- Betr’s sports betting platform is now operational in Ohio and Massachusetts with Virginia in the works.
- Betr announced plans to expand their wagering menu beyond microbetting earlier this year.
- They’ve just announced the launch of Betr Picks, a fantasy sports platform.
Betr is best known for the involvement of social media influencer turned surprisingly capable boxer Jake Paul in their ownership group but they’re starting to build momentum as a legitimate gaming brand. They’ve already launched in Ohio and Massachusetts with Virginia next on the list (Colorado, Wyoming and Ontario guys….trust me). Earlier this year, they announced plans to expand their offerings beyond their original microbetting focused niche by launching for lack of a better term ‘more traditional’ sports betting markets like pointspreads, totals and money lines. They’ve now made another interesting move, launching a real money fantasy sports vertical in 24 US jurisdictions with plans to expand to ‘at least 30’ by the end of 2023.
It’s a good move. Like every other sportsbook operator not on the ‘political crony’ list, they’ll likely struggle to gain market access in additional US states. They’ve already been criticized by Massachusetts gaming regulators for…uh…some reason. Best I can figure is that Jake Paul isn’t ‘quite their type’ though they had no actual issue with his involvement in Betr beyond the tired ‘what about the kids?’ trope. They also had issue with Barstool Sportsbook’s affiliation with Dave Portnoy for similarly dubious reasons. Not surprisingly, they haven’t had anything to say about the legacy gaming companies that use celebrity branding (eg: Caesars Sportsbook with Jamie Foxx). A state that has repeatedly elected anyone with the last name ‘Kennedy’ is in no position to question the ethics of others. I respect Betr for their tenacity and adding fantasy sports not only increases revenues, but expands their market reach. We’ll run through the full list later in this article but the new Betr jurisdictions include states on the verge of launching sports betting (eg: North Carolina), states that have already launched sports betting but have anti-competitive regulations and/or tax structures (Illinois) and states where sports betting may never happen (Utah).
Here’s the 411 from the press release:
Betr Holdings, Inc. (“Betr” or the “Company”), today announced the launch of Betr Picks, a pick ’em style fantasy game to complement its existing real money and free-to-play online sports betting (OSB) product, Betr Sportsbook. The simple and intuitive real money fantasy pick ’em experience allows users to select “More” or “Less” from a wide array of player projections to build a lineup with as few as 2 and up to a total of 8 players. Users have the potential to win up to 100x their initial entry if they get 8 picks correct. Betr Picks is now available in 24 jurisdictions* (including California, Texas, Florida, Illinois, Georgia, and North Carolina) which collectively represent over half of the U.S. adult population, and the Company is planning to further expand its fantasy reach to at least 30 total jurisdictions by the end of 2023. The Betr Fantasy & Sportsbook app is currently available on iOS with plans to launch on Android soon. This launch marks the first time that sportsbook and fantasy will operate within a single app.
Fantasy sports is the latest extension of Betr’s real money gaming business, which already has an established OSB business with live operations in Ohio and Massachusetts and plans to launch OSB in Virginia in the coming weeks and additional jurisdictions in the months ahead. Betr Picks offers a differentiated pick ’em experience, including the ability to pick up to 8 players, higher payout multiples (up to 100x), and no pushes. Betr’s signature focus on simple and intuitive product design, along with its bespoke integrations with Betr Media, will further distinguish the Betr Picks experience from the broader fantasy sports gaming market. To celebrate the launch of Betr Picks, Betr, the Official and Exclusive Sports Betting and Fantasy Partner for Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz, will feature a special Paul vs. Diaz free-to-play picks game, which will offer users a chance to win their share of up to $1M in prizes. The game is available now until August 5th when the first bout of Most Valuable Promotions and Real Fight Inc.’s Paul vs. Diaz pay-per-view begins live on DAZN and ESPN+ in the U.S.
Here’s more background on Betr’s plans for the new platform:
Betr Picks represents the first time Betr Gaming is able to more fully capitalize on the nationwide media audience and brand of Betr Media. As the fastest growing sports betting media brand in the United States, Betr Media has already surpassed 1.5 billion impressions on social media less than a year after launch. Betr Media is focused predominantly on original and short-form content, which the Company believes will be the primary form of sports media consumption for the 21-34-year-old male demographic outside of consuming live sporting events themselves. Betr Media will also be launching the @betrpicks sub-brand on social media, giving fans a more targeted community-driven vertical for fantasy and picks content. The channel will be led by rising social media star Derek Sullivan (aka BetrDerek) with consistent appearances from Betr’s robust talent network such as Jake Paul, Marco Piemonte, Haley and Hanna Cavinder, Bo Nickal, Handshake Bets and more.
Joey Levy, Founder and CEO of Betr, weighed in with this quote:
“We are thrilled to expand the Betr Gaming business by introducing our real money fantasy sports vertical with the launch of Betr Picks. Betr Picks allows us to acquire and engage real money gaming users across the United States, enabling Betr Gaming to more fully capitalize on the nationwide presence of Betr Media for the first time, all while providing a complimentary pre-match experience to our in-play focused OSB product. We believe Betr Picks already features a strong core user experience relative to existing pick ’em products, and we have several material enhancements that will be released over the coming weeks and months including more sports, game modes, media integrations, deposit and withdrawal capabilities, and more.”
Without further ado, the full list of Betr Picks states:
California, Texas, Florida, Illinois, Georgia, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Carolina, Kentucky, Oregon, Oklahoma, Utah, Arkansas, Kansas, New Mexico, Nebraska, Rhode Island, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, Washington D.C., Vermont, and Wyoming
Best wishes to Betr on their new venture and in general. As soon as the Android version of the Betr Picks app drops I’ll give it a test drive and report back. Come to think of it, the scolds in Massachusetts were upset at Jake Paul’s stated goal to ‘TicTok-ify sports betting’ with the Betr platform. You know who else is trying to ‘TicTok-ify’ their business model? Pretty much every company on the planet.
