What products did you decide to bring to exhibit in the African market? Have you launched any specific product for the African market this year?

As the world’s leading sports betting provider, ICE Africa again gave us the opportunity to showcase our 360-degree betting portfolio, which offers everything an operator, no matter what their size, needs to establish and run a successful sportsbook. All our products and services are fully customisable and flexible, meaning they can be used by a range of bookmakers in a variety of markets worldwide to suit local needs. In Africa, mobile growth and live betting are still the principle drivers. This makes the need for a strong digital marketing strategy even more crucial. As such, our marketing solution, ad:s is an effective tool for operators in the region to maximise their return on investments in this area. We also had representatives in attendance speaking to clients about our Premium Cricket Services and our risk management and trading solution, Managed Trading Services (MTS), which are two other pertinent products for operating within the African market. 

How do you see the virtual sports market in the continent?

Virtual sports clearly go hand-in-hand with the strong presence of online and mobile gaming in Africa. Additionally, the younger demographic of Africa lends itself well to the popularity of virtual games. The traditional betting mindset in Africa has been focused on life-changing winnings. This is currently evolving, however, with betting seen more for its entertainment factor. Virtual sports are a great option for enhancing a bettor’s experience through added entertainment value. For operators, it also gives them the chance to offer betting around the clock. So, there are many reasons why the virtual sports market could see huge growth in Africa.

How have you seen this second edition of ICE Africa?

There are a number of innovations and trends showing great promise in Africa as the market continues to mature at pace. Amongst the increasingly crowded global gaming market, Africa offers the best of both worlds, with just as many opportunities on offer as an emerging market, but mature enough to realise effective regulations and solutions to help the African industry flourish. This year’s ICE Africa therefore provided a timely opportunity for both larger, more established operators interested in investing in the African market as well as newer start-ups looking to gain an edge on home soil.   

What opportunities does the African gambling industry present for your company?

The most important factor in any market for an operator is being able to develop an offering with the end-user in mind. This is about investing strategically in the market, utilising solutions that have proven effective across the international landscape, while tweaking it to suit local audiences. This is where our marketing solution, ad:s can help operators as it is designed to understand and target players based on their preferences in regards to sports and technology, for example. The growing trends across mobile and live betting in Africa, also provide plenty of opportunity. The flexibility of our services, combined with the most comprehensive and highest-quality data in the market ensures we are able to offer the fastest and most accurate odds as well as the technology to be able to provide a truly successful live betting solution across mobile and online.

What are your goals in the short and medium term for this region?

We want to continue to maintain our leading position in Africa and build on this further going forward with our high-quality services and wide-ranging expertise. Sportradar has a commitment to remaining at the forefront of technology, so we are constantly enhancing and updating our products and services on an ongoing basis. We do this with client needs in mind, regularly speaking with them to collect their feedback at events, like ICE Africa, across the world. The global gaming market is becoming more crowded, so we want to make sure Sportradar clients have all the tools they need to remain competitive now and in the future.

What are the characteristics of the average gambler in Africa? Have you discovered special features or differences in tastes or use of technology, depending on the country, or in the age, for example?

The African demographic is becoming technologically savvy, which again will continue to fuel the growing trend for online and mobile betting. On the flip side, the growth of internet penetration across the continent means online sports betting is increasing even in remote areas. As this continues, we’re likely to see start-ups opting to skip retail offerings completely to focus on mobile. In saying this, larger operators with retail and lottery offerings that suit the existing traditional betting mind-set in Africa still have a presence. So, again, to be able to cater to such a wide and transitioning audience you need to have one eye on the future and maintain a flexible approach. This is why our Managed Trading Services (MTS) continue to prove popular in markets across the world. Fully customisable, MTS allows large and small operators to utilise Sportradar’s expert risk management and trading services, plus integrate additional services like live odds and Betting Stimulation to boost any sportsbook both now and in the future as the market progresses.