NORTH AMERICA
BettingUSA: Keeping the faith in a tough market
While many affiliates are exiting the US market, BettingUSA is staying put. Here, founder Mike Murphy tells Joyce Yang about his journey from flooring to iGaming, the challenges US affiliates face today and what’ s next for the brand
Knowing early that he wasn’ t the teachers’ favourite, BettingUSA founder Mike Murphy decided to get into a trade and stand on his feet. After spending a year learning how to sand, refinish and install hardwood floors while working for someone else, he struck out founding his own business at just 19 years old.
To bring in customers, Murphy initially spent thousands a month on yellow page ads before teaching himself how to build a website and generate free leads through Google. Around the same time, he became a“ semi-serious” poker player in a local bar league and realised he had a knack for it, even though no one in his family played. As the online poker boom hit in 2006, he became a player advocate in online communities and launched a rakeback site.
Murphy’ s brainchild BettingUSA was born in 2013 when New Jersey legalised online gambling. Having a strong feeling that more states would follow suit, he positioned the site for all 50 states. Then the moment finally came when PASPA was repealed in 2018. Since then, BettingUSA has been his core focus.
“ I don’ t believe any other website at the time had a dedicated guide for all 50 states and what type of online betting was legal, which was mostly horse racing in the early years outside of New Jersey,” Murphy recalls.“ I certainly wish I had gone‘ all in’ even
iGBAFFILIATE. COM • 57