As the Australian betting industry heads toward major change, Gerard Daffy, a veteran of the country’s sports betting and racing scene, expects that only a handful of operators will survive.
Daffy, who currently works for the Totalisator Agency Board (TAB), suggested that many smaller operators rely too heavily on unsustainable sign-up offers and bonuses in an interview with SBC Leaders.
He also anticipates stricter regulations for gambling ads, particularly during sports coverage, as public concern increases and more people voice frustration over its exposure to younger audiences, possibly resulting in a full ban.
“In 2008, it was illegal for bookmakers in Australia to advertise,” Daffy said. “That worked in our favour because I had a lot of links with the media in the early days and we didn’t have to pay any money to advertise. If there was any big news, I became the go-to man so we were fortunate in that part.
“The government then relaxed some laws, so all of a sudden came a massive influx of advertising but then came regulations around products fees paid to individual sports and they had a say on what you could and couldn’t bet on.”
Not cost-effective
Ads are certainly something that continues to draw growing criticism from the public. However, Daffy also expressed concern over the amount of gambling companies in the country, stating: “Surely they can’t invent any more things to bet on.”
He continued: “160 betting operators in Australia is way too many, there’s going to be casualties there because if you start up, the only way you can get a client today off one of those others, is to offer them money, whether it be in bonus bets etc.”
In the interview, Daffy also traces the Australian betting industry’s rise from old-school racetrack bookmaking to a digital powerhouse.
He speaks of his experience as a Co-Founder of Centrebet – which was one of only two corporate bookmakers operating in the country back in 1993, the other being Sportsbet.
This meant Daffy was at the forefront of Australian online betting’s early days. With new tech continuing to dominate, he now believes it’s time for tighter regulation and market consolidation to keep the industry both fair and sustainable.
Racing’s huge background
Daffy acknowledged that at this moment in time, the gambling industry sees about 50% of its income from sports betting, and the other 50% from horseracing – citing the sport’s significant impact in peoples lives over the years.
“There’s hundreds of racecourses scattered all over Australia, they are a real social event.”
Referring back to his time at Centrebet, Daffy said: “That lifestyle was engrained in them, so what we did is take it to the online area, where you can have a bet on any horse that you like.”
Daffy’s comments come amid the prospective return of betting regulation to the Australian government’s agenda following the Labor Party’s victory in the election earlier this year.
As in other countries, betting has faced political pressure in Australia around social responsibility, and changes at the federal level are looking like a distinct possibility – though many campaigners feel that the government has not acted soon or quickly enough.
The full video is available here.
