Canada
Twain Sport from inception to launch: what it’s delivering to the Canadian market
Truly unique products are thin on the ground these days but BetGames’ CEO Andreas Koeberl is confident he has a winner on his hands ahead of its launch not the Canadian market. Here, he explains more about the trailblazing product and how it aims to bring the worlds of sports betting and casino closer together.
Twain Sport has caught the attention of many in the industry having gone live with leading brands globally – tell us more about its universal appeal.
It’s a product like no other, essentially. There’s always talk of ‘innovation’ in the industry but I’m not sure the description is always warranted with a lot of similar products. Twain Sport bucks that trend and delivers a brand-new concept that might create its own vertical.
We’ve been able to offer a simple yet engaging proposition globally since evolving Twain Sport to a 24/7 offering, we’re thrilled at how it has performed since launch. But it isn’t the same product we saw on day one either. Beyond the round-the-clock scheduling we now have, we’ve engaged with operators and bettors to build their feedback into subtle tweaks to gameplay and presentation that have given us the more intuitive, mobile-first optimised product we see today.
We haven’t finished with the evolution either. Such an approach proves valuable in consistently strengthening and improving Twain Sport. Coming soon we’re looking at introducing AI-generated commentary in localised languages, allowing us to cater to audiences wherever we operate and scale more effectively. It’s a delight to see it gradually grow and refine.
What was the inspiration behind its development? Did you identify a gap in the market that led to Twain Sport’s creation?
Standard sports betting is so well-established and popular that trying to compete with it wouldn’t have worked. We looked at what was currently popular in the world of social media, gaming and general entertainment, and the trend is toward fast-paced and on-demand.
We wanted to create a product that complimented live sports betting and was easily accessible, presenting the opportunity to enjoy it whenever the mood takes a bettor. Twain Sport’s action-packed nature with immediate rewards and a fantastically high production quality allows us to deliver on that initial goal.
Now we have a fast, fun betting experience that replicates much of what live sport betting offers but is more accessible so that if bettors have 15 minutes to spare between the second and third quarter of a basketball game or can’t wait for the kick-off on the next big soccer match.
So, naturally, they can play a couple of rounds of T-Kick or T-Basket with us. Sixty-second matches every two minutes, 24 hours a day every day allows us to fulfil that promise, keeping bettors engaged, before and after big events – Twain Sport fills the gap and then some.
Speaking of gaps – can Twain Sport achieve the holy grail of cross-selling between major sports and casino-style betting?
Undoubtedly. It offers everything that most casino games do – instant thrills and payouts. BetGames’ roots are in converting sports bettors into casino players. The advantage we have is that Twain Sport bridges that divide without any of the barriers to entry you’ll see with most casino games.
We did our due diligence during early development, looking at the target demographics we’d be putting Twain Sport in front of in each region. The key, is to keep bettors engaged, promoting a reason to cross-sell, and with our stream of on-demand basketball and soccer, we have a unique product that definitely fits the bill. We got it right, and to see that groundwork come to fruition is hugely satisfying.
One of the many reasons that Twain Sport ticks the number of boxes that it does is that it’s a versatile product – bringing sports into the casino world, and attracting sports fans too, moving them away from the lower margins associated with sports betting. It offers operators a lifetime value on par with casino margins, while greatly boosting their customer base.
When will Canadian players see the launch of Twain Sport and how will the market there react?
Now that T-Basket is available 24/7, we’ll be launching very soon indeed and with several operators.
What we’ll be launching with is unlike anything else on the market – Twain Sport offers up 60 seconds of action-packed basketball and football games played by real athletes competing in bespoke one-on-one challenges, every two minutes, throughout the day – so we’re confident it is going to receive the same overwhelmingly positive response it has enjoyed in other regions.
We’re launching into a unique market too – one with incredible potential. We’ve researched our audience and designed Twain Sport to specifically target that 25 – 35-year-old bracket that the average Canadian bettor falls into.
By delivering that demographic the fast-action entertainment it demands, along with our branding options, we can ensure we’re supplying a fantastic tool which helps promote trust and showcases the value and integrity of our brand and product.
SBC’s Canadian Gaming Summit is going to provide the perfect launchpad and the timing couldn’t be better – what do you expect to gain from the event?
Putting Twain Sport and T-Basket in particular front and centre to the very people we need to show it off to is ideal just before we launch in Canada. The market there is buoyant and growing rapidly and with its love of sports and fast-paced entertainment, we couldn’t hope to have an offering more attuned to hit the ground running.
We see Twain Sport as the future, catering to the new generation of players that are looking for instant thrills and payouts. We’re very excited by the prospect of introducing it to another new audience and I’m sure it will be a great show.
BetVictor Canada has launched its new out-of-home advertising campaign across the streets of Toronto to promote NBA legend Tracy McGrady as its Safer Gambling Ambassador.
Two mobile digital trucks strategically targeting high-traffic areas near Scotiabank Arena, Rogers Centre, and major sporting events will provide prime audience exposure for the campaign, scheduled around Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, and Toronto Blue Jays home games.
