With the sports betting industry’s growth, selecting a provider that aligns with your business needs is essential. You need to weigh multiple factors and make decisions based on strategic research and your business needs. In the article, we offer a comprehensive guide that will help you understand how to choose sportsbook provider. if you are still at the starting point, we recommend reading the article about How to start a sportsbook business.
Understand Your Needs and Goals
First things first, before diving into the selection process, clearly define what you’re looking for in a sportsbook software provider. Consider what types of sports and events you want to offer, which markets you plan to operate in, and the features that are crucial for your platform.
Moreover, researching your competitors and knowing what they offer can also provide valuable insights into what you should aim for. After defining your requirements and analyzing your competitors, you can move on and establish connections with sportsbook software providers that offer the product that you are looking for.
How to choose sportsbook provider – what you should consider
Reputation, experience, and licensing
We all agree that working with an unreliable partner is not in anyone’s interest. So, you must ensure that your chosen sportsbook provider has a good reputation. The questions that you need to answer are how long the provider has been in the industry, the feedback from their clients, how many of them come out with negative experiences, and how many of them are satisfied.
You should also narrow it down and ask whether they are experienced in the market in which you are planning to operate. It means that if you are about to enter the LatAm sports betting market, you need to have a provider that has at least 5-10 operators in LatAm. Taking up a more specific focus might also be helpful; for instance, if you are about to start a sportsbook in Brazil, then partner with a provider who is working with operators who have their platforms launched in Brazil.
This is one of the most important factors to research when choosing a sportsbook software provider. Read the reviews about their company and ask questions to them and their clients. Check out the provider’s partners, ensure that the provider has been present in international iGaming exhibitions, and examine whether the provider has received awards for their performance or the specific products and solutions they are offering. Weigh all of these factors and choose the one provider that is experienced, reliable, and will best fit your business goals.
Moreover, it’s essential to verify if the provider holds a license, as this confirms their legality to offer their products. Without a license, their ability to sustain operations over time is highly questionable. Licensed operators can also offer guidance for you to get a license, or if they are eligible directly provide a sports betting license for your sportsbook. The last case will be very profitable since you won’t have to rack your brains about licensing. But, still , ask a provider which license they offer. Fore more info, you can read the article about the top 5 sports betting licenses.
Types of Sportsbook Software
You should consider multiple factors when choosing the sportsbook software provider. One of the first things that you should look for beyond the provider’s reputation and experience is the types of sportsbook software they offer.
Sportsbook software providers can give you access to the white label sportsbook, turnkey sportsbook, or sportsbook API. If referring to one provider, all of these types come with the same sportsbook software, but the difference is in the platform. White label and turnkey sportsbook solutions give you the whole platform (to see the difference, check out our article about white label sportsbook vs turnkey sportsbook) with sportsbook software, but sportsbook API only provides access to the sportsbook software (What is sportsbook API).
Now, let’s cut to the chase—why are we telling these and why should you consider it? Let’s assume that you already have the iGaming platform but don’t have sportsbook software and want to acquire one. In this case, you need a sportsbook API. Unfortunately, not all providers offer all of these types. Some of them only sell the sportsbook with the whole platform (and charge you more), and that doesn’t fit with your plans.
So, you need to make sure that the provider with a good reputation and experience also has the type of sportsbook solution you are looking for. If you want to learn more about this theme, read our article about the different types of sportsbook software.
Upgaming offers all of these sportsbook types, and on top of that, we also have a crypto sportsbook in our offerings, with a payment system that solely focuses on cryptocurrencies.
Focus on the software – Live events, Pre-match events, Betting Markets
When choosing the sportsbook provider, it’s important to select the one that offers high-quality software with ample live, pre-match events and betting markets. These components are the cornerstones of any sportsbook software. So, let’s delve deeper into these aspects to grasp their significance and how they contribute to a top-notch sportsbook.
The cornerstone of any sportsbook is its live events, which allow users to place bets on ongoing matches. Live betting adds excitement by enabling bets throughout the game.
So, you should choose a sportsbook software provider with a substantial selection of live events. We advise you to compare the sportsbooks of different providers by checking the volume of live events they have. Upgaming’s sportsbook offers over 112 000 live events in its software, thus providing multiple betting options for your users.
