FEATURE
PLAYMAKER IS MEETING FANS ON THEIR TURF
The sports entertainment ecosystem is a crowded space , with affiliates and traditional media jostling for position . But by offering a highly curated experience , Playmaker believes it has found room to grow , writes Cole Rush
A longside the rise of sports betting , the gambling industry is also ushering in a new wave of sports betting-adjacent businesses . Businesses that play in the sports betting space without actually offering bets .
It ’ s a unique cross-section , involved with sports betting tangentially but offering something special . The aura of sports betting is somewhat of an incubator , fostering innovative solutions in the space that aren ’ t simply “ launch a sportsbook ”.
That zone , the area surrounding sports betting , is where Playmaker operates .
“ We play in the sports betting space by building an ecosystem of highly engaged sports fans that we ’ re delivering at scale to those who covet sports fans ,” says Playmaker chief executive Jordan Gnat . “ That ’ s a combination of sports betting operators , as well as Fortune 500 advertisers who are looking to access sports fans , and sports fans being the lifeblood of the entire ecosystem .”
Gnat left The Stars Group when Covid-19 first hit the US , then set his sights on his next venture .
“ Ultimately , when we looked at the entire sports betting ecosystem , we said at the top of the food chain are the operators ,” he explains . “ Super competitive , need lots of capital , high risk , high reward . At the bottom are the platform providers . Commodity-based businesses , lower risk , but not a huge return , very capital intensive .
“ And in the middle is a whole bunch of stuff . Games providers , geolocations . We said , at the end of the day , none of this works for sports fans .”
Simple : the customer acquisition costs – millions funnelled from the big operators – has to go somewhere .
“ And where does it go ?” Gnat asks . “ It goes to companies like us .”
Q1 2022 • ISSUE 89 • 43