Bet365 launches horseracing product in France
Stoke-on-Trent based operator adds new vertical to sports betting offering having initially launched in the market in May
Bet365 has announced the rollout of its horseracing product in France, four months after entering the market.
The global operator expanded into the French market in May, launching initially with sports betting but with stated plans to add poker and horseracing to its offerings.
Having acquired the horseracing licence in the same month, the product is now live on the bet365 app and bet365.fr website, via a partnership with FDJ United-owned horseracing operator ZEturf.
Bet365 opted for the partnership route rather than developing its own liquidity as racing in France in run on a pari-mutuel basis, where stakes are pooled and odds are determined by that.
Alex Sefton, bet365 chief marketing officer, described the horseracing launch as “a huge milestone” for bet365.
“Hosting some of the most iconic events in the sport and home to one of the most knowledgeable racing audiences in the world, we’re excited to bring more than 25 years of horseracing expertise to one of world’s most prestigious markets,” he said.
France is one of Europe’s most complex regulated markets, which has led to most global operators remaining on the sidelines.
Online casino is unregulated, state-owned PMU holds the retail monopoly on horseracing, and last year the government raised online sports betting GGR tax from 54.9% to 59.3%, although it left horseracing duty untouched.
Bet365 joins a small band of operators offering horseracing in France, with FDJ United and Betclic the only other global firms in the market.
The French launch comes a week after the operator confirmed it was cutting 340 jobs across its UK, Gibraltar and Malta offices.