ICE North America Digital - Day 2 ICE NA Digital Event Guide - Day 2-v6 | Page 17

West Virginia, which publishes weekly updates on
its sports betting market’s performance, reported
a slowdown across retail and mobile channels in
the week ended 14 March. That week, the National
Hockey League, National Basketball Association
and Major League Soccer all postponed their
seasons. Handle declined to $4.6m, down 45.4%
compared to the prior week.
The following week to 21 March—with an executive
order closing all casinos in the state on 18 March—
it then fell to $877,303. This comprised a $852,845
contribution from mobile, before falling to $731,866
the following week, when mobile betting was the
only available option.
There will obviously be aberrations and differences
in other state markets, but the trends seen in
West Virginia are likely to be replicated in others.
With fewer sports to bet on, and none of the most
popular leagues, there is a significant drop-off in
customer activity.
To an extent, this could be offset by activity around
other sports, as well as betting on future events.
William Hill, for example, has been regularly pushing
betting on the NFL—due to return in September—
and the rescheduled 2020 Masters in November.
But this leaves a period in which customers have no
impetus to bet, not to mention few in-play markets.
What, then, can they bet on?
VIRTUALLY APPEALING
O’Loughlin says SG has seen a “surge” of interest
in virtual sports and esports.
“These two verticals remain largely unaffected in
the current climate and are proving to be a viable
option for operators looking to boost their offering
amid a live sports shutdown,” he explains.
“Virtuals have always been a reliable solution and
now more than ever they’re showing their worth.
Improved graphics and a wider range of sports and
markets ensure that these events are the next best
thing to live matches.”
Virtuals, to some extent, may appear to offer a
ready-made replacement for sports betting, in that
these replicate the look and feel of a real sport,
albeit underpinned by a random number generator
(RNG). This effectively makes each game an
extended slot spin, supported by graphics and a
simulated match.
“The offer of 24-hour, uninterrupted play has
proven to satisfy most punters on a daily basis
and encouraged a strong shift from sports betting
to the virtual proposition,” says Steven Spartinos,
chief executive of virtual sports specialist Kiron
Interactive.
“There are betting opportunities every 60 to 90
seconds and customers can choose to place single
and multiple bets on a vast portfolio of popular
sports and bet markets, both online and in-shop,”
he continues. “The advantages will only grow as
the vertical develops, but perhaps most important
in this current climate is that virtuals are safe and
secure products that allow for good margins.”
In recent weeks,
the Nevada
Gaming Control
Board has
permitted
wagering on
virtual Nascar
racing as it
looks to
mitigate the
sporting
suspensions.
However, in
European
markets,
suppliers have noted an initial drop in activity, with
the core virtuals customer being existing sports
bettors that simply stopped betting after their usual
gambling activity shut down. Activity, it should be
noted, has since began to grow once again, and
rapidly.
In Spartinos’ view it’s not a case of replacing sports
betting in any way, but instead tapping into a new
revenue stream for operators. After all, this is how
virtuals in their current form came into existence.
An outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the UK
in 2001 led to the cancellation of that year’s edition
of the Cheltenham Festival horse racing event and
prompted Inspired Entertainment to launch virtual
racing to fill the gap in the sporting calendar.
Yet since then, virtuals have remained an ancillary,
rather than core, product in an operator’s portfolio.
And Spartinos admits that it remains uncertain
whether this (hopefully) short-term Covid-19
enforced change in customer behavior will have a
long-term impact in betting activity once sporting
fixtures resume and betting activity reopens.
“Alternative content will by no means completely
balance out the declining revenues from sports
betting, but it does provide a tool by which to
limit the forecasted damage,” he says. “For many
operators, virtual content is now front and center
of their offering, encouraging a sharp uptake of the
mainstay games of horse racing, greyhounds and
football.
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