What are Abelson Odds’ plans in the coming months for its GPS and PIPS offerings?
In the immediacy, we’re focused on the Women’s World Cup. For the first time we’ll be offering our complete coverage; that includes Goalscorers (inc. in-play), player cards, shots, tackles, assists, offsides, passes, saves, fouls.
The Saudi Pro League is making waves and we look sure to be covering that in full, for the first time, from the start of the new season in August.
Our in-play goalscorer offering (GPSIP) has expanded, this month, into LatAm, with Brazil Serie A and Copa Libertadores now covered in full.
How do you reflect on the impact Abelson Odds has had on the sports betting industry since Abelson Info’s acquisition of Super Soccer Oddsfeed six years ago?
While we, at Super Soccer Oddsfeed, were confident we had a great product and valuable customers, since joining the Abelson stable the business has really exploded. We were fortunate, in part, because our success has largely coincided with the rising ascendancy of bet builder; the importance of player markets for that product cannot be overstated.
I think it is fair to say that we have established ourselves as a leading industry supplier. We are still niche, but it’s an important niche and we are very happy with the way our business has progressed.
Does Abelson use/plan to use AI in its sports betting? More generally, how will AI continue to advance the sports betting industry?
I’m going to sound rather contrarian, but we exist in our niche because what we do, on the whole, requires manual oversight to be of a high standard. Of course, that will change in the years and decades to come but for now it would be incredibly tough to replicate our product using automation.
Undoubtably, AI will be used successfully in sports betting, as it is elsewhere. However, at present, any attempts to introduce it remain in their infancy. I feel that there are a number of evolutions utilising current technology that should be made before we can launch a successful AI project.
What is Virtually Sports’ strategy for rolling out its products in the next year, after you spoke in Issue 3 about the in-play soccer game set to hit the African market?
Our launch in Africa, with our long-format in-play football game (designed to sit within the sportsbook), has been very successful. We are now in the process of launching that same game in South America, and given the obvious passion for football in that region, we are confident that it will prove popular. The Abelson Info team has actually supported Virtually Sports in designing a localised version for this region.
In parallel, our suite of cricket games, which were launched in February, have been received well by the market.
How have other recent deals signed by Abelson Odds helped move the company forward?
We are on the cusp of signing a few new deals and with them you often find coverage expansion runs hand in hand.
A couple of deals, where we have sold GPS into non-UK businesses have borne fruit after their rivals saw our offering. This form of organic marketing has really been fantastic for proving our quality and value.
With 2023 over its halfway point at publication of this issue, can you give any early indications of what 2024 could look like for Abelson Odds?
Hopefully, more of the same; we’re still expanding the team and offering. Our LatAm focus sees us hit trade shows in Miami in November and we are already in talks with a number of firms operating in different LatAm territories.
Our goal is to provide a complete player service for the region; including granular markets such as shots, tackles and passes. This in turn enhances bet builder opportunities for operators in this region. We believe we can help make localisation easier and more affordable for our clients.
What would your key message be to a start-up business in the sports betting scene after Abelson Odds’ journey so far?
Patience- although this is easier said than done. We were lucky that both Super Soccer and Abelson Info had solid core products that could help subsidise development of new ideas. GPS really took two years to find its first fully integrated clients, and longer than that to really prove itself within its peer group. We can attribute part of our success to understanding that companies have long roadmaps and so we aim to make integrations as easy and flexible as possible. One of our core facets is our ability to respond in a timely manner to requests and queries, this fosters goodwill and this is worth its weight in gold.
Are there any fresh sports, leagues or tournaments Abelson Odds is looking to expand into through new deals?
As mentioned, it looks very much like the Saudi Pro League will be our first Middle Eastern league. Any other additions will be driven by our customers demands, but we are currently conducting a feasibility study for offering in-play pricing and settlement for the Argentinean, Chilean and Peruvian leagues.
How do Abelson Odds’ strategies differ when focusing on individual sporting events and tournaments?
Tournaments are great fun to compile. The biggest advantage to a tournament is the naming of squads. This enables compilers to really get to grips with a team they may have been given. Take the Women’s World Cup, which starts at the end of July. Eight compilers will get a group each, that means we have an individual looking at only four teams, giving them time to pay the requisite attention and really become emersed in the teams.