Colossus Bets is sponsoring Betting on Sports 2018, the 3rd edition of the largest international sports and betting trade conference at Olympia London.
Ahead of the 18-21 September event, we asked CEO Bernard Marantelli to disclose some of the firm’s plans for #boscon2018 and to pick out the sporting event he would most like to attend.
SBC: What are you looking forward to at Betting on Sports?
BM: I am always impressed by the quality of the people that Betting on Sports attracts. From a small event just 3-4 years ago, it has grown into what is probably the best networking event of the year in London, thanks to the senior attendees it attracts and a setting that enables you to find and meet most of them. I look forward to the many pre-planned meetings with existing and potential partners, but also all the unplanned introductions that will take place during the couple of days of the show.
SBC: What are you promoting at Betting on Sports?
BM: We will be promoting the ever-growing sports pools on Colossus Bets, our new best-of-breed racing pools and our technology features such as Cash Out and Syndicates, which can be delivered as a ‘wrapper’ to existing pools. At the moment, we are particularly focussed on our US expansion with an arsenal that cuts across technology, patents and liquidity pooling so these are all topics we are keen to share more about.
SBC: Which sports betting operator has impressed you the most in 2018?
BM: Looking at stand-out growth stories, GVC have impressed me with their no-nonsense business expansion, Bet365 with defending their enviable position, Sky Bet and Richard Flint personally with creating a very profitable business model that is backed by a strong brand and a strong stance on responsible gaming. SBTech’s drive and imminent expansion to the US has also been impressive, as has Sportradar’s continuous rise in the sports data space.
From a product standpoint, there was a lot to like about BetVictor’s Million Pound Bet promotion during the World Cup, built on the back of rising interest in single game accas and pools, and I think we will see this reappear in future tournaments.
Ongoing, ‘second wave’ attempts to crack social betting, such as variations of ‘request a bet’ and Sky Bet’s new ‘group betting’ feature, are also looking more interesting. While I don’t think bet features that concentrate users in one place and drive activity in spikes will eventually work, a social bet of sorts will hit the jackpot soon enough.
SBC: What sports betting partnership has stood out in the past 12 months?
BM: Betting on potential here, I would go with the acquisition of FanDuel by Paddy Power Betfair. A strong local brand and distribution is important to get a head start in the gradually opening US market and so is creating a bridge between the product that the market knows, fantasy sports, and the product that – we assume – will eventually take over, sports betting.
SBC: If you could attend one sporting event, what would it be?
BM: I was privileged enough to grow up watching AFL Grand Finals and Melbourne Cups. And since arriving in Europe, I’ve attended every major horse racing event, so I guess my bucket list now includes more ‘off the beaten track’ events like the Palio Di Siena, which comes with the added benefit of an impressive Italian backdrop.
