Published
OnlineSports Betting

Scientific Games reports 50% increase in wagers for Cheltenham Festival

The Cheltenham Festival continues to break records for betting platforms; after Smarkets announced a 40% rise in trade, Scientific Games has reported similar.

CheltFest2

The Cheltenham Festival took place behind closed doors, which led to a rise in betting activity, as bettors took to online channels with shops closed across Europe.

Scientific Games’ OpenSports platform saw an increase of more than 50% in bets from 2020. Total wagers rose to nearly £70m ($97.1m) across the UK’s leading sportsbook operators.

Total stakes across the festival also rose, as the company reported a 34% increase from last year. However, the average stake for singles remained consistent with last year’s £7.50.

Total account transactions reached 470 million across the four days of the Cheltenham Festival, a 44% increase from the previous year. Scientific Games say one OpenSports partner peaked at 34,000 bets per minute.

Keith O'Loughlin, SVP Sportsbook, Scientific Games Digital, said: "Despite the significant increase in activity, it was very much business as usual as our team and technology coped under the huge demand from bettors.

"This year's Festival saw betting behaviour evolve and more players than ever before embrace the online space. The average stake levels indicate the recreational and entertainment value of this racing event and we're proud of the role OpenSports has played during the Festival in offering such a wide audience a truly entertaining experience."

Premium+ Connections
Premium

Lynon

 
Premium

Galaxsys

 
Premium

Digitain

 
Premium

PIN-UP Partners

 
Premium

GammaStack

 
Premium

1xBet Partners

 
Premium

RISK

 
Premium

Sport Generate

 
Premium

Imagine Live

 
 
Premium

Revsharks

 
Premium Connections
Consultancy

SCCG Management

Executive Profiles
Zeal Network SE

Stefan Tweraser

VIP Play

Les Ottolenghi

Scientific Games

Keshav Pitani

Social & App

Spribe CEO exclusive: Simplicity is the foundation

Spribe CEO David Natroshvili speaks to Gambling Insider abou...

Redefining iGaming: A history of crash games

Crash games is a growing vertical that has taken gambling by...

A certain something: What makes crash games special?

Crash games. They’re simple, they’re easy to learn and,...

Smarter innovation to shape the future

Spribe CCO Giorgi Tsutskiridze discusses the past, present a...

Facing Facts: The corner of quarterly contemplation

With Q1 reports out across the industry, Gambling Insider co...

Taking Stock: A guide to key stock prices across the industry

Gambling Insider tracks prices from some of the industry’s...

15 years of Gambling Insider: From the Founders

Over the last 15 years, Gambling Insider magazine has interv...

15 years of Gambling Insider: The Awards over time

Global Gaming Awards Event Manager Mariya Savova gives us he...