European igaming operator Unibet has claimed that it is now number 3 in the French online betting market, replacing bwin in the top 3 in France behind PMU and Betclic.
Interviewed as part of a feature analysing the rise of online betting in France during the World Cup, Julien Brun, general manager France for Unibet, told iGaming Business the event had “been an all-round success, our mobile and tablet apps have been very successful and we have now become number 3 in the market during the World Cup”.
Hard data on market share for French online betting is not available currently, but with Betclic and PMU leading with approximately 36% and 26% respectively, industry contacts confirmed that bwin’s share had dropped to around 15%, from early-20% not long ago.
They also agreed that Unibet was aggressive, performing and familiar with the market thanks to its activity pre-2010, but were split in assessing the validity of the claim, with some believing its current market share was closer to 10-12%.
All however said bwin had been struggling in France in recent months, and pointed to issues such as its lack of mobile betting apps as one of the reasons for its struggles, although bwin’s issues in the French market were a reflection of wider issues affecting the bwin party group.
bwin party declined to comment when contacted by iGaming Business.
Unibet re-entered the French market in 2012 following its acquisition and rebranding of Eurosportbet. The group pulled out prior to regulation in 2010 but had a strong business in the market thanks to its acquisition of French-speaking operator Mr Bookmaker in 2005.
source : www.igamingbusiness.com
