Latest News
Rivalry Reports 192% Growth in Handle and 60% Growth in Revenue for Q2 2023, Projects Profitability in H1 2024
Rivalry Corp. (the “Company” or “Rivalry”) (TSXV: RVLY) (OTCQX: RVLCF) (FSE: 9VK), an internationally regulated sports betting and media company, today announced its financial results for the three- and six-month periods ended June 30, 2023. Rivalry has also provided revenue guidance that the Company anticipates reaching profitability in the first half of next year. All dollar figures are quoted in Canadian dollars.
“In Q2 we delivered a nearly three-fold increase in handle year-over-year,” said Steven Salz, Co-Founder and CEO of Rivalry. “Increased marketing sophistication and enhancements to our core product have led to operational improvements, increased player wallet share, and a material year-over-year reduction in cost of customer acquisition, positioning us well in the coming quarters. The growing strength in these underlying fundamentals continues to validate Rivalry’s global brand leadership in esports betting, and more broadly, in delivering a world class online gambling experience for the next generation of fans.”
“Our position among young Millennial and Gen Z customers represents one of our greatest competitive advantages, but has also presented unique learnings regarding betting behaviors. Generally we experience higher margin volatility within the sportsbook among this demographic, which impacted revenue this quarter,” Salz added. “That said, challenges like this come with our position at the bleeding edge of a demographic shift in online gambling, and it has also allowed Rivalry to learn more than other operators about what is needed to succeed among this coveted cohort. In the immediate term we have been tuning our operational initiatives to address normalizing margin and seeing early results. And to contextualize the upside potential of this work, at consistent industry average margins Rivalry would have been profitable in Q1 and Q2 this year against the betting handle we generated. With these ongoing adjustments being made based on our learnings, alongside the general benefits scaling handle through growth provides to margin, we expect to reduce volatility, positively impacting bottom-line results, and propelling us to profitability in the first half of next year.”
Second Quarter 2023 Highlights
- Betting handle for the three-month period ended June 30, 2023 was $112.2 million, an increase of $73.8 million or 192% from $38.4 million in Q2 2022, while reducing marketing spend 6% year-over-year.
- Casino has helped offset historical esports seasonality slowdown in Q2, contributing toward revenue diversity and growth, adding $57.5 million in handle during the second quarter.
- Revenue was $8.5 million in Q2 2023, a record result for a second quarter, representing an increase of $3.2 million or 60% from $5.3 million of revenue in Q2 2022.
- Gross profit was $3.8 million in Q2 2023, an increase of $1.8 million or 86% from $2.1 million of gross profit in Q2 2022.
- Net loss was $6.3 million for Q2 2023, a 1% increase from the net loss of $6.2 million in Q2 2022. A select number of low probability esports and sports outcomes, alongside unique behavioral betting habits from Gen Z users, caused increased margin volatility and negatively impacted revenue, which combined with several one-time expenses expanded the Company’s net loss.
- Adjusting for non-recurring items in the Company’s operational expenses over the last four quarters, Rivalry is pleased to note that its operational expenses have remained nearly flat, while simultaneously delivering triple digit year-over-year growth in betting handle every quarter. It is this clear operating leverage trend, combined with concerted efforts to increasingly stabilize margin at scale, that has led the Company to provide its H1/24 profitability guidance.
- The Company has continued to broaden its product offering in recent months, including the launch of its mobile app in Ontario and more recently, an industry-first same-game parlay product for esports, structural sportsbook hold rate and customer experience improvements.
- The Company had $14.0 million of cash and no debt as at June 30, 2023.²
Guidance
- The Company is providing guidance as it projects to reach profitability in the first half of 2024. This projection is based on several factors, including an expectation of consistent year-over-year revenue growth, slower increases in costs due to operating leverage and disciplined management of expenses, and ongoing product innovation that strengthens the Rivalry brand and leads to increased betting activity and lower cost of customer acquisition.
“We are keen to share a number of additional product releases coming in Q3, beginning with Same Game Combos, our own proprietary version of same-game parlays for esports, which we released just last week,” Salz added. “This feature, and others arriving in the third quarter, strengthens our position at the edge of technical and product innovation, and more broadly, our ability to continue delivering a market-leading betting experience catered to young Millennial and Gen Z consumers. We have barely scratched the surface of the feature set on our deep product roadmap, which we are confident will enable us to win this global generational opportunity in betting.”
