Editor's Letter

It is a basic economic principle that choice leads to greater market efficiency. If a customer has greater choice, they can shop for the best product, forcing businesses to operate at their very optimum – or risk losing that customer.

In sports betting, same-game parlays and bet builders embody this whole principle. Not only will brands that offer bet builders attract more customers than those that don’t, the brands with the best bet builders will offer the most possible choice within the very sports betting experience.

Of late, the ability for a sports bettor to construct their own wager while watching a football, basketball or soccer game is probably the most innovative development since the ‘cash out’ concept was invented. Both cash outs and bet builders offer a kind of win-win scenario.

Indeed, with both, the bettor has more options to choose from and, to a degree, more control over their own destiny. Yet with more options comes a larger probability of outcomes that can go wrong. Therefore, while the bettor in theory has more ‘control,’ they can now cash out early on a potentially winning bet – creating stronger margins for sportsbooks – and, while they can create their own bets, (wagering on tip-offs, touchdowns, fouls, three-pointers, tackles etc all in one) there is more freedom to choose but less chance of actually winning.

In essence, bet builders and same-game parlays ultimately earn more for the sportsbook, but still create unparalleled entertainment for the player. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?

The key question – and one we look to explore in the cover feature of this Sports Betting Focus magazine – is how popular have bet builders become? Have they transformed the industry, or will they find their place as somewhat of a side offering?

We still need more data to truly answer that question, especially over a longer period of time. For instance, if a sports bettor keeps playing same-game parlays and keeps losing, they may over time revert to traditional money line or spread bets. They may argue there is more reward for less research and calculation.

But a crucial fact – and advantage – remains, which makes bet builders and same-game parlays well worth pushing for sportsbook brands. As our magazine title suggests, they can keep players in-play i.e engaged and entertained until the very last second. With so many distractions for a sports fan’s attention in today’s environment, this has the potential to become a major strength for sports betting companies.

Elsewhere in this issue, not only do we present our regular company profiles for key players within the sector, we also analyse tournament data, sponsorship trends, historical horseracing and more. Indeed, Betby provides a breadth of statistical insights into its operator network during Euro 2024 and Copa America, while Exacta Solutions talks all things horseracing and we speak with BetMGM and LiveScore Group about sponsorships in the UK vs US.

We don’t just stop there, as we attempt to defend the revenue vs profit model in US sports betting – just for objectivity’s sake – and we look ahead to new sporting seasons with Covers.com, DraftKings, ESPN Bet and Sportradar. Let the games begin!

TP, Editor