In this interview with CalvinAyre.com’s Becky Liggero, Mark Blandford of FSB Technology explains why the lifting of the U.S. federal ban on sports betting presents big B2B opportunities for UK and European operators.
Gambling operators and state governments are in a festive mood after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the federal ban on sports betting. They believe that the decision will pave the way for the opening of new revenue streams for them.
In order to capture a big chunk of the sports betting market, Mark Blandford of FSB Technology advised U.S. gambling operators to collaborate with companies that already have the knowledge and technology in sports betting. U.S. companies’ need for sports betting experts presents B2B opportunities for UK and European operators, according to Blandford.
“Who’s going to dominate the U.S. market is going to be interesting because I think there’s going to have to be a degree of collaboration. I think the U.S. companies are going to need that kind of expertise,” Blandford told CalvinAyre.com. “That expertise comes from countries like the UK, where we have that and therefore, the risk management knowledge and technology has been around to develop and mature. So, I see strong U.S. brands working in partnership with the knowledge and the technology and I think that’s the optimum.”
Blandford also predicted that there will be one or two major European sports betting operators that expand their business in the U.S. without necessarily partnering with a U.S. brand.
As for the more established U.S. casino brands, the FSB Technology executive believes these companies are in a strong position to move forward and offer sports wagering. Blandford, however, cautioned them that they need to adapt to the changing market.
“I mean, they do have the brand. They do have the distribution, quite possibly, and some states are going to seek sports betting distributed through casinos so they are in a strong position from that point of view,” Blandford said. “But I think, they do need that expertise, they do need the technology and therefore they’re prime candidates for partnering. So it is big B2B opportunities for UK and European operators.”
Blandford also said that the U.S. sports betting industry may take notes from the poker industry, particularly on how regulators work.
“I think we’ve seen parallels of collaboration with people with existing proven technology partnering with U.S. brands. So, I think there are quite a lot of lessons along that line that can be learned from the poker industry,” he said.