Latest News
Kambi reveals expanded product suite, becoming the home of premium sports betting solutions
Kambi’s enhanced product portfolio, showcased on its new-look Kambi website, leverages its flagship Turnkey Sportsbook to deliver revenue-driving standalone services such as Odds Feed+
Kambi, the home of premium sports betting solutions, is leveraging the power of its market-leading Turnkey Sportsbook to bring a range of unrivalled, revenue-driving sportsbook products to market.
Expanding beyond its flagship Turnkey Sportsbook, Kambi’s product portfolio now includes its Odds Feed+ service, which provides operators with access to its extensive library of high-quality odds, delivered through a single API integration.
Through Odds Feed+, operators can tailor and continuously adjust their odds package to meet their strategic needs, with Kambi’s odds uniquely benefiting from being born out of the world’s most powerful Turnkey Sportsbook, sharpened by billions of data points from across the globe.
Odds Feed+ is also offered with event resulting and bet settlement as standard and can be further enhanced with additional revenue-driving services such as Offering Compliance and enhanced Trading Tools.
Kambi’s full portfolio of premium sports betting solutions now comprises:
- Turnkey Sportsbook: The world’s leading end-to-end sportsbook solution trusted by more than 40 operators across the globe to deliver growth and regulatory certainty
- Odds Feed+: Create a bespoke package from Kambi’s library of high-quality odds, delivered via a seamless single integration into your existing sportsbook
- Managed Trading: Delivers the full power of Kambi’s trading and risk management capabilities with access to Kambi’s Trading Tools for even greater control
- Bet Builder: An award-winning product with unrivalled combinability across sports with live and cash out functionality enabled
- Esports: Complete package of esports products, including streaming, data, odds feeds and widgets delivered by Kambi’s esports-focused division Abios
- Front End: Flexible, customisable front-end solutions from Kambi’s front end division Shape Games, offering operators the tools to deliver seamless and engaging user experiences
- Sportsbook Platform: The industry’s number one multi-tenant Sportsbook Platform, known for its reliability, scalability and unmatched performance
Kambi’s product portfolio is the latest milestone in the Company’s modularisation strategy and is presented as part of its new-look Kambi website, with Kambi also set to showcase its expanded portfolio at next week’s G2E exhibition.
Werner Becher, CEO of Kambi, said: “Kambi is excited to bring Odds Feed+, along with our expanded suite of premium sports betting solutions, to market. Our portfolio, which benefits from our leading Turnkey Sportsbook, underscores our commitment to elevating partner sportsbooks and expanding our addressable market. We look forward to showcasing our solutions at the upcoming G2E exhibition and further establishing ourselves as the home of premium sports betting solutions.”
Kambi’s expanded portfolio will be exhibited at G2E in Las Vegas, October 7-10 2024, at booth 2230.
Conferences in Europe
The Top Operators, Affiliates, and Affiliate Programs Head to the European Gaming Congress 2024
As the European gaming landscape continues to evolve at breakneck speed, all eyes are on the European Gaming Congress (EGC) 2024—an event that has solidified itself as one of the premier networking and knowledge-sharing platforms in the iGaming and affiliate marketing industries. Hosted in Warsaw this year, the event is set to bring together some of the most influential operators, affiliates, and affiliate program leaders to tackle the pressing challenges and opportunities the industry faces today.
With C-level executives and founders from leading gaming companies across Europe in attendance, the EGC 2024 is a must-attend for anyone looking to stay ahead of market trends, new technologies, and regulatory changes. Let’s take a closer look at some of the top CEOs and Co-Founders who will be joining the conversation, shaping the future of the industry, and driving the narrative at this year’s Congress.
Key Industry Leaders Attending EGC 2024:
Tomasz Szymanski – CEO at Betwinsoft
As the CEO of Betwinsoft, Tomasz Szymanski has positioned his company as a major player in the iGaming solutions space. Known for its advanced betting software and cutting-edge technology, Betwinsoft continues to lead innovations in sports betting and casino games.
Marina Astrautsova – CEO at BGaming
BGaming has quickly become one of the most dynamic and creative content providers in the iGaming world, and Marina Astrautsova is at the helm of this success. As CEO, Marina has overseen the company’s rapid expansion into new markets while maintaining its focus on delivering engaging, high-quality casino games.
