Built on Trust: Internet Vikings, the Most Reliable Host for iGaming & Sports Betting
Today, with over 600% growth in just three years, it's clear the strategy paid off. Founder and CEO Rickard Vikström reflects on the journey, the philosophy that fuels their success, and what lies ahead for one of the most trusted infrastructure providers in the iGaming and online sports betting sector. .
“It’s really very simple,” says Vikström. “We sell hosting. That’s what we’re about.” But as anyone familiar with Internet Vikings will attest, their version of “hosting” is anything but ordinary. It’s a nuanced, highly regulated, and trustdriven endeavour that reaches every part of a gaming operator’s ecosystem, from compliance to cost optimisation.
Vikström founded Internet Vikings 17 years ago, with his business partner Victor Jerlin, initially as a general domain name registrar and hosting company. But by 2019, he and his team recognised something few others had: the iGaming industry wasn’t just another vertical, it was a domain with unique needs.
When Internet Vikings made the decision in 2019 to narrow its focus exclusively to hosting services for the iGaming and sports betting industry, many saw it as a risky pivot.
“We saw that gaming companies operated in highly regulated, local licensing environments. There weren’t many providers who truly understood that complexity,” he explains. “Some markets were monopolised by legacy players. We thought, "Let's break that.”
The move wasn’t without sacrifice. Internet Vikings divested its domain name registrar and marketing services arm to double down on hosting, betting its future on specialisation over diversification. That clarity of purpose, Vikström argues, is what allowed them to scale so effectively.
Despite exponential growth, Internet Vikings has stayed grounded in its core values; trust, efficiency, and customercentricity.
“Hosting is a trust business. If we’re down, our clients are down. It’s that simple,” says Vikström. “That’s why we’ve built a team with deep expertise, and we’re always focused on being available, responsive, and proactive.”
In a time where hyperscalers and tech giants offer one-size-fits-all solutions, Internet Vikings has charted a different path. They walk a tightrope: standardise enough to offer high service levels, but customise enough to meet client-specific and regulatory demands.
“We’ve saved some clients millions annually by tailoring solutions that are both technically sound and commercially viable,” Vikström reveals. “It’s not just about uptime. It’s about value, flexibility, and understanding.”
This is especially true in the regulatory maze of the gaming industry, where operators must often comply with country-by-country rules. “You can’t just drop in a server and call it a day,” he adds. “You need to speak with regulators, understand what they actually require, and then build a solution that works for everyone.”
One of the more surprising developments Vikström has witnessed is a growing dissatisfaction with hyperscalers among the gaming industry . While their services are robust, they’re often overpriced and inflexible.
“We’ve seen companies where hosting costs eat up 30-40% of revenue,” he notes. “Even 10–20% is too high. We aim to keep that figure in the low single digits.”
This efficiency has become a key differentiator. In an industry where margins are tightening and regulators are demanding ever-greater scrutiny, optimised hosting can be a gamechanger.
Internet Vikings now operates across Europe, , and the United States, each with its own infrastructure quirks and regulatory hurdles. The US, in particular, has provided critical lessons.
“ "We learned to not be afraid of offering alternatives to the hosting approach of hyperscalers,” Vikström says. “Sometimes, clients are willing to pay more for a premium, tailored solution but it’s important they fully understand the value and difference in what they’re getting.That transparency builds trust.”
The team continues to refine its approach based on these international learnings, ensuring flexibility without compromising reliability.
“We’ll keep doing what we do, only better,” Vikström says when asked what’s next for Internet Vikings. “In the US, we’re always watching for new states to legalise iGaming or sports betting. That opens doors for us and our clients. In Europe, we expect more operators to move away from expensive hyperscalers and towards more efficient alternatives like us.”
The company has no plans to broaden its focus. If anything, it intends to go deeper. “There’s still so much work to do to make hosting cost-effective, compliant, and scalable in this industry,” he adds.
At the heart of it all remains a commitment to partnership.
“We’re big enough to support a client’s expansion but small enough that they’re not just a line in a spreadsheet,” Vikström concludes. “I spend a lot of time meeting clients, understanding their pain points. That connection, that’s where trust begins.”
As the global gaming industry continues to change, it’s clear that Internet Vikings will remain a key player, not by chasing trends, but by mastering the fundamentals.
www.internetvikings.com
