While weekends and major competitions continue to dominate sportsbook activity, the quieter periods between fixtures present a persistent challenge for operators looking to maintain engagement and maximise revenue.
Yet, according to Niccolo Cassettari, Chief Business Development Officer at Logifuture, the industry’s understanding of these periods has traditionally been too narrow.
Speaking to SBC News, Cassettari explains how the company’s Zoom Sports product is challenging the perception of off-peak betting, why virtual sports are becoming an increasingly important component of sportsbook strategies and how player data is shaping the next stage of its development.
The hidden cost of sportsbook downtime
For many operators, the summer break between major football seasons represents the most obvious example of an off-peak period. However, Cassettari believes this overlooks the considerable gaps in betting opportunities throughout a typical week.
“There is a perception of an off-peak period that is mainly when the leagues are finishing during the summer break, but that perception is wrong because off-peak periods are always there,” he explained.
“You have them during the week. Apart from the weekend, that’s all off-peak. You have all the mornings during the week and people who want to play after midnight who don’t have catchy content to bet on.”
It is this challenge that Zoom Sports was developed to address.
Described by Cassettari as Logifuture’s most successful product, Zoom Sports recreates recognisable football, tennis and basketball competitions through a fully random number generator (RNG)-based virtual sports feed.