SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Valéry Bollier has over eleven years of experience in the iGaming industry. He is a regular speaker at industry conferences and seminars, as well as a contributor to various B2B publications.
Equipped with a passion for Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) and “Big Data”, Bollier is the co-founder and CEO of Oulala.com, a revolutionary fantasy football game which was launched three years ago.
He will be joining a host of star names on the Fantasy Sports panel at Betting on Football 2016, on April 21st at Stamford Bridge.
______________________
Which Football club do you support?
Oulala is Leicester City’s official sponsor this season, so naturally I am actively showing them my full support. LCFC has even hosted a white label version of our game on their own site: http://www.lcfcfantasyfootball.com/en.
One of our investors was fortunate enough to be present at the Leicester vs Norwich game, after which he shared a simple but incredibly privileged moment together with the club owner, the entire management team and a number of the players.
Such an honour is not very common in many of the other Premier League clubs. LCFC’s family oriented culture is thus another reason for our pride in the partnership we hold with them.
How do you judge their season so far?
Haha…Do you even need to ask? Back in October, I recall having discussed Mahrez during a conference, whereby I stated that according to Oulala’s scoring system, Mahrez was the best midfielder in Europe.
I even went on to add that he would be worth £50m should he continue to play as well as he has been, and at the time people only smiled at my claims. Mahrez and the entire team continued to prove their merits and talents since then. I am more than impressed by what Leicester City has managed to accomplish this season so far.
How does your role with Oulala involve you in both Betting and Football?
Since Oulala is a game that is based on skill rather than luck, the term ‘betting’ does not really fit in with what we do. We have worked to develop a scoring system that would allow Oulala to be as close to reality as possible (investing €1m simply for this purpose).
Therefore, it is absolutely crucial that we point out that key difference. Nevertheless, we do believe that DFS is indeed the next big thing to develop in the iGaming sector, and have thus developed a plug and play white label version of our game for sports betting operators.
In our eyes, the term ‘betting’ only applies in relation to our B2B partners, who are currently offering a betting service while we offer an innovative game in turn for their customers.
Why did you want to speak at Betting on Football 2016?
The intention behind this relates to the fact that bofcon is swiftly becoming the major meeting point for both football and iGaming industries alike. Thus, it offers the ideal opportunity to reach out to future partners.
What will you be discussing on your panel session?
The rise of DFS in Europe will most likely be the focal point. Personally, I hope to bring forward a potentially controversial topic; the idea that Big Data may have a negative, detrimental impact on Sports Betting in the near future, as well as the idea that DFS is a highly efficient substitute. I will then follow up with a thorough explanation on that issue.
What are you most excited about ahead of the conference?
Most of the learning process doesn’t occur through speaking but rather through listening and sharing. My hopes are high for such a crucial conference and I expect that I will be learning a lot from the people I will encounter there.
______________________
To learn more about Fantasy Sports ahead of Euro 2016, register for Betting on Football!
The conference is on Thursday 21st April at Stamford Bridge, and tickets are available for just £400 (+VAT). Click on the button below to register today!
