SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
SIS’ Competitive Gaming continues to gain traction across Europe, with its focus on integrity, constant availability and easy-to-understand content proving particularly effective. As operators increasingly look to expand across both online and retail, Angel Calderon, Head of Sales, Europe at SIS, shares what is driving the product’s growing momentum. 
What is the appeal of Competitive Gaming for bettors across Europe?
There are two main reasons why Competitive Gaming has become popular. First and foremost, it is very familiar. The markets, bet types, and overall structure are similar to what customers already know from traditional sports. If you understand how to bet on football or basketball, then you understand how to bet on the eSoccer and eBasketball events that make up our Competitive Gaming H2H Global Gaming League. There is no confusion with esports formats or technical jargon about maps and rounds. Instead, the betting is straightforward. This simplicity broadens the audience, and familiarity has played a significant role in its success.
The second big advantage is 24/7 availability. Traditional esports often depend on tournament schedules or external events that occur once a week, or at specific times. With Competitive Gaming, there is no waiting. High frequency means players can place a bet, see the outcome quickly, and place another if they choose. From my experience in both retail and online operations, I know how important immediacy is. Customers do not want to wait around; they want to walk into a betting shop and engage straight away, and Competitive Gaming is designed to meet that expectation.
If you think about it, this mirrors why live tennis betting became so successful. It offers several matches and constant action, which is what people love. Competitive Gaming takes that same principle but offers an around-the-clock service. If I had to summarise the appeal, I would say it comes down to two things: familiarity and constant availability.
Where and when are bettors engaging with the product? How is it performing on self-service betting terminals (SSBTs), for example?
We tend to look at this through three customer lenses: online, retail, and hybrid customers who engage with both channels. Online customers are customers who bet on in-play events and are typically focused on speed and simplicity. They place fast, simple bets and tend to engage with the product in short bursts. What we are seeing is that many will log in an hour ahead of an important live match and place bets on Competitive Gaming while waiting for the main event. Our live streaming and content provide something engaging in that interim window, and it helps keep customers active on the platform.
In retail, the behaviour is a little different. We have rolled out Competitive Gaming to over 3,000 shops in Spain, where we have self-service betting terminals integrated. In Spain, when a customer walks into a shop, they are expecting something to be available instantly, and Competitive Gaming delivers on that. We even designed a dedicated channel for retail where customers see four events on screen at once: two eSoccer and two eBasketball games. This means there is always something happening as soon as they walk through the door.
Retail bettors also tend to spend longer in the shop waiting to see the match. They spend more time browsing, sometimes creating accumulative bets across three, four or five events, either on favourites, total goals, or points. The social aspect of retail plays a big part here; they are watching the games together and placing bets at a more relaxed pace.
Then there is the hybrid customer, who bets both online and in retail with the same operator. We have seen that these players are far more engaged, placing around 2.4 times more bets than single-channel users. That crossover loyalty is incredibly valuable for operators, and Competitive Gaming plays a key role in sustaining it by providing consistent, 24-hour content in both environments.
Which countries or regions have shown the most potential for growth?
We are seeing really strong performance in countries where football and basketball are already well-known and loved. That is where Competitive Gaming thrives. Across the board, we have seen huge growth in Spain, Austria, the UK, and the Balkans.
Interestingly, when we first launched, there was a concern that Competitive Gaming might cannibalise other betting content. But what happened is the opposite. It has become a game-changer, and we are seeing operators increase their overall turnover. It is not just the volume of bets, but the average stake value that is increasing too.
We are witnessing overall growth in both the number of bets and the total amount wagered, with turnover increasing by 10 to 15%. This growth is occurring without any negative impact on profit margins, and operators are introducing a new, profitable revenue stream that enhances their existing sportsbook offerings. This addition serves as a true differentiator and is, importantly, scalable.
How important is product integrity in conversations with potential partners?
It is very important. Whenever we speak with operators and especially with their risk managers, the topic of integrity always comes up early in the conversation. Many of them will explain how they have had bad experiences in the past with traditional esports content. Years ago, it was difficult for them to manage exposure. The margins were very low, and there was a lot of uncertainty around how to apply limits or monitor events properly. That lack of control made it hard for operators to treat esports as a serious part of their sportsbook. So, from the very beginning, we made integrity a cornerstone of Competitive Gaming.
Every event is fully regulated by our internal referees, processes and procedures and run under strict, professional conditions. That is why we went after – and became the first to receive – the Esports Integrity Commission’s (ESIC) Gold Standards, the highest possible accreditation from the industry association. Achieving this certification is something operators value and has certainly had a big impact on shaping how they view Competitive Gaming. Being able to offer a product that not only performs commercially but also stands up to the highest integrity standards is what sets us apart.
What does the future of Competitive Gaming look like, and how do you see the product evolving?
Right now, our focus is on eSoccer and eBasketball based on performance across Europe — those are the sports everyone knows, and they have helped us build a strong foundation. But we are a global business, and we know that different regions have different preferences, so naturally, we are already looking ahead. The US is very important for us.
People are interested in different types of products, games or sports like NFL, ice hockey, and UFC. So, we are actively exploring new titles and types of content that will resonate with those audiences. The demand is there, and we want to be ready to meet it with the right content for each market. We are also exploring new channels. We currently offer four eSoccer and four eBasketball channels, and are growing, so there is no reason we cannot expand that to five, six, or even more. It depends on the market: if the appetite is there, we will build it.
With over 200,000 Competitive Gaming events per year, we know we can scale that to 250,000 or 300,000 if the opportunity is right. The most important thing is that the product continues to generate value, and the data is clear on that. As long as Competitive Gaming is helping operators drive growth, we will continue investing in new channels, formats, and finding ways to keep the product fresh.
Finally, how easy is it for operators to integrate the product?
I would say integration is one of the product’s biggest strengths. We have designed Competitive Gaming to follow the same structure as other SIS products, like racing, so for most operators and platform providers, the process is already very familiar. There is no major development work required, and we have a dedicated team whose sole focus is helping new partners get up and running with integration. That support makes a big difference, especially when operators are juggling multiple priorities.
Sometimes we hear concerns like, “we need to fit this into our roadmap,” but this is not a product that needs a year to implement. Depending on the internal setup, we have had partners go live in just two weeks, and on average, it takes between two and eight. It is quick and commercially effective, and that is a real advantage in today’s market, where speed to launch and performance from day one are key.
We are proud of the product, not just because of how it performs, but because of the feedback we get from our partners. Once operators go live, they often come back asking for more. You launch one Competitive Gaming channel, and very quickly, the second or third follows. That kind of response tells us a lot about how the product is landing with sportsbook teams.
We have seen that play out with several operators. Admiral, for example, rolled Competitive Gaming out across Austria and , and Spain. They manage their own platform, which gives them a lot of flexibility, and they have used that to scale the product across multiple markets in an efficient way. Their approach shows how Competitive Gaming can integrate cleanly into an existing operation, even one that spans several jurisdictions.
Codere is another strong example.
They have implemented Competitive Gaming across both retail and online in Spain, which is important because the product is designed to perform in both environments. Their ability to deliver it consistently across touchpoints has helped drive engagement, and they clearly see Competitive Gaming as part of their core sportsbook offer, not just an add-on.
In both cases, the common thread is that once the product is live and the results are there, the appetite to do more follows naturally. And that is exactly what we are seeing across the board.
