SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Aspire Global has seen its pool of sportsbook licences increase to seven, after being granted the necessary approval from the Irish sports betting authority.
The new licence, which is likely to be complemented by an eighth in Sweden in early 2019, will increase Aspire’s share of revenues generated from regulated or soon-to-be regulated markets.
The firm’s other licences are for the UK, Denmark, Belgium, Portugal and Italy, as well as a Maltese licence that permits operation in dot com markets.
Tsachi Maimon, CEO of Aspire Global, commented: “We are excited to add an Irish sports license to our portfolio, expanding the sports vertical to yet another regulated market and enabling our partners to target new audiences through a wider offering.”
He added: “Our consistent focus on regulated markets enables exciting business opportunities, increased competitive advantages and sustainable growth.”
Last month, the Irish government announced a doubling of betting duty to 2% of turnover in its 2019 Budget (with exchange duty increasing by two-thirds to 25%) – effective from 1 January 2019.
However, the implementation of this tax hike has since been thrown into doubt after the Irish Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said that it would be reviewed, after warnings from Irish Bookmakers Association (IBA) that the move would lead to significant job losses.
Outside of Ireland, last month saw an important event for Aspire’s sports solution, as BetRegal became the first dedicated sports operator to switch from a competing platform. The BetRegal sportsbook has migrated from EveryMatrix to an SBTech front-end, run through the Aspire platform.
