Interview with Max Wright, Chief Commercial Officer of IMG Arena

Introduction

• Interviewer: Megan from Gambling Insider
• Interviewee: Max Wright, Chief Commercial Officer of IMG Arena

Golf Betting and Visual Insights

• Importance: Visual insights are crucial in golf betting.
  • Complexity of golf: 70 golfers, different holes, 7-8 km of real estate.
  • Not like basketball or football where a single camera can show all action.
• Solution: Needed to communicate real-time golf action to consumers.
  • Use of shot Tracer/shot view from golf broadcasts.
  • Development of Golf Event Center with immersive visualization.
  • Metadata mapping of every hole, replicating individual trees, player positions, shot information.
  • Intuitive betting UI with contextual markets.
• Challenge: Bridging the gap between first and second screen experiences.
  • Golf Event Center as a potential first-screen experience.
  • User-friendly interface allowing toggle, zoom, and 360-degree views.

Use of AI in Golf Betting

• Current Use: Enhance manual tasks.
  • Example: AI commentary tool providing real-time, qualitative shot analysis.
  • Compiling data and historical context (e.g., Rory McIlroy's shot stats).
  • AI adds human-like narration to raw data, providing a cohesive user experience.

Leap Gaming Acquisition

• History: Commercial strategic partnership with Leap for 5 years, acquired Leap a year ago.
• Integration: Leap is vital part of IMG's business.
  • Distribution of Leap's portfolio to IMG customers.
• Examples: Euro league Legends product—vintage sports product with betting components.
  • Use of historical broadcast footage to create engaging betting experiences.
  • Official tie-up with rights holders enhances product value (e.g., 2.5x turnover increase).

Event Centers and Hubs

• Development: Mixture of sports suitability and customer demand.
  • Aim to elevate second screen experiences to first screen levels.
  • Integration of player and ball tracking, computer vision solutions.
• Examples: Successfully implemented in golf and UFC, new launch with MLS in North America.
• Broadcast Surrogates: Providing event experiences where no live broadcast is available.

Women’s Sports and Monetization

• Leadership: IMG as world leaders in distributing women’s sports content in betting sector.
  • Collaboration with 34 federations.
• Approach: Treat women’s sports equally to men’s sports.
  • Always include women’s competitions in licensing deals (e.g., PGA Tour and LPGA).
  • Example: Deals with APL and Football Australia include both men’s and women’s competitions.
• Revenue Distribution: Generates revenue for rights holders, benefiting both men's and women’s competitions.

Conclusion

• No additional remarks.