Parimatch’s Dmitry Belianin on marketing strategy & how legalising betting can help sports at grassroots level

Parimatch has made a name for itself as one of the world’s leading betting company which boasts of over 2.6 million users across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Parimatch’s team of champions included stars like Conor McGregor in his prime, the living legend of boxing Mike Tyson and Dale Willem Steyn, one of the greatest bowlers of all time. The Playknox spoke with Parimatch’s  Chief Commercial Officer Dmitry Belianin to know more. 

 

 

Tell us more about yourself.

 

My entire journey has been about iGaming like sports betting and casinos. I am a huge sports fan and love UFC and combat sports. I got into sports betting organisations a long time ago and it is literally the only thing I have done all my life. It is like a combination of marketing and gambling. I run the commercial functions for Parimatch which includes marketing, branding, and generating revenue.

 

Tell us more about yourself.

 

My entire journey has been about iGaming like sports betting and casinos. I am a huge sports fan and love UFC and combat sports. I got into sports betting organisations a long time ago and it is literally the only thing I have done all my life. It is like a combination of marketing and gambling. I run the commercial functions for Parimatch which includes marketing, branding, and generating revenue.

 

What is your take on the controversies surrounding betting organisations globally?

 

The struggle which the betting apps have been facing has been on the table for a long time. The industries which first faced a similar struggle were ‘vice industries’ like alcohol and tobacco. If you are running a mass marketing brand campaign, especially in sports like football ( EPL for example), it is always seen by a mostly underage audience. Even we as kids were targets of these organisations when we used to watch football. Even though the EPL front-of-shirt ban is a little controversial because they still do a lot of stuff that still targets the young audience.

 

It is however a good move towards protecting children and I am a huge fan of this approach as I did not want us to target an inappropriate audience. At some point, this opens a whole new range of opportunities and at the same time, other sports which are not as popular as EPL will benefit from it. EPL is seen worldwide, so now we will divert those marketing funds to other competitions which will be able to benefit out of it. The marketing budgets are not going to disappear. You need to protect your brand and ensure it is visible and protect your voice so we will keep pushing but in the other direction.

 

Please tell us about new associations.

 

We are sponsors of multiple sports brands. We recently partnered with Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas which play in Serie A in Brazil. Botafogo is doing really well and winning some top matches. We are the front of t-shirt sponsors for Botafogo and they are a great example of true spirit, professionalism and success. The deal, which is the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club’s biggest sponsorship contract , is of great importance to us as they have a great history and heritage.

 

 

Our brand logo is very distinctive which with black and yellow colours but we decided to go with our logo in just black as the club’s jersey is of the same colour as we wanted to respect the legacy and heritage of the club. This move was appreciated by football fans and the entire footballing community. 

 

What is the branding and marketing strategy of PariMatch?

 

We are very strategic with our marketing, just like a chess match. By finding the right partner, right TV channel, we need to ensure that our brand finds the right fit. We want to find the right partners across the world who are aligned with our vision and ensure that there is good synergy.  If you look at our brand attributes, we are brave, bold, strong, mature, and entertaining and this is where we need to tie ourselves with the same characteristics in other brands. The other thing is consistency. We are always consistent with our branding because one needs to keep investing and ensure that the brand is seen in the right manner.

 

Any other partnerships you are focusing on?

 

We were the first betting partner of UFC and it was our very first big sponsorship. We also sponsored Conor McGregor and he was our brand ambassador for two years when he was in his prime. Combat sports is one of our strongest verticals. We were one of the first companies to tap into esports. Esports is a very fast-growing industry and might soon start replacing some of the traditional sports in terms of viewership. Esports is one of our focused niches. 

 

We have done a lot of stuff in cricket because the Indian audience is overwhelmingly huge globally. Targeting the Indian audience in the UK, South Africa and other countries worked very well for us. We are not operating in India but targeting Indians outside India because of the Indian law with regard to betting apps. We immediately stopped advertising when the Indian government passed the orders. The cost of exposure on the UK channels is enormously big when compared with Indian channels but we are doing it.

 

Should betting be legalised?

 

I think, yes. It is because you can prohibit it but people will keep doing it. Like in the case of cigarettes and alcohol. Betting industry can create jobs which in turn will help the countries. We have sponsored many football teams in Europe and Africa and those teams through the sponsorship money have improved infrastructure and pumped more money at the grassroots level to promote and nurture young talent. 

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