With regulated legal sports betting continuing to expand nationwide, the need for accurate and credible data remains high.
To that end, when it comes to betting at baseball sportsbooks, MLB landed a data partner Wednesday.
Three months after securing a similar deal with the National Basketball Association (NBA), sports data giant Sportradar announced “a wide-ranging, multi-year partnership” with MLB.
A global leader in sports data intelligence, Sportradar will “enhance and expand distribution of MLB’s real time game statistics around the globe,” according to a press release.
Sportradar teams with MLB
The agreement, announced a week after the start of spring training, begins with the upcoming 2019 season. That deal includes media and gaming rights internationally and domestically.
As such, according to the release, this partnership “propels MLB content into a new era.” Here’s a statement from MLB Executive Vice President, Gaming & New Business Ventures Kenny Gersh:
“A high-quality, reliable, and fast official data feed is the building block to creating engaging gaming products for MLB fans. Sportradar, a proven industry leader in data distribution, is perfectly positioned to help MLB deliver an exceptional Official MLB betting feed. We are excited about the opportunities that this partnership will unlock as the sports betting landscape continues to unfold in the U.S.”
Sportradar receives exclusive distribution rights for MLB real-time statistics, which are collected at every ballpark through the league’s proprietary technology and stat operators. They are then relayed to media companies and regulated sports betting operators throughout the country.
Additionally, the data giant will have exclusive rights to the distribution of live industry standard audio-visual game feeds to operators outside the US where sports betting is legal. As a result, Sportradar, which will also distribute data to media companies, becomes the official supplier of MLB’s real-time betting data feed.
MLB deal gains ‘competitive edge’
MLB long opposed state-sanctioned sports betting and fell short in its quest for integrity fees throughout 2018. As with most leagues, the focus now turns to so-called official data as a method of profit.
Combining its official stats with the Sportradar’s “world-class technology,” MLB, according to the release, “will deliver a significant competitive edge to sportsbooks when it comes to in-game betting and liability management.”
To boot, Sportradar will collaborate with the league to develop new products in order to further engage fans and increase interest in the sport.
The MLB will incorporate Sportradar’s integrity services into the league’s existing protection measures. In return, the company will monitor and analyze every MLB game via its fraud detection system.
“We are truly excited to be working with Major League Baseball as its official global data partner,” Sportradar CEO Carsten Koerl said in a statement. “This is not only a tremendous opportunity for Sportradar, but ultimately it opens up new doors for MLB fans who have historically shown a proclivity for sophisticated data. We look forward to utilizing our vast global experience as the global leader in the data, AV, and integrity spaces to give fans and partners an unmatched experience.”
Sportradar adds MLB to portfolio
Since the repeal of PASPA and the rise of state-sanctioned sports betting, the data giant has certainly been busy.
Last summer, the company gained new investors to push its value to $2.4 billion. Sportradar already stood as the official data partner of five professional associations:
- NBA
- NFL
- NHL
- NASCAR
- FIFA
Just a few weeks after its NBA deal, NASCAR came calling, naming Sportradar its integrity partner. This came two years after the NHL brought on the company to monitor sports betting and game integrity.
