FIFA has announced a partnership with Stats Perform, which means that for the first time live streams of every one of this summer’s 104 World Cup games will appear on sports betting sites. The agreement means that the sports data AI firm will be the tournament’s official betting data and betting streaming rights distributor.
The deal also grants Stats Perform exclusivity over the same type of content for next year’s Women’s World Cup, International Cup, youth World Cups, and Futsal World Cups. Additionally, there are betting rights for thousands of matches every season in FIFA member association competitions.
Opta division will provide operators with stats, live scores, match trackers, and insights
Stats Perform’s RunningBall division will be responsible for collecting in-game data and sending it to sportsbooks for use in trading, modelling, settlement, and in-play safety. The Opta division will provide operators with stats, live scores, match trackers, and insights.
FIFA Chief Business Officer Romy Gai said that the “innovative partnership will create great opportunities to deliver official products for the benefit of the game and its fans.” Some people on social media took a different view:
The reaction on social media suggests that not all fans are comfortable with betting platforms having such a visible role in World Cup coverage.
