GVC is active in Brazil via its Sportingbet and Betboo brands, and the South American country currently ranks as the London-listed operator's sixth biggest gambling market.
Alexander -speaking after GVC's Q3 results where online revenues climbed 1296 -said: "A lot of people are talking about the size of the US opportunity which obviously also has great potential, but given the huge advantage we have in Brazil, I think the Brazil opportunity is not far behind.”
“It is a market we have been in for a long time and we have built that brand up – Sportingbet and Betboo - since 2008, so we've gota big head start in that market. We are generating a meaningful amount of NGR and the potential of the market is very large. We like Brazil," he added.
The country's government has fast-tracked its sports betting licensing regime, with no cap on the number of licences up for grabs.
GVC CFO, Rob Wood, estimated the operator boasted between 25% and 40% market share in the country, although Alexander did concede that was something of a "finger in the air” figure.
"Stars are big over there for poker, but we don't focus on that side of things. Sports is pretty much a one-horse race" added Alexander.
“Bet365 have done bits and pieces but I don't think they've had much of an impact. William Hill tried once and failed, and they will try again. We’ve been there now for quite some time alongside a couple of smaller local operators but that will definitely change. We can't kid ourselves - others will undoubtedly have it on their roadmaps”, added the GVC Holdings CEO.
"At the same time, we see regulation as a positive for us. It will become more competitive, but our brand is already out there, well-established and has a significant advantage”, says Alexander.
“I’d rather it be regulated because it will be more competitive than us just having a dominant position in an unregulated market. When it regulates, the marketing opportunities will also be greater because at the moment we can only market with free-to-play, so we will be able to do far more real-money marketing", he finished.
Source: EGR Intel
