Russian bookmaker 1xbet is the country’s top searched-for betting operator, according to new research.
A new report by marketing agency Specialists E-iq and Market Leader magazine showed betting operator 1xbet dominating a list of the top 18 bookmaker brands searched for by Moscow-based punters on leading Russian search engine Yandex during the month of February.
1xbet, which ranked third on a recent bookmaker website traffic chart behind Fonbet and Marathon, generated over 570k searches on Yandex last month. That’s more than twice the 218k search requests made for runner-up Baltbet, the country’s second largest retail betting operator.
Liga Stavok, which was recently granted the first license under Russia’s new online sports betting regime, ranked third with 121k search requests. In total, the top three operators claimed over 68% of total searches for the 18 bookmakers on the Yandex chart, with 1xbet claiming 43% all by itself.
Several European Union bookies made the cut, led by seventh-ranked Bet365 at nearly 56k requests, Sportingbet and Unibet at 10th and 11th place respectively, while Ladbrokes ranked 13th.
1xbet also dominated the rankings in terms of number of references in “reputable” online publications with 313, outpacing runner-up Pari-Match at 271, which in turn just outdid Sportingbet at 261. From there, the numbers drop off dramatically, although Western bookies fared better, with Unibet in fourth place with 74 references, Ladbrokes sixth with 46 and Bet365 seventh with 43.
In other Russian bookie news, Liga Stavok has opened the country’s first off-track betting parlor. The shop in Moscow’s Erevan Plaza shopping center is the first of 100 such OTB outlets set to open across the country this year in partnership with the Rosippodromy national equestrian agency.
The OTB outlets will accept wagers on both Russian and international racing events through Rosippodromy’s deal with French betting operator Pari-Mutuel Urbain. The eventual goal is to have over 750 such outlets in operation.
