, CEO of Volleyball World.”
Stake.com director of acquisitions Akhil Sarin added: “Our involvement with the VNL in 2022 was a resounding success, so it was an easy decision to secure a partnership on a larger scale for 2023.
“We’re looking forward to seeing the Stake branding light up the courts and offering Volleyball fans globally an unbeatable proposition on our platform throughout the tournament.”
The deal represents Stake.com’s latest venture into sports partnerships, with the operator also having a number of other deals in place, including with English Premier football club Everton and the European Cricket Championships.
The new-look self-exclusion platform, KSA said, makes it easier for consumers to temporarily exclude from gambling, while a minimum exclusion period of six months will remain for players.
Those that wish to return to gambling after their set period of exclusion will first have to go through an eight-day “reflection” period before they can resume gambling. This, KSA said, would help discourage impulsive unsubscription from Cruks.
Other updates to the scheme include a switch in the language referring to Cruks, whereby the ‘Play Break’ message will be replaced with ‘Gambling Stop’. KSA said this comes after research suggested the term ‘Play Break’ did not cover the full reach of Cruks.
Launched in October 2021 to correspond with the opening of the country’s legal igaming market, Cruks applies to arcades and casinos as well as online games of chance.
Licensed operators in the Netherlands are required to integrate with the scheme and check the list to ensure any existing or new customers have not registered to self-exclude from gambling.
Since going live, more than 38,000 players in the Netherlands have signed up to the scheme.
The revamp comes after Dutch Minister for Legal Protection Franc Weerwind last week confirmed that a nationwide ban on untargeted gambling advertising will come into effect from 1 July.
All television and radio adverts, as well as ads in public spaces, such as on billboards, will be banned from 1 July. However, advertising on the internet and television on demand will be allowed, but under strict conditions.
Internet advertising such as social media and targeted advertisements will only be permitted if an operator can actively prevent these adverts from reaching young people under the age of 24. Targeted ads at consumers in this age bracket is illegal in the Netherlands.
Operators must also show that at least 95% of the advertising reached people who were 24 years or older, while consumers should be given the chance to indicate that they do not want to see these adverts.
The site, which launched in 2006, focuses on news, features and statistics regarding the LA Lakers in the NBA. Betting odds are also featured on the brand with a list of the best bookmakers to play on and promo codes for players.
Julien Josset, North Star Network CEO, said that the site is “a perfect fit for our portfolio, with basketball continuing to become more significant in Brazil, and this gives us a chance to connect with basketball fans and provide them with first-class insight into their favourite team.”
Josset went on to add that the Paris-based affiliate looks “forward to giving Lakersbrasil.com greater resources to continue to be a leading reference point on the LA Lakers in Brazil and grow its stature further among basketball fans.”
Lakersbrasil.com will join other Brazilian-focused brands in the affiliate’s portfolio, including Premierleaguebrasil and Esportelandia.
