Just past the mid-point of the 2024/25 Premier League season, Genius Sports has delivered over 98% in-play market uptime on average per fixture for operators and their customers. This equals as much as five minutes of additional market availability per live event, when compared with alternative feed providers, driving increased live betting turnover. Apply this to a 380 match Premier League season, and you’ll gain approximately 31 and a half extra hours, or 1890 minutes, of in-play uptime.
When we surveyed our clients last year, 62% of traders said market uptime is a primary in-play trading performance measure. Reducing in-play suspension time has been an active Genius Sports priority for a number of years now. On top-tier football, we’re now reducing downtime and delivering more live betting opportunities than ever before, with updates ranging from a unique instant recalculation capability for penalties, to customisable danger state settings, and a high-availability cash out (HACO) feature.
Last season, we recorded:
- 4% extra in-play uptime per La Liga fixture
- 4% extra in-play uptime per J1 League fixture
- 3% extra in-play uptime per Ligue 1 fixture
The art is in the quality of our trading models and sports data powering our sportsbook APIs. Fast live data from the venue and the latest sportsbook modelling techniques, that simulate outcomes to generate accurate probabilities in real-time, is what makes our in-play football service so smart and efficient.
Let the numbers talk
A highlight during the busy festive period, Manchester United secured a last-gasp 2-1 away victory against local rivals Manchester City. It was one of the most bet-on events during that period, and one in which we once again recorded the industry’s highest in-play betting uptime.
Before I explain how our trading models make this possible, it’s important to understand the key danger states that impact uptime most. The most common triggers for operators to suspend in-play markets include VAR reviews (like penalty decisions), goals and the final moments of second-half stoppage time.
In the case of Manchester City vs Manchester United, a Matheus Nunes foul on Amad Diallo led to a VAR review and a further stoppage before the penalty was taken, which led much of the market to suspend. But not at Genius Sports.
Our trading models are engineered to account for the likelihood of a successful attempt from the spot, allowing us to keep markets open for significantly longer. As soon as the penalty was confirmed, we were able to reprice markets, allowing punters to continue to bet at this crucial moment in the game.
When Bruno Fernandes converted, we again instantaneously updated the probabilities and re-opened markets.
Because our football model is powered by reliable, near-zero latency data collected from the stadium, we can reopen markets instantly after a goal is scored with confidence – cutting downtime by more than 30 to 40 seconds when compared with the market.
More uptime. More turnover.
Few things kill the buzz of in-play betting more than delays during the big moments in a game, or suspended markets right as you ready your next in-play bet.
Less suspension times mean a smoother live betting experiences, better retention and ultimately more live betting turnover for the operator. Beyond our models, we go one step further by giving traders total control of their suspension strategy. This is made possible with customisable danger states within the Genius Console. Picture a scenario where you can configure to keep a Match Result market open during a “Dangerous Attack” or “Dangerous Free Kick”, to deliver the best experience for your customers.
In today’s in-play economy, live cash out offers are a key part of the live football experience. Punters expect to be cash out at any moment, with every twist-and-turn. Even when certain markets do suspend, our “High Availability Cash Out” – as the name suggests – allows traders to separate cash out from the trading state, to keep giving customers a live offer throughout the entire live game.
There are up to 48 fixtures per weekend across the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga alone. Imagine the impact for your sportsbook?
The future
Today, we work closely with hundreds of customers each week to set their in-play trading operation up for maximum success. Our live football service has played a crucial role in the growth of in-play betting over the last decade.
This began as singles, expanded to cash-out and now applies to in-play betbuilders, which come with unique challenges of their own (the combination of many interlinked betting markets, each with fast-changing live pricing isn’t straight forwards). We’re also adding pre-built live betbuilders to our MultIbet product, with the same cash-out availability performance as our core in-play service.
This same reliable in-play football product will underpin the expansion of BetVision to football, too.
