By Chevy Devonish
w/ photos by Arian Browne
Sport betting in Guyana yesterday entered a completely different epoch after Guyana Holdings Incorporated announced the launching of its Superbet Sport Betting Brand.
Martin Subero, General Manager of Superbet, revealed that the process they plan to utilize to facilitate the betting is innovative and simple, and that Guyanese will be able to make bets on all major football games, including the European, Japanese as well as African Leagues, all major Grand Slam as well as Open matches in the case of Tennis, all major NBA basketball matches and all major regional matches for cricket.
He stated that though these are the only games being catered for currently, the brand is always considering additional sporting events, both international and local to add to their repertoire.
Subero explained that each game played has three possible outcomes: home win, away win and draw, and that each of these possibilities are accompanied by a particular odd percentage. He further explained that patrons will place bets based on the odds attached to a particular outcome. The amount of money placed on a bet multiplied by the odds of an outcome will determine the payout a patron receives.
He said that bets can be placed up to five minutes before each game begins and that $200 is the minimum amount of money that can be placed on a game. He also mentioned that the largest payout any patron can win on a bet is $3 million, although the rules do allow for patrons to place multiple bets on the same game.
To facilitate its operations, Superbet plans to roll out an extensive chain of retail agents to ensure that players have the convenience of multiple locations, with the option of also enjoying customised gaming centres across Guyana. Currently the brand has three active agents, with locations at the Courtyard Mall on Robb Street, Deals General Store on Broad Street, Double M Sports Bar and Café on East Street and a customized gaming centre at Lot 2 Sandy Babb Street. Current and prospective agents of the Superbet brand stand to benefit from free equipment, as well as installation and technical support, and the brand backs that up with marketing and merchandising activities.
The company will be offering 16-hour customer service and technical support to its customers and agents, while carrying out 24-hour game monitoring support to ensure that results of games are recorded and updated. This, according to Subero, will ensure that customers can collect their winnings 15 minutes after a game ends.
Superbet is composed strictly of local staff and is managed by a Guyanese team. Subero said that 12 persons have already been hired to carry out the brand’s current operations, and that over the next year, an additional 60 persons will be hired. He shared that 96% of the company’s earnings will be reinvested in Guyana’s economy; of which 85% will be paid back to customers in earnings, 7% will be expended on operational costs and 4% will be used to offset payments to retailers for the sale of tickets. He also stated that Superbet plans to honour its moral, civil and societal obligations in Guyana by paying taxes as well as investing in the development of sporting and cultural activities.
Superbet has already been licensed by the Government of Guyana through the Guyana Revenue Authority.
When asked what prompted the company to stake out the Guyanese market, Subero related that although no scientific methodology was used to assess market need for such a service, the love and passion displayed by Guyanese for internationally and regionally played games was overwhelming, and reason enough to make the investment. These observations, he said, were made within the last year.
Superbet is operated by Guyana Holding Inc and is a fully owned subsidiary of its parent company, the Pasha Gaming Group out of Suriname. The company was founded seven years ago and through its sister company Y-SEC IT has recently been able to use locally developed software and expertise allowing it to progress as an independent wholly owned local company.
Superbet is the newest addition to the Group, which has operations in Uganda, Cyprus and Belgium.
