In an industry where innovation and reliability must align, few sportsbook suppliers have mastered the balance quite like Kambi, writes Lauren Harrison.
Founded in 2010, the industry-leading sportsbook provider has built its reputation on scale, stability and cutting-edge technology. Operating in over 60 gambling jurisdictions, and with recent launches in Brazil, Ontario and Nevada, Kambi shows no signs of slowing down.
To get up to speed on the latest developments, we spoke with Dylan Mitchard, Senior Sales Director at Kambi. Dylan joined the company in January this year, but he’s no stranger to the sportsbook game, having previously held key roles at Huddle, Virtual Sports and Genius Sports Group.
Read on as iGF’s Head of Content, Curtis Roach, and Dylan dive into pertinent topics, including outsourcing versus in-house development, how Odds Feed+ is reshaping the betting experience, and what it takes to gain a competitive advantage in a crowded and increasingly complex marketplace.
Curtis began by asking Dylan:
Nowadays, outsourcing certain parts of operations is an industry standard, but how can operators best determine the optimal level of outsourcing to achieve the perfect balance? And how can they effectively identify which elements to outsource versus those that should be kept in-house?
“Finding the right balance between outsourcing and in-house control ultimately depends on an operator’s overall strategy, geographic focus and the maturity of the markets they are targeting. Costs are another key factor, as building or buying technology such as a high-performance sportsbook is a significant investment.
“Every operator–even Tier One brands–outsources their sportsbook to some extent.
“While we believe that full outsourcing of the sportsbook is the most effective approach for most operators in regulated markets, others may choose to selectively outsource certain components, from the front end to CRM to risk management.
“Most frequently, however, this occurs in the area of pricing, whether through incorporating third-party pricing feeds or integrating an external bet builder product.
“The key is striking a balance by keeping in-house the areas where an operator can leverage internal expertise and most effectively deploy its resources.
“For example, a US operator may feel highly confident in their pricing and risk management on core American sports, but less so on player props, micro-markets or non-US sports. In those cases, outsourcing to a specialist third-party pricing provider can ensure access to deep expertise without diluting the operator’s core strengths.
“Importantly, player demand is increasingly shifting towards the ‘edges’ of the sportsbook offering, across a wider variety of leagues and markets globally.
“This means operators can no longer afford to excel in just a few areas – their pricing and trading need to be of consistently high quality across the board, which makes smart outsourcing a crucial enabler of lasting growth.”
As the needs of sportsbook operators and bettors continue to evolve, what impact will this have on the way odds feeds are delivered and how the customer journey can be enhanced?
“The sportsbook of the future will be complex, shaped by player demand for deeper markets, expansive player props and greater combinability through bet builders. This requires accurate, high-quality pricing across the entire sportsbook, not just the core offering.
“For Kambi, which conducts all its trading in-house, this means further investing in our AI-powered pricing and trading capabilities. Already responsible for more than a third of operator GGR across our network, AI-powered odds have been proven to deliver better pricing accuracy, margin improvement and a broader offering.
“However, the experience cannot be driven by odds alone. A seamless, connected user journey is critical.
“Traditional odds feeds often fail to meet modern expectations: they can be static, overly complex due to multiple integrations and more focused on filling coverage gaps than enabling innovation. This often results in fragmented experiences on outdated infrastructure. While this was acceptable when speed-to-market was the priority, today’s bettors demand much more fluid journeys, whether betting singles or creating bet builders.
“Kambi has addressed this challenge with Odds Feed+, which delivers a premium odds feed underpinned by our €17 billion (£14.68bn) global liquidity pool, access to our full library of traded odds and use of official data sources for ultra-low latency.
“With over one million pre-match and 450,000 live markets annually across more than 100 sports, Odds Feed+ provides both depth and flexibility, allowing operators to meet evolving customer demands and differentiate with confidence.”
To offer the most comprehensive selection of markets, operators often find themselves integrating with multiple data providers, which puts increased demand on business resources. What can operators do to streamline this process?
“Managing multiple, resource-heavy integrations for each sport or feed creates technical debt and distracts operators from focusing on areas that drive true differentiation.
“To simplify, operators should look to streamline through a single, powerful API that provides access to a broad library of sports, leagues and markets.
“This unified integration approach eliminates unnecessary complexity, freeing up development resources to focus on front-end innovation and enhancing the customer journey, rather than being tied down with complex back-end maintenance.
“By consolidating integrations, operators gain flexibility and scalability without the operational burden.”
What does it take to be able to offer your customers the most robust and reliable products? How has Kambi’s experience and business continuity contributed to its ability to offer both product and service, differentiating itself from start-ups and niche market providers?
“Delivering a robust, reliable sportsbook product requires scale, experience and proven stability, which are all areas where Kambi differentiates itself clearly from start-ups and more niche providers.
“As a publicly-listed company operating in more than 60 regulated jurisdictions, Kambi offers partners long-term continuity and trusted regulatory expertise.
“Odds Feed+ is also fully data-agnostic, leveraging a wide range of official data providers to safeguard uptime, mitigate risk and guarantee the security of supply across the sportsbook offering.
“This ensures operators are protected from any potential disruptions in data supply and regulatory changes.
“Our track record and stability give partners confidence: Kambi is not a short-term player or niche acquisition target but a proven, long-term partner with the infrastructure, scale and resources to support growth.
“The strength of our €17 billion global liquidity pool further reinforces the integrity and reliability of our products, protecting both operator margins and reputations.
“With this combination of regulatory expertise, global scale and product resilience, Kambi delivers unmatched reliability, enabling operators to offer a world-class sportsbook experience to their customers.”
Editor’s Note:
Outsourcing is no longer just a sound operational choice – it has become one of the most effective ways for operators to scale and offer a competitive product in an increasingly complex market.
But a key question remains: what areas should be outsourced and trusted to third-party suppliers, and what should remain in-house?
The answer, according to Dylan, depends on the brand.
Still, for most, pricing and odds remain the primary candidate, especially as bettor demands move toward more complex bet types, micro-markets, and a broad spectrum of international sports.
Traditional, static feeds no longer meet these expectations, nor does excelling in just a few areas – this is where Kambi’s Odds Feed+ comes into play.
Offering more than one million low-latency pre-match and 450,000 live markets annually across more than 100 sports–and backed by its €17 billion global liquidity pool–Odds Feed+ provides the scale and reliability operators require to get ahead.
Beyond pricing–which can make or break a sportsbook–Dylan stresses the importance of a seamless, connected user experience.
And by replacing outdated infrastructure with a single API, Kambi also provides operators with a stable, scalable foundation on which to build, innovate and grow with confidence.