Aneta Tylicka – CEO at Bukmacherska/Fuksiarz.pl
As the CEO of Fuksiarz.pl, Aneta Tylicka leads one of Poland’s most successful sportsbooks. Under her leadership, Fuksiarz.pl has seen impressive growth in the competitive Polish market. Aneta’s participation in the Congress is an exciting opportunity for affiliates and operators alike to gain insight into how localized strategies can capture market share and improve user engagement in regulated markets.
Piotr Rogowski – CEO at ETOTO Poland
ETOTO is a leading sports betting platform in Poland, and Piotr Rogowski has been instrumental in shaping its trajectory.
Marcin Doszczeczko – CEO at LVBet
Leading LVBet, one of Europe’s most trusted and recognized betting platforms, Marcin Doszczeczko is no stranger to navigating regulatory changes while ensuring operational excellence. At EGC 2024, Marcin will likely address the importance of adaptability in a rapidly evolving market and how LVBet continues to thrive by combining technology with a customer-first approach.
Adam Lamentowicz – CEO at Polish Gaming Chamber
Representing the broader interests of Poland’s gaming industry, Adam Lamentowicz heads the Polish Gaming Chamber and is a critical voice in regulatory affairs. With his background and influence, Adam’s contributions at the EGC will be vital in understanding how gaming companies can work collaboratively with regulators to foster growth, innovation, and responsible gaming.
Filip Sosnowski – CEO at SB Software
As the driving force behind SB Software, Filip Sosnowski has played a pivotal role in delivering innovative betting and gaming solutions. SB Software has become known for its robust technology, which helps operators streamline their operations and enhance user experiences. Filip’s insights will no doubt cover the intersection of software innovation and business scalability, topics critical for iGaming operators.
Dariusz Łęczyński – CEO at STATSCORE
STATSCORE is renowned for its cutting-edge sports data and analytics solutions, and Dariusz Łęczyński has been leading the charge. His appearance at the EGC will likely revolve around the growing importance of data-driven decision-making in sports betting and gaming.
Marcin Giera – CEO at Totalbet
Totalbet, another dominant player in the Polish betting scene, is led by Marcin Giera, whose expertise spans both operational leadership and regulatory compliance.
Lukasz Seweryniak – Country Manager at SUPERBET Poland
As the Country Manager for SUPERBET Poland, Lukasz Seweryniak plays a pivotal role in steering the company’s success in the Polish market. Superbet is well-known for its innovative customer engagement strategies, and Lukasz will bring valuable insights on balancing growth with regulatory compliance in a fast-paced environment.
Stanisław Szostak – CEO and Founder at Astral Forest
Leading Astral Forest, a data analytics and consulting agency, Stanisław Szostak has deep experience in leveraging data to optimize operations, marketing, and compliance for iGaming operators. His appearance at the EGC promises to shed light on the importance of data governance and how it can shape the future of responsible gaming.
Adam Gontarz – CEO at CrustLab
CrustLab, under Adam Gontarz’s leadership, specializes in building software solutions for iGaming platforms. Adam’s insights on optimizing digital infrastructures and developing scalable iGaming products will be a valuable contribution to discussions on tech innovation in gaming.
Bartek Borkowski – CSO / CEO and Co-Founder at createIT.pl
Bartek Borkowski heads createIT.pl, a tech solutions provider with a strong focus on iGaming. His experience in crafting tailor-made solutions for operators will provide useful insights into the role of technology in shaping customer experiences and improving operational efficiency.
Irakli Davarashvili – CEO & Co-Founder at Promofy
As the Co-Founder of Promofy, a company that specializes in influencer marketing for the gaming sector, Irakli Davarashvili will offer a fresh perspective on how gaming companies can leverage influencer partnerships to boost brand visibility and customer engagement.
Vladimir Malakchi – CEO and Managing Partner at XANADA Investments
Vladimir Malakchi brings a wealth of knowledge in investment and scaling gaming companies. As Managing Partner at XANADA Investments, he has supported various successful ventures, and his insights at the EGC will be valuable for both operators and affiliates looking to scale their businesses effectively.
Alexis Wicén – CEO and Founder at Unibo/Scatters
Alexis Wicén, Founder of Unibo/Scatters, is known for driving innovation in gamification within the iGaming space. Alexis’ thoughts on enhancing player engagement and loyalty through gamification strategies will be highly anticipated at the EGC.
Get Ready for Game-Changing Discussions
The European Gaming Congress 2024 is shaping up to be a game-changing event, where the leading minds of the industry will gather to share insights, strategies, and innovations. This lineup of top CEOs, founders, and industry leaders promises to deliver unparalleled expertise, making EGC the place to be for anyone serious about iGaming and affiliate marketing.
