When it comes to sports betting, Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya are the biggest nations. Tese countries will likely see the highest volume of World Cup wagers across the continent, too. When it comes to French horse racing, Morocco, Burkina Faso, and Mali are the top three markets; for non-French horse racing, South Africa is by far the most significant market.


Virtuals are also big right across Africa, but we see the greatest uptake in Kenya and Nigeria. In all these markets, I think the World Cup will be a catalyst for driving awareness of sports betting and the brands that are available to players in each jurisdiction.


Africa has five representatives at the tournament - Cameroon, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia - how will this generate greater betting volume, and how much of an impact will this have?


We are expecting unprecedented bet volume and turnover in these five countries when their respective teams are playing. Tere is a monopoly in place in Morocco, so it will be interesting to see what kinds of prices and margins the operator will look to apply. Operators in other markets will be running at little to no margin to maximise the acquisition opportunity the World Cup presents.


Te competition is going to be as fierce as it is unprecedented for bookmakers across Africa, and the action taking place behind the scenes at these sportsbooks will be just as interesting to watch and follow as the action taking place on the pitch.


How popular is the World Cup in Africa - is it on a level playing field with the Premier League as a product?


Make no mistake about it, the World Cup is popular in Africa, but I would say a little less so than across the rest of the world, especially when it comes to betting. Tis is because the usual bet slip in Africa has eight to ten lines which means that during the World Cup players will have to wait three to four days for all the games to come in and for their bets to be settled.


Tis is not really the African mentality when it comes to betting – players prefer faster wagering activity. Tat is why the Premier League is so popular, with bettors able to place eight to ten lines on any given Saturday and have the results come in that same day. Of course, this could change if qualifying teams such as Senegal or Cameroon make it to the final 16 stage. In this case, I expect interest and betting activity to skyrocket.


How tight will prices and margins be for the tournament?


Tere is a great deal of uncertainty around prices and margins right now. Tis is certainly the case in Africa, which has become a fiercely competitive market in recent months. Operators understand the huge potential on the table and are going to great lengths to launch their brands, engage players and leverage the first-mover advantage that is up for grabs.


I would not be surprised to see some operators


Christophe Casanova Chief Operating Officer Honoré Gaming


“Operators understand the huge potential on the table and are going to great lengths to launch their brands, engage players and leverage the first- mover advantage that is up for grabs. I would not be surprised to see some operators taking little to no margin during the World Cup, seeing it as a powerful acquisition opportunity and a one-off chance to deliver unrivalled


value to bettors through the odds and prices they offer


across their books. That said, it will be interesting to see how


trading teams react if the early results that come in are punter friendly.”


taking little to no margin during the World Cup, seeing it as a powerful acquisition opportunity and a one-off chance to deliver unrivalled value to bettors through the odds and prices they offer across their books. Tat said, it will be interesting to see how trading teams react if the early results that come in are punter friendly.


Will Nigeria bet biggest once again?


Tis is an interesting question. Te power player operators in the market are getting bigger. I’m talking about the likes of Bet9ja, Sportybet and Betking. Tese brands are the absolute heavyweights, and I don’t see any signs of their growth slowing down, especially when you factor in the acquisition opportunity the World Cup presents.


A lot of Africans also support and like to wager on England, so just how big this World Cup will be for Nigerian operators will have quite a lot to do with how the England team performs. No pressure, lads.


WIRE / PULSE / INSIGHT / REPORTS P41


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