World Cup

Betting on Football puts the World Cup in the spotlight

More than 30 experts have been confirmed for World Cup and Beyond, a seven-session track dedicated to Russia 2018 at this year’s Betting on Football (20-23 March).

World Cup and Beyond will kick off with ‘Life beyond the bonus’, a panel featuring Mybet CMO Florian Guede and BetBright CEO Marcus Brennan. It has been designed to address the future of customer bonusing given the rise in bonus related disputes and the tightening of affiliate regulations.

Held in the Drake Suite at Stamford Bridge, the track will continue with ‘Match Day Live’, a guide to engaging customers in a live environment. Gaming Innovation Group Head of Sports Endre Nesset and Matt Scarrott, Director of Sportsbook and VIP at BetVictor, will be assessing an influx of new live betting tools and the impact of designer bets.

The final session before ‘half-time’ will analyse the scale of the World Cup opportunity for daily fantasy sports (DFS). Confirmed speakers for ‘Fantasy’s last great opportunity in Europe’ include Premier Punt CEO John Gordon, Scout Gaming Group CEO Bjorn Fjellby and Valery Bollier, CEO at Oulala Games, the first DFS provider to receive a B2B Skill Games Licence from the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA).

Bollier commented: “Oulala Games and Betting on Football (BOF) have something important in common. While BOF is the only industry event to be specialised in football, we are the only DFS provider that is fully dedicated to football.

“I’m looking forward to discussing what Oulala can bring to the DFS table, while I remain eager to hear what those who play an active role in the sports betting industry have to say about the innovations and products that will shape its future.”

The second half will get underway by ‘Cutting through the noise’ in the pursuit of quality social media content. Facebook and Twitter are expected to be two of the key battlegrounds this summer, but Google Head of Performance Markets Chris Harrison, Sport1 Media GmbH MD of Entertainment Dr Matthias Kirschenhofer and Trinity Mirror Head of Betting and Gaming Mark O’Donnell will be assessing whether other networks and media outlets can provide better ROI.

Following this focus on the rise of social media and mobile sports consumption, attention will turn to a more long standing battle for the sports betting sector. Given that Russia has endured more than its fair share of sporting controversies, football integrity is poised for a month in the spotlight this summer.

Oxford Research Chief Analyst Morten Larsen, ICSS Director of Special Investigations Fred Lord, Perform Head of Integrity Jake Marsh and Kindred Group Sports Betting Integrity Officer Eric Konings will be on hand to discuss how bookmakers can work with football to keep out the fixers.

Having brought his company’s Soccer Bet product to the industry’s attention at last year’s Betting on Football, Highlight Games CEO Tim Green will be back amongst his virtual sports peers for a panel on keeping players acquired during the World Cup engaged for the new season. He will be joined by Golden Race CEO Martin Wachter and VSoftCo Sales Director Simon Westbury.

Wachter added: “Betting on Football has become one of the most important shows in the industry. Everyone who is important in the industry shows up as a speaker or an attendee.”

World Cup and Beyond will conclude by uncovering the hidden benefits of sponsoring a football club, and by exploring different ways that sports betting companies can reach a fanbase beyond competing for increasingly saturated front-of-shirt sponsorship deals.

Former AC Milan Chief Commercial Officer Jaap Kalma, who will also be hosting the invite-only SBC Sponsorship Forum on the second full day of #bofcon2018 (Thursday 22 March), will be joined in the track finale by Swansea City Global Head of Partnerships Mark Davies and Leicester City Head of Partnerships Engagement Harj Hir.

Kalma said: “The opacity of the market for betting sponsorships, the lack of awareness of the different opportunities out there, and the wide variation in the clubs’ offering in terms of rights and support, together causes an underutilisation of a sponsorship’s power.

“Considering both the importance of betting sponsorships and its intrinsic possibilities to engage fans, I hope we can contribute to creating transparency, helping bookmakers elevate their use of sponsorship and clubs their sponsorship offering.”

  • Remember that today (Friday 19 January) is your last chance to get the 25% Early Bird Discount on tickets for Betting on Football 2018 – Go HERE to get it!
  • There are also still a few sponsorship and exhibition opportunities available – to enquire about these, please contact us on [email protected].

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