Igaming operator William Hill has recently launched in Colombia, marking the English company’s first steps into the Latin American betting market. The move comes not long after William Hill acquired a majority stake in the Colombian licensed operator Alfabet S.A.S. in December 2020. Together, the two brands launched WilliamHill.co, which will provide an online sports betting platform to Colombian sports bettors.
Alfabet S.A.S is licensed to offer games of chance and sports betting in Colombia by the Colombian gaming authority, known as Coljuegos. William Hill was able to access the Colombian market just a few months after the acquisition by rebranding the consumer-facing sportsbook brand BetAlfa.co. The launch of WilliamHill.co is in line with William Hill’s objective of growth through international expansion, and Colombia is now the company’s ninth regulated market.
Can William Hill Make an Impact in Latin America?
William Hill is looking to expand into new markets, and this move comes after the company has also made steps towards licensing in Argentina in Q1 this year. Latin America is a potentially lucrative market, with Colombia having recently passed the egaming law in 2016 to legalize online betting. There are around 600 million people living in this region, and with many highly passionate sports fans, sports betting could be a big hit.
By partnering with Alfabet, William Hill has ensured that its entry into the Latin American market will be a legal one, and the company will be hoping that success in this country will mean it can expand into other LatAm countries too. Other operators have also recently entered the region, such as Betfair and RushBet. William Hill will be hoping that its reputation and partnership with Alfabet will help the company gain a sizeable market share ahead of the competition.
The CEO of William Hill, Ulrik Bengtsson, said of the move:
“I am thrilled to see WilliamHill.co launched within such a short timeframe. This launch includes the full integration of the Alphabet team into our international business hub in Malta and marks our first entry into a regulated Latin American state.
We are delighted to have the Alfabet team join our international team and excited by the opportunity to deliver a very competitive product and safe player experience under the William Hill brand in Colombia.”
Colombia became the first country in South America to legalize sports betting when it passed the Egaming Act of 2016. Since then, the igaming industry in the country has grown quickly. According to Coljuegos, the country’s gaming industry brought in a revenue of $5.03 billion USD in the first half of 2021. In comparison to the first half of 2020, this constituted a 99.3% year-on-year rise.
August 2021 update: Betsson has entered Columbia as well, you can read about it here.
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