Don’t miss your chance to be part of the conversation—final tickets are available here: EGC 2024 Tickets.
For a full list of attendees and agenda, visit EGC Attendees and Agenda.
Interviews
Bigly – not just another game studio. Find out how this start-up is going to help operators achieve sustainable success
European Gaming talks to Liam Mulvaney, Founder of Bigly.
Bigly is the latest studio to have launched into what is a hugely competitive space. What makes you stand out from the crowd?
You’re absolutely right when you say this is a crowded market. Today, there are more than 750 studios providing in excess of 38,000 games to operators and players. But Bigly is not just another game studio. We will be producing thrilling and entertaining content for our partners and their players, but we are positioned to be much more than just a content provider. We consider ourselves a marketing studio that happens to provide assets in the form of slots. Our unique commercial model means operators can access our games for a reliable and predictable cost, which in turn means they can ramp up marketing activity behind the titles that best meet the preferences of their players AND keep the lion’s share of the revenue each game generates. As costs rise and margins fall, Bigly is exactly what operators need to ensure sustainable success.
Tell us more about your unique commercial model.
So Bigly allows operators to access content for a capped monthly fee instead of the standard commercial model used by other studios where they work to a revenue share format. For the operator, this means if a game performs well, they hand a significant chunk of the revenues generated back to the studio. This ultimately has a knock-on effect as to the games that operators push to players and how they allocate marketing resources – this is why you often see the same slots from the same providers at the top of casino lobbies or used for promotional activity. But with our commercial model, which is sort of hybrid between a revenue share and a fixed cost system, operators have much greater flexibility over the games they give top lobby positions to, and how they market those games to players. Of course, they also know that if the game performs well, they get to keep the majority of the revenues made.
How does Bigly’s commercial model help operators beyond cost savings on content?
Our vision is to provide more opportunities for operators to push their own brand rather than Bigly. A quick example is that Bigly will not brand our games’ loader screens, but operators are free to feature their own logo if they wish. This means more brand presence from the operators. With Bigly, operators and their marketing teams can get super creative with their campaigns knowing the cost of accessing the game (or games) is fixed so the better the game performs, the more money the casino makes. In fact, the bolder the casino is in its marketing activity, the bigger the returns they will likely enjoy.
How do operators access your content?
There are a couple of ways. The first is directly through our remote game server, which is provided by our technical partner, Reelsoft. This is our preferred method of integration as it allows us to foster incredibly strong relationships with our operators while ensuring the smooth and seamless delivery of our content into markets across the world. Operators will also be able to get our games through aggregation platforms although the commercial relationship will be with Bigly – the aggregator will simply be a technical partner in the same way that Reelsoft is. This approach allows us to offer our content – and unique commercial model – to operators in the vast majority of jurisdictions from the get-go.
How does this approach to commercials and your wider business model benefit Bigly?
It gives us a major point of difference from the 100’s of other studios in the market, that’s for sure. And there’s something nice about bringing a product to the market that disrupts the status quo and genuinely revolutionises a major part of the industry. Ultimately, our approach and commercial model mean that we can provide the games and financials that operators are seeking, and, over time, this will see us become a major player in the content provision space. Of course, our approach works both ways – while our games are a predictable cost for our partners, they are a predictable income for Bigly and this really helps when it comes to establishing, growing and future-proofing the business. This can be really tough for new studios given the competitive nature of the market and the need for their games to be played at scale which of course requires top lobby positions and operator marketing activity, both of which are hard to secure for a new developer. It is important to note that the vision of this studio is for this approach to be the lifetime model for Bigly, a new way of selling and consuming content.
Your USP is your commercial model, but what about your games?
Our games are a crucial piece of the puzzle. Our commercials can be super attractive, but if our games are tosh then players just won’t play them. This is why I’ve been tapping into my extensive network to assemble an incredible team of designers, mathematicians, developers, testers and so on, as we will live or die by the quality of our content. The first games of a studio are always tough but we are confident that our slots will hit the mark in terms of quality and playability. Our first slot is Deep Sea Treasure and takes the cascading reels format, with symbols tumbling as players dive into the underwater abyss in search of big wins. I’ll be giving people a sneak peek at the SBC Summit in Lisbon, so flag me down if you want to see it in action.
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