Costa Media announced that it has recently secured a €550,000 equity investment round from two leading iGaming investors, Growth Box Ventures (GBV) and Dreamworx, which will fund the growth of existing assets and expansion to new markets. The company has shown some early traction in Portugal with websites such as mistercasinoo.pt and oddsdesportivas.pt, and has plans to launch both brands in Brazil, Mexico an Spain in the coming months.
GMB - What is the potential and differential that Mister Cassino e Odds Esportivas will offer to the Brazilian market?
Bernardo Moreira - With Mister Cassino and Odds Esportivas we intend to bring to the Brazilian market the best information about the online casino and betting industry. More than just comparison sites, we will create online gambling and sports betting portals, with guides on the types ofnuses and analyzes that will expose a clearly all the characteristics of each operator and thus help players choose the one that best fits what they are looking for.
How will the relaunch of these sites in Brazil be?
At the moment there are already beta versions of both sites in Brazil, we will games, what games are available for each operator, payment methods, the best odds, updated bolaunch the final versions by the end of April, which will have a lot more features and information.
The goal is to reach as many users as possible and thus help them make the best decisions when betting.
What other projects are part of the company's growth plan for Brazil?
Brazil is a fundamental market for us and that is why we will launch two more platforms this year, one for the casino and the other for sports betting. They will be different from the existing ones and with the objective of expanding our services to Brazilian gamblers.
Do you follow closely the sports betting regulation process in the country? What is your position on the topic?
Yes, in our view it is very important to regularize the market as soon as possible. Only in this way are Brazilian gamblers protected against bad casinos and bookmakers that spoil the experience and easily get confused with the operators who really work to serve the market in the best way.
Not only sports betting houses, we are of the opinion that all games of chance should be regularized because the Brazilian people, as well as the majority in the world, like to bet and deserve to be protected against malicious entities that do not promote safe gambling.
The first impact of sports betting in Brazil was the sponsorship of operators to clubs and entities that manage sport. Do you intend to adopt this practice as a way to publicize the websites' brand?
We do not plan any sponsorship of this kind. Our mission is not to convince people to become gamblers, it is just to help those who already have this intention to inform themselves about the industry and make better choices.
The legalization of sports betting has also raised the issue of integrity in competitions. Is this topic also important for Costa Media? What can you bring new to this debate?
This is not a matter for us, the integrity of sports betting has to be controlled by the competent government and sports entities, as well as operators, who, as in regulated markets, help to detect abnormal volumes in certain sports bets. As affiliates, it is up to us to raise awareness both for operators and players of good practices in the industry and to help those who seek to bet on doing so in the best houses.
Football is the most popular sport in Brazil. Will it be more important than other sports within Costa Media's business plan for the country?
Football is the “King sport” both in Brazil and in Portugal, Spain and in the other markets in which we find ourselves. That said, Costa Media will always give a special focus to football on our platforms, reaching fans and bettors with the best information and odds to promote the best choices.
Do you see similarities between the Brazilian market and Portugal?
Yes, there are some similarities, because culturally bettors are similar, betting mostly on football, for example, but also some differences caused by the size of the population and the average values bet by each player. The fact that the Portuguese market is regularized also differentiates, since licensed operators guarantee an almost always good experience, while in Brazil there are many operators with low quality that can cause problems for bettors.
Does the company plan to arrive in Brazil with offices and employees? What will be the space and the importance of Brazilian professionals within the company?
Costa Media has a remote work policy, having a large number of employees around the world, including, of course, in Brazil. It is crucial to work with Brazilians who transmit local concepts to us and help us to better understand the market and our users. We do not currently have plans to open more offices, but we will undoubtedly expand our Brazilian team, whether in Brazil, Portugal or Malta.
Source: Exclusive GMB
