While much of the continent remains grey in terms of regulation, Colombia’s shift to a regulated market has been deemed a success to date, and two further nations offering big potential, Peru and Brazil, could have a licensing framework in place in the near future.
And with the World Cup just around the corner, 2018 could indeed be viewed as a turning point for sports betting in South America. Football is by far the biggest betting sport in the region, accounting for as much as 90% of turnover, according to Jibaja, who told TotallyGaming.com how a World Cup could aid the growth period that the region is currently experiencing.
“Sports betting, and the gaming industry in general, was slow to grow at first but the past couple of years has seen it start to explode,” he said.
“The World Cup comes at a great time and I’d expect many operators to grow around 30-35% in terms of turnover for the month. That is mainly because, not only do we have South American teams in the World Cup, but also because it increases the number of matches that people can bet on,” Jibaja added.
“But the fact of having, for example, Peru playing in the World Cup after 36 years, this is going to have a huge impact in Peru for sure. Panama have also qualified, and that brings a lot of people who are interested, and could start betting on their team, and betting on other teams too. So, I believe it brings a lot of impact, especially in South America because we’re very passionate about football. We love our teams, even if they don’t win we still celebrate, that’s how mad it is,” Jibaja also said.
He points out that with greater levels of regulation on the way, operators are going to have to work hard to stay ahead of competition – both domestically and internationally. “Many operators in South America, of all sizes, are taking a long hard look at their sportsbook technology and content suppliers and assessing if they are sufficient for the new era.”
"As a business with vast experience of working in highly regulated markets, Betgenius is the perfect partner to support sportsbook growth in this exciting, fast-changing region,” Jibaja concluded.
Source: GMB / Totallygaming