To further enhance the campaign’s reach, BetVictor Canada has partnered with Clear Media Group to leverage digital taxi tops across Toronto, providing city-wide exposure with 100 taxis displaying key brand messaging. These digital taxi tops will run during peak evening hours (5:00pm – 9:00pm) on select dates until April 5th, 2025.
The campaign coincides with Problem Gambling Awareness Month, a nationwide grassroots campaign held each March that seeks to increase public awareness of problem gambling and promote prevention, treatment, and recovery services.
BetVictor Canada offers an array of tools and services to help its Canadian customers bet and play safely and responsibly, across a host of sports betting markets and online casino games.
Mark Harper, Head of Emerging Markets at BV Group, said: “BetVictor is delighted to be participating in the National Council of Problem Gambling campaign in March, to help increase public awareness of problem gambling and the need to promote prevention, treatment and recovery services.
“In using our Safer Gambling Ambassador, Tracy McGrady, to raise awareness about BetVictor’s safer gambling tools such as loss limits, time alerts and product restrictions we are dedicated to ensuring all players have a safe gambling experience. #PGAM2025.”
Canada
AGCO issues $110,000 in penalties to BetMGM Canada for offering cash to induce new gambling customers
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has served BetMGM Canada Inc. with an Order of Monetary Penalty (OMP) of $110,000 for violations of the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming.
In two separate incidents in 2024, BetMGM engaged marketing companies who offered cash to members of the public in return for opening new BetMGM accounts. The marketing activities occurred in public forums, such as a major national trade conference. Under AGCO’s Standards, operators are responsible for the conduct of their third-party suppliers who are contracted to support the operator’s Ontario gaming business, and must require their third-parties to meet Ontario laws, regulations and standards (Standard 1.19).
Ontario is one of the first jurisdictions in the world to establish and enforce rules that strictly limit high-risk inducement advertising and marketing in the online gambling industry. Registered iGaming operators are prohibited from offering gambling inducements, bonuses and credits as part of their broad public advertising and marketing activities (Standard 2.05). These Standards exist to protect Ontarians from predatory advertising and promotional marketing practices in order to limit the risk of gambling-related harm.
A registered operator served with an OMP by the AGCO has the right to appeal the Registrar’s decision to the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT), which is an adjudicative tribunal independent of the AGCO and part of Tribunals Ontario.
QUOTE
“Responsible gambling safeguards and the protection of Ontarians on registered gaming sites is among our key priorities. The AGCO monitors the activities of all registered operators and their third-party suppliers to ensure they are meeting our high standards and we continue to take strong action to ensure they operate within the public interest.”
Dr. Karin Schnarr, Chief Executive Officer and Registrar – AGCO
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
BetMGM Canada Inc. failed to comply with the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming. Specifically, the licensee failed to comply with the following provisions of the Standards:
- 1.19 Operators are responsible for the actions of third parties with whom they contract for the provision of any aspect of the Operator’s business related to gaming in Ontario and must require the third party to conduct themselves in so far as they carry out activities on behalf of the operator as if they were bound by the same laws, regulations, and standards.
- 2.05 Advertising and marketing materials that communicate gambling inducements, bonuses and credits are prohibited, except on an operator’s gaming site and through direct advertising and marketing, after receiving active player consent.
Contrary to the Standards, BetMGM Canada Inc. and/or their affiliates allegedly engaged in the following activities:
| a) | On or about January 13 and 14, 2024, BetMGM representatives were alleged to have attended the National Franchise Show and were offering $100 in cash to new players for opening a new account and depositing $15. |
| b) | On or about March 11, 2024, BetMGM acknowledged that its marketing affiliate “Above the Street” had engaged in prohibited inducement marketing. The conduct resulted in 377 player sign-ups and $127,180.00 in commissions to “Above the Street”. |
| c) | On or about April 13, 2024, another BetMGM marketing affiliate “Maple Leaf Marketing” engaged in prohibited inducements and marketing to induce on-site activations and acquire new players. The conduct resulted in 94 player sign-ups and about $34,000.00 in commissions paid to “Maple Leaf Marketing”. |
BCLC’s new “What’s played here stays here” campaign is issuing an important reminder to British Columbians who choose to gamble – specifically that all net profit its operations generate stays in B.C. to help fund critical services like education, health care and community programs.
The campaign also reinforces that all other gambling websites operating in B.C. are illegal and take away funds from critical community programs and services.
“Across B.C. and Canada, we’ve seen incredible groundswell around the importance of buying and supporting local, and that’s no different for British Columbians who choose gambling for their entertainment. We want our B.C. players to know they can find a world-class gambling experience in their own backyard, whether it’s at one of our 33 casinos, 3,400 lottery retailers, or online at PlayNow.com, and that the proceeds from their play with BCLC make a positive impact at home in their community,” Pat Davis, President and CEO of BCLC, said.
Along with illegal online gambling websites, BCLC also competes with Washington State and Las Vegas casinos, all of which aggressively market to B.C. residents.
“BCLC continues to raise awareness that these gambling options do not support B.C.’s economy and take away funds from vital provincial and community-based programs and services. In a time when British Columbians are standing united, we want to reinforce that playing together with BCLC helps make B.C. even better,” Pat Davis added.
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