Week 34, 2023

Hello friends! We’re putting away our pool floaties and getting our hoodies out from storage with September’s imminent arrival. Alas.

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Now let’s run things down… ⤵️

📰 Headline news

• Commission-free betting exchange Novig raised $6.4m from investors that include Joe Montana and Y Combinator. (Link)

• NASCAR and nVenue announced a multi-year sports betting and predictive data partnership. (Link)

• BeyondPlay selected as one of TechCrunch’s 2023 Startup Battlefield 200 companies. (Link)

• Exchange-wagering platform Sporttrade secured second operating license in Colorado. (Link)

• Rivalry launched same-game parlay bets for esports such as League of Legends, Counter-Strike, and Dota 2. (Link)

• ShotQuality announced new strategic partnership with Huddle. (Link)

• Future Anthem launched AI-driven personalised Bonus Recommendations to optimise operator bonus spend. (Link)

Are you an industry startup with news to share? Send us your PR for inclusion here.

Are you an iGaming founder or senior executive launching a business in the US?

We know that building a successful start-up is hard and it’s not easy to do it alone, so we’re here to help.

The Challenger Series Summit is a unique networking opportunity to learn from US iGaming founders and entrepreneurs, who will be sharing the hacks, tips, and tricks to achieve high growth.

RSVP to attend the Las Vegas Summit on Oct 8, 2023 before making your way over to G2E!

💬 Ink & airwaves

The best of what we read and listened to last week:

• 🎙️ Ep. 79 of The Betting Startups Podcast featured Jacob Fortinsky, co-founder and CEO of Novig. He discussed the newly announced $6.4m seed round, why he believes a commission-free exchange is the future of sports betting, and his experience in Y Combinator. Listen now (40:11): Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Web

• 📚 Joey Levy, co-founder and CEO of Betr, took to Medium to publish his thoughts on the ESPN/Penn partnership. (Link)

• 📚 A solid breakdown of the numbers behind the recent milestone of post-PASPA wagering handle surpassing $250 billion (!!!). (Link)

Are you reading (or writing) something that you think belongs here? Hit reply and send it to us for inclusion

The dog days of summer are almost over, and the sporting calendar is about to heat up. Subscribe to the Savage Sports newsletter to keep up with it all!👇

🗓️ Industry event calendar

Upcoming events relevant to early-stage companies in the space:

• SBC Summit Barcelona is September 19-21, and it’s shaping up to be the biggest yet. The packed agenda includes First Pitch, which brings together some of the most exciting industry startups to compete for a prize package valued at over €60,000.

  Use code BETTINGSTARTUPSVIP for 50% off your Full Event Pass (€300 discount!) Event Tickets | Apply to First Pitch

• G2E is returning on October 9-12. Join over 25,000 industry professionals and 350+ exhibitors for this all-in-one experience in Las Vegas. Ticket info.

• Registration now open for NEXT Summit New York 2024! The much anticipated iGaming NEXT New York event returns March 6-7, 2024 in a new state-of the-art venue in Manhattans financial district. The summit is focused on connecting startups with investors and operators with suppliers, which makes it THE conference where serious business gets done. Limited tickets available at super early bird rates! Ticket info.

🏈 Are you ready for some football?

The good folks at Inside The Pocket, the free-to-play games aggregator, are running a Pro Football Survivor game for industry stakeholders - and you’re invited to play!

The winner will receive a cash prize of $50,000, and also get the opportunity to donate $50,000 to the charity of their choice. 🤑

Join for free before the Week 1 kickoff!

💼 Great gigs

Top jobs from leading early-stage companies in the space:

• Underdog continues to grow and is looking for a VP Finance to join the team. (Link)

• Kero Sports is on the hunt for Data Science / ML Engineers on its fully distributed team. (Link)

• Prophet Exchange is still hiring business development interns in NJ. A great way to get a foot in the door! (Link)

That’s that for now. Until next week! ✌️