Brazil: Gambling Insider Sports Betting Focus
This article first appeared on Gambling Insider.
Responses from Marc Crean
What are your overall expectations for the regulated Brazil sports betting market?
It’s an exciting proposition for us and a market we have identified as a potential growth area for OpenBet. Given this diverse country’s renowned enthusiasm for sports, and football in particular, and considering our existing presence in Brazil through our agreement with Play7.Bet to power their new offering, we’re excited to see how the market develops. We continue to hold positive and advanced discussions with other operators looking to launch within the country’s new regulated framework.
Where might Brazil rank on a scale of global sports betting markets?
It’s certainly the biggest country to have regulated sports betting in recent memory. Comparisons have been made to the US, but the key difference is that Brazil is being regulated at federal level and the size of the single market is vast. Safe to say that Brazil is set to become one of the most important territories for key stakeholders within the industry, such is the sheer scale of the user base.
Ultimately, regulatory and operating costs will have an impact on the market’s potential size, and it’s likely to result in fewer operators being active. However, we believe it will eventually rank within the top four markets in terms of size. Proposed costs of licences are in line with UK and US costs, and given the 12% GGR tax on operators, as well as 5% tax on bettors’ net gains, the market is likely to generate around R$3 billion in revenue for the Brazilian government each year.
What player trends do you expect to see in Brazil?
The country’s obsession with football will inevitably see the sport rank as the biggest betting opportunity. Naturally, it means popular products like BetBuilder will resonate with a wide audience and become an imperative component of the sportsbook offering. Elsewhere, mixed martial arts are extremely popular in Brazil. We are in a unique position to offer the industry’s first UFC BetBuilder product, demonstrating the power of the Endeavor network. Engagement levels with LatAm-facing operators for the product have been very impressive and we expect this to grow as we roll the concept out in Brazil’s regulated market.
What do companies need to do differently in Brazil compared to other markets?
Understanding that Brazil is a unique territory is very important. We believe the country’s cultural, social and economic dynamics will have a significant influence on the types of products, operations and marketing activities the industry develops. Key trends such as the unprecedented consumption of social media and capillarity of Brazilian industry will drive innovation forward.
The need for a local product is important, but it also needs to be underpinned by regional marketing and operation initiatives, which are often overlooked by companies when entering a newly regulated market. With a proud heritage of entering new sport betting markets for over 25 years, OpenBet is well positioned to have a strong presence in Brazil.