African sportsbooks have made significant strides in improving their overall markets and technology on offer over the last few years. More and more brands are now branching out into new and innovative areas of the industry. Some notable examples have been the introduction of real time live betting and the introduction of live dealer online casinos as part of their mainstream product.
The technological advances achieved by these operators have reflected well on operators’ bottom line with significant improvements done across the software and marketing delivery of African sportsbooks. Here are some of the achievements clocked in over the past several years.
Mobile Sportsbooks Designed for the Future
Technologically speaking, Africa has not lagged behind when it comes to its sportsbooks. In fact, operators in the continent are very happy to continually develop their product offer to the point where they have been able to build on a truly worthwhile product. The introduction of mobile-friendly technologies has been some of the biggest and most important moves in the market.
Players have been able to achieve the desired engagement level and sportsbooks have seen tremendous growth in new customer registrations. Africa is a mobile-first continent where handheld devices are the preferred mode for internet access. In fact, Africans are some of the most arduous users of mobile devices:
- There are 650 million users in Africa
- There are 20.3 million gamers in Africa
- There are 500 million sports fans in Africa
Understandably, this has reflected on sportsbook trends with operators realizing that the time to create a compelling mobile product has arrived. There are no alternatives to mobile for the African market. Businesses have made sure that their betting platforms are not just welcoming and fair, but also work well on any type of device. Making the process simple and easily accessible are the biggest factors in driving these apps. Mobile solutions lead the way and make it easy for sportsbooks in Africa to deliver to fans what they want to.
Adding More Products to the Experience
Not only are African sportsbooks more open to technological innovation, but they are also equally ready to add more products. Recently, pre-game bets were the most common type of wager placed in any sportsbook. However, African operators have been very quick to innovate and create more options for their loyal customers.
These innovations include in-play betting markets which are also known as live betting. There seems to be no end to the options for live wagers across African operators. To add additional dimension to the options, many live wagers are for non-sport events. Entertainment and political betting have been quite popular examples of non-sport event wagers.
Another notable addition is competitive video gaming or eSports. African consumers are not only mobile-savvy but they also have a love of eSports. Betting markets catering to eSports events are making their mark on the betting industry as a whole. With so much variety it’s quite clear that Africa is experiencing a renaissance for sportsbooks.
In fact, Betway Sportsbook is one such sportsbook where eSports play a CENTRAL place. Betway sponsors over seven eSports teams and multiple competitions, not least – its own Battle of Betway.
Expanding Beyond Sports Betting to Create Lasting Experiences
While sports betting is surely the bread-and-butter of most online sportsbooks in Africa, there are other options to enjoy as well. Many brands have realized that branching beyond sports betting is actually a worthwhile move as it gives them more flexibility and adds value to their product offer.
Betway recently signed up a deal with Authentic Gaming to extend its traditional gaming offer to include live casino games. This marks a determined shift towards new technologies in the betting segment.
There are many things that allow sportsbooks to create more compelling experiences that stretch beyond the traditional sports betting wager. Apart from adding new products, Africa is also addressing sports betting heads-on by leveraging all it knows about the industry as a whole. As a result, technological solutions are making betting in the continent far safer and more focused on responsible gambling.
But expanding beyond sports betting doesn’t mean just having another product of the gaming experience to explore. It also means focusing on solutions that help boost marketing and create responsible gaming practices. There are many ways that gaming has changed in Africa, and this is no bad thing.
Whether it concerns sports betting or the traditional gaming experience shouldn’t matter as long as it leads to much better overall engagement and opportunities for players. African sportsbooks have made a big leap forward.
