Online Casino

With the sudden rise in the popularity of online sports betting over the last few years, some of the biggest names in the gambling industry are making substantial moves into this arena. The latest big name to join the fray is SportingBet, who are looking to increase their business presence in the huge and rapidly expanding UK online sports betting market.

According to recent comments from company executives, SportingBet is making adjustments in its marketing strategy to increase its business presence by boosting its share of this currently very healthy and lucrative British sports booking industry.

To bring their plans into action, the online gambling company will divert a portion of its expenditure on advertising from other areas in Europe in order to make definite inroads into some of the established sports betting territories in the UK. Currently, SportingBet has an advertising expenditure of around $100 million within the EU which means there is a significant reserve that can be easily diverted to the UK market.

Company CEO, Andrew McIver is reported as saying that his company is coming from a fairly low base, meaning it can compete with some of the established big players such as Ladbrokes and William Hill. With the proper marketing there is no reason his company cannot build it UK share of the business from 6% currently to 10% of company revenues in a year to eighteen months.

SportingBet began its new aggressive business strategy with a sponsorship deal it signed with football club Wolverhampton Wanderers three weeks before they gained promotion into the English Premier League. This is indeed a coup, as the English Premier League is the richest and highest profile football association in the world. This will give any team sponsor a great lift visually as all Premier League football games are heavily televised not just in the UK but across Europe and around the world.

This shift in focus for SportingBet towards sports betting comes after the perceived fading in poker participation overseas coupled with the competition with online casinos becoming ever more fiercely contended. Sports betting, on the other hand is still wide open as its growth in market share and business opportunities continues unabated. 

SportingBet has posted an increase of 98% in its pre-tax profits for the third quarter of the company’s financial year. Its operating profit to 30th April 2009 is up 34% to £9.8 million with punters betting £431.7 million, which is up 18% for this quarter.