Live betting is revolutionizing the world of sports betting, consolidating its position as one of the dominant trends in the industry.
At SBC Summit America 2025, a panel of experts explored how artificial intelligence, real-time data, and automation are driving the transformation of live betting, which represents more than half of transactions in key markets, reaching 70% of total bets.

They also analyzed the impact of live betting on user engagement and loyalty, as well as the challenges of balancing speed, regulation, and responsible gaming. The discussion also addressed the future of this segment, from the expansion of micro-bets to AI-driven personalization and new real-time interaction strategies.

Speakers:
Jorge Rojas, Moderator, CEO, Prometeo IT
German Sarmiento, Speaker, Country Manager Mexico, Betcris
Jhorvis Perez, Speaker, General Manager, JUEGAENLINEA
Mauricio Soto, Speaker, Account Executive Latam, Optimove
Juan Carlos Garcia, Speaker, CCO, Sprint Gaming

How much does AI contribute to live betting?

On the content and CRM side:
Mauricio Soto: “AI has a huge impact on everything related to live betting and real-time betting. The impact AI has on ensuring the correct data is used is increasingly evident in the way betting lines are generated. It's also important in user segmentation to show and send relevant content to players in real time. This has helped generate more live betting markets and keep them open for longer, which ultimately helps operators' profitability. There are many aspects involved, not only in generating bets but also in communicating with users and getting those users engaged with the brand so they enjoy sporting events.
“We see betting not as a business for players but as a form of entertainment that helps them have a better live betting experience,” he notes.

Juan Carlos García, who has experienced the shift from land-based to Online. “I think things continue to change and evolve at an impressive speed,” he remarked at the beginning of his presentation. “Something fundamental in live betting is the confidence it generates in the player, the immediate way they can bet, the statistical data, how they can structure a bet with peace of mind and confidence. I believe that's where the players are heading, who are attentive to new tools, which today, with all the information that can be captured through AI, gives a new perspective and expectation to live betting.”

From the operator's perspective:

Jordi Pérez: “With 16 years in the market, I believe AI is definitely a fundamental part of live betting, and in a very important area such as risk management. From the moment risk enters the game, it must be a business, and thanks to AI models, it has been fundamental for detecting potential fraud, for customer segmentation, and other actions. We have quite varied experience in live betting, and I believe risk management has been a fundamental part, allowing this business to grow and be important for everyone.”

The moderator clarified that the recent Champions League soccer match between Inter and Barcelona was crazy because it was a comeback for both sides, and real-time betting is generating a very important change.

Jordi Pérez: “In the current landscape, in Business Units like the US or Europe, more than 50% of bets are live, in real time. And in Latin America, more than 60% of bets are live.”

Factors for the growth of live betting

“This is due, firstly, to a regulatory issue, as online operators are increasingly being allowed to enter, and secondly, to technological advancements from the user's perspective. Users have better mobile devices, better internet connectivity, and better tools to engage in live betting, as well as greater speed of communication and segmentation from operators to players. In the current situation, there are markets experiencing extremely significant growth. We are in a good moment, and the future looks increasingly bright for live betting.”

Mauricio Soto: "There is a greater diversity of events. Soccer is the most bet on, but all sports are gaining significant momentum in live betting: baseball, tennis. This diversity generates more information for users, which gives them greater opportunities to diversify the types of bets they place on these types of products.”

Jordi Pérez provided some key data: “60% of the bet volume is for live betting, but within the VIP segment, that volume is growing to 80%. In the Latin American region, there has been a growth of between 15 and 20% for operators.”

AI tools are available to help users make that quick decision when they enter the site. It's not just about the player's interest, but also about players finding, thanks to technology, the content that's relevant to them.

“It's really important to be able to display relevant content every time a player clicks. If there are 300 sporting events a day, and each one has 15 open markets, how do we ensure that the user, when they enter the website, finds the content that makes them want to place their bet?”

Jordi Pérez added that building player trust in the platform is important, and also that AI integrates all historical data so that it's available to new or inexperienced players when placing a bet.

Experiences in some markets:

Jhorvis: "Over 80% of direct bets are made live. In the VIP segments, live betting is preferred because you have more data, more information, and it becomes a much more dynamic experience in which you become part of the match. You take action. My own experience was in the Copa América: Venezuela vs. Ecuador. The match starts, Ecuador scores a goal, a player is sent off, a red card is issued, the score is 10-11. Before the match, I had placed a draw bet. At the moment the expulsion happens, I said, surely Ecuador isn't going to win, Venezuela will most likely draw or win, so I bet live on Double Chance, that is, that Venezuela would win or draw. Later, Venezuela ties, and it becomes more likely that a draw or win, and later in the match, Venezuela scores another goal and takes the lead. What did I do to complete the whole cycle? I ended up betting on all three markets and won regardless of the result. It's the only way to do it. Live.

“It's not just about speed, but about understanding an event, about how players have the knowledge to make that decision at the exact moment. This isn't a coin toss, but rather a behavior that has to do with a historical precedent, the statistics that had been presented. The heart isn't the most important thing for live betting, but rather reason.”

Mexico

Mauricio Soto comments: “70% of bets in Mexico are live, and when you analyze it a little more, 50% are on the MX League, so when entering a market, you have to take their preferences into account.

Brazil

“Another important phenomenon is Brazil. More than 60% of bets are live, and more than 50% place a weekly bet. Today, with the new domain, bet.br, they are getting more traffic than YouTube,” Soto added.

How can real-time betting have a greater impact on operators?

The speakers agreed on the following:

- Communication is an important part of an operator's marketing. I can combine 360-degree communication, through my platform, by phone, by email. I can combine communication and provide content to the player for live betting.

- Improve the user experience. Specifically, improve the mobile experience, since most live betting is done from a mobile phone.

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