SPOTLIGHT SPORTS GROUP: CONSISTENTLY UNLOCKING VALUE ON A GLOBAL LEVEL

SPOTLIGHT SPORTS GROUP can justifiably lay claim to having a truly transatlantic view of the betting and gaming business, having achieved major success on both sides of the pond. Managing Director Harry von Behr spoke with SBC Leaders about the work behind that rise to prominence and what makes the firm tick so sweetly, and on so many different fronts

BY CHRIS MURPHY

SBC: By way of introduction, what is Spotlight Sports Group all about and who are your customers?

HVB: Spotlight Sports Group (SSG) is built on the well-known Racing Post brand but in recent years we have expanded well beyond our horse racing heritage. We now boast content and product teams on both sides of the Atlantic who specialise in all things sports betting, which power our affiliate properties and B2B division.

Our growth in recent years has led to Spotlight Sports Group establishing itself as the largest independent sports betting affiliate in the US and UK and allowed us to unlock audience value for bookmakers and media partners globally.

We deliver distinctive sports betting experiences both through our own brands and via the world's biggest betting operators and media owners. We do this in a variety of different ways but it is all based on our strong track record of creating high-quality content, supported by data and technology.

SBC: Spotlight Sports Group is very much a ‘transatlantic’ business given its experience operating in Europe and the US. Can you talk us through how those two sides of the business differ and how they’re currently performing?

HVB: While our roots are certainly in the UK and Europe, we, along with many other companies, saw the oncein-a-lifetime opportunity to jump into the North American market a few years ago and we now have strong teams in place in both markets.

Our business strategy is relatively consistent due to our expertise in content and data, but there are distinct differences in certain parts of the business. Our affiliate programmes in the UK and the US are quite similar, but with different brands leading the charge.

In the UK and Ireland we are led by the Racing Post, alongside our other brands Free Super Tips and myracing which have a large, highly engaged combined audience. The Racing Post has a distinctive position due to its heritage and brand authority, but Free Super Tips and myracing have built significant audiences, making the group a desirable affiliate partner for bookmakers.

In the US, Pickswise is our flagship sports betting brand. Since making its debut following the repeal of PASPA it has become a true authority in sports betting, growing to become the largest sports betting audience launched since the regulation of online sports betting.

The subtle differences between our UK and US affiliate strategies are repeated in our B2B division. In both markets we specialise in providing our partners with insightful sports betting content and data that is proven to engage audiences and drive turnover.

However, in the UK we are more focused on bookmakers, embedding our content into their platforms or developing standalone platforms that match their branding and enabling users to bet through their sportsbook. We also have a very successful retail division in which we power on-site betting terminals with Racing Post content.

In North America, we work more closely with media companies to help them grow their sports betting revenues as they compete to become leaders in the sports betting space. We do this with insightful content and technology similar to that produced

WHILE OUR ROOTS ARE CERTAINLY IN THE UK AND EUROPE, WE, ALONG WITH MANY OTHER COMPANIES, SAW THE ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY TO JUMP INTO THE NORTH AMERICAN MARKET A FEW YEARS AGO AND WE NOW HAVE STRONG TEAMS IN PLACE IN BOTH MARKETS in the UK. However, uniquely, we also provide engagement tools that help bettors and fantasy players make more informed decisions. We have also had great success in creating stand-alone free-to-play platforms for our partners that help engage audiences and educate them on betting principles.

Overall, we have seen tremendous success on both sides of the Atlantic because we have teams who are well- versed in the local markets and have the ability to provide our partners with unique solutions that are geared toward their specific needs.

SBC: Content and data are two of the key binding ingredients in sports betting. How are they integrated into a) Spotlight’s betting-focused European activities and b) the company’s US media-driven business?

HVB: You said it perfectly. Content and data are essential for all things sports betting and that is why those are the two key components of our offering on both the B2B and B2C sides of our business.

Quite simply, data is a part of everything we do as it powers our technology and helps us create content for 20+ sports. Our awardwinning content engine, Superfeed, provides pre-play and in-play betting insights for 80,000+ events annually and can provide content in more than 70 languages for 136 different markets.

That functionality is not possible without our historical and live data. Our ability to provide best-in-class sports betting and fantasy sports solutions to bookmakers and media companies hinges on the power of data being combined with our content.

SBC: Tell us more about Pickswise. What’s the secret behind its rapid growth since the repeal of PASPA?

