SG launches sports betting in Turkey
Scientific Games has announced that its Şans Girişim joint venture with Turkish conglomerate Demirören Group has launched its sports betting program in the country.
The company’s retail and online sports betting solution is now live in the country, with Scientific Games launching 5,000 WAVE retail betting terminals and six virtual live betting sites licensed to provide interactive sports betting.
Both solutions are traded by Scientific Games through its OpenSport managed trading services.
“The excitement surrounding our joint venture's win of the 10-year sports betting concession in Turkey, followed by a successful launch on schedule is everything we have been working toward the last several years,” Barry Cottle, Scientific Games chief executive, said.
“Leveraging the unique combined strength of our Lottery and Digital teams, we have developed a market-leading, fully-integrated sports betting solution, and we are honored to be selected by Şans Dijital and the Government of Turkey to maximise profits through our sports betting program in one of the world's largest markets.”
Sinan Oktay, a board member of Şans Dijital, which is a part of the Demirören Group, added: “We are celebrating the national launch of our retail and interactive sports betting program in Turkey.
“Our teams have collaborated very well on this important project. We value Scientific Games' commitment to maximising returns to the Turkish government, and we look forward to our long-term partnership with one of the world's best gaming entertainment companies.”
The joint venture signed a 10-year agreement in March to deliver sports betting in Turkey, beating competition from Intralot and TurkCell's Inteltek joint venture. It will receive a 0.2% share of all sports wagering revenue.
Following the announcement of the joint venture winning the contract, Demirören chairman Yildirim Demirören stepped down from his role as chairman of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) in order to avoid a potential conflict of interest.