Pre-match events are set up before the start of matches or tournaments. Unlike live events, pre-match events give bettors more time to strategize and predict potential outcomes. Moreover, they have more betting options (more possibilities on which you can bet) than live events.
While live events enjoy popularity, pre-match events are equally vital to your sports betting platform’s success. Our sportsbook software includes over 96,000 pre-match events available on an extensive range of matches and tournaments.
The betting markets are another pivotal aspect when choosing an online sportsbook provider. The quality of a sportsbook is not solely determined by the types of markets it offers but also by their quantity. The diversity and volume of betting markets are key factors that influence the overall performance of your sportsbook. Our software features over 5 200 betting markets, covering more than 140 types of sports, ensuring a vast selection of betting options for your players.
Sport types, esports, and virtual sports
When choosing the sportsbook software provider, it’s crucial to explore the variety of sports they offer. Popular sports such as football, tennis, and horse racing are very important, but a comprehensive sportsbook goes beyond these to cater to diverse player preferences and business needs. Given the global accessibility of sports betting websites, your clientele may come from different parts of the world, each with unique tastes ranging from football to cricket and basketball.
Moreover, esports is also a significant sector within sports betting, some even consider it as the future of the industry due to its explosive growth and global appeal. In 2023, the revenue in the esports betting market reached 2.1 billion USD. So, verifying the inclusion of popular esports titles like League of Legends, CS: GO, Starcraft, Call of Duty, and Dota in the provider’s offerings is essential.
Virtual sports are also an integral component of modern sportsbooks. These computer-simulated games replicate real-life sports experiences, offering fast-paced, entertaining gameplay with immediate outcomes. So, keep in mind to ask the provider about virtual sports too.
In summary, when choosing a sportsbook software provider, ensure they offer a wide range of sports, esports, and virtual sports libraries. The rich content will help you meet your audience’s diverse interests and enhance their betting experience.
What features should a sportsbook provider offer?
Sportsbook software providers should also offer advanced features embedded into its software. These features enable you to provide customized, engaging and seamless experience to your clients. They might encompass a variety of tools. But, the most basic and top features that you should ask from the provider are bet builder, live streaming & match tracker, bonus system and sportsbook risk management tools.
- Bet Builder: This feature allows your players to create a single bet incorporating up to 10 betting markets instead of one.
- Live streaming and match tracker – providers must ensure that your players can watch the sports events live. If live streaming is not available on some matches, there should be a match tracker, which can provide a visual about the ongoing events.
- Bonus system – The sportsbook provider should guarantee the bonus system with standard bonus types in it and the ability to create customized bonuses per your wish. This will help you to craft bonuses that might be your competitive advantage in attracting and retaining players.
- Risk management tools – Another critical element of the sportsbook is risk management. You need to make sure that the provider can offer sportsbook risk management and anti-fraud tools that’ll help you to keep your sportsbook safe. These tools ensure the comprehensive monitoring of the system, detect possible threats and give you the predictive fraud analysis. Read more about it in our article about sportsbook risk management.
If you want to read a more detailed explanation and comprehensive information about these and other features, visit our article about the must have features of sportsbook software.
Choose a provider with a team of in-house bookmakers
Bookmakers are experts who analyze and set the coefficients and odds 24/7. They observe the ongoing events, the changes in the match, the weather, players’ conditions, and a lot more to change the odds appropriately.
How exactly do sportsbook software providers get the odds? They either have a team of in-house bookmakers, or they receive it from the odds provider. But here’s the thing: There are several odds providers on the market. And when you receive a sportsbook from a provider that does not have in-house bookmakers, you are getting the standard odds that’ll also be available on other operators’ sportsbooks who purchased it from the same provider. The result—no competitive advantage.
Nonetheless, if you choose the sportsbook provider with in-house bookmakers (like Upgaming), you receive unique odds that are not available on every operator’s sportsbook. Moreover, in-house bookmakers also help in risk management. They ensure that you won’t receive bets on fixed matches, where the results are pre-determined. So, without their support, your business might be more vulnerable to potential risks.
Making the Decision
After considering all of these factors, compare the offerings of different providers. Don’t hesitate to contact them with any questions or for demos of their software. It’s also beneficial to read reviews and seek feedback from current or past clients to gauge their satisfaction levels.
Choosing the right sportsbook software provider is a significant step towards the success of your sports betting business. Take your time, do thorough research, and select a provider that meets your current needs and supports your future growth.