HVB: Pickswise benefited from the fact that we have a really strong team of people at SSG who know how to build affiliate products and draw in sports betting-interested audiences. This base knowledge was really important to get things started as we focused on audience growth through SEO, leaning on our existing content teams.

The brand truly hit its stride once we combined our UK team with an onboarding of experts on the ground in the US. We now have dedicated Pickswise content and marketing teams based in the US, which has allowed the platform to grow at an amazing rate. On Twitter, Pickswise surpassed 100k followers in mid-2021, which was an amazing achievement, but in less than two years since then the following has grown to more than 300k. The growth is entirely down to great collaboration between our SEO, marketing and content teams coinciding with the continuously rising number of legal sports betting jurisdictions in the states. This has led to strong affiliate relationships with all legal sportsbooks in North America.

SBC: And what about your media partnerships in the US? What can you tell us about those?

HVB: As the US market is still in the relatively early stages of maturity our B2B division has seen a lot of success in helping media companies develop their affiliate businesses. Due to our knowledge in building affiliate properties and having in-house technology that allows us to scale quickly, we have found that this is where companies in the US need the most help.

Providing sports content for a general audience is very different to producing actionable sports betting content for potential bettors, and the latter is where we specialise.

For instance, many of our partners own websites that have content teams who are experts in providing localised content for general sports news but we provide them with the betting content, affiliate relationships and technology they need to drive new revenues through sports betting.

SBC: Turning to Europe and the rest of the world, how are these markets shaping up in the post-Covid environment? Which jurisdictions are currently the most exciting to be operating in and why?

HVB: While sports betting regulation may be increasing in some parts of Europe, we’re actually finding that this is leading to an increase in demand for insightful and valuable content. As operators become less able to target new and existing customers through the mechanics of free bets and bonuses, it is the brands that have the best and most engaging product propositions which will win out.

We’re also seeing an increasing number of requests for content in Latin America as some of the traditional European affiliates and operators look to take advantage of the burgeoning markets in that region.

SBC: Can you expand more on Spotlight Sports Group’s retail vertical and what is evidently a highly productive division for the company?

HVB: Spotlight Sports Group has provided services to the UK and Irish retail industry since 1996, when it took over the Betting Shop Display Edition. This product, which combines a wall sheet Betting Shop Display and the Racing Post newspaper, has been a staple product in retail betting shops over this period, distributed to 10,000+ outlets on a daily basis at its peak.

In recent times, we have focused on the future of retail and how to digitise our products for our partners. Aimed at engaging a new, younger audience, the digital Betting Shop Display is live on 1,000+ screens in more than 200 betting shops across the UK and Ireland. This interactive product allows customers to access all the content in the print version on a single screen, toggling between meetings and all with live prices.

Racing Post is a highly trusted brand among retail customers, and SSG is ideally placed to provide content whether the customer requires it in a print or digital format. In addition to the Digital BSD, live products across the retail estate include a digital tabloid, a Departure Board counting down to the next six to seven live events, and a sports tablet.

In addition, Racing Post content has been a big driver in the growth in stakes on Self Service Betting Terminals. Now, working closely with for the season so we can hit the ground running and unlock audience value for our owned properties and partners. Until the new NFL season arrives though, our teams will be focusing on the ongoing MLB season and expanding relationships with our current partners.

In the UK and beyond, we are closing out the current European football seasons and UEFA Champions League while preparing for the upcoming seasons which will start all too soon in August.

WHILE SPORTS BETTING REGULATION MAY BE INCREASING IN SOME PARTS OF EUROPE, WE’RE ACTUALLY FINDING THAT THIS IS LEADING TO AN INCREASE IN DEMAND FOR INSIGHTFUL AND VALUABLE CONTENT

Entain on its in-house SSBTs and Racing Terminals, a new ‘EasyView’ racecard is the latest innovation which is successfully engaging a new audience. SBC: What’s in the pipeline for the rest of the year in Europe/rest of the world and the US?

HVB: In the US, the next NFL season will be here before we know it and we have learned that not only is the NFL the most popular sport to watch in the States, but it is also the biggest betting product.

With that in mind, our B2B and affiliate teams are already preparing

Last year, we provided a handful of custom-built betting content sites to our partners and we expect to do the same this year as we go above and beyond the odds to round out the second half of the year.

Of course, at SSG we always have horse racing at the forefront of our minds and our Racing Post team is already preparing for big race meetings such as the upcoming Epsom Derby and Oaks and Royal Ascot in the UK, and the final two legs of the Triple Crown (Belmont and Preakness Stakes) plus the Breeders’ Cup in the US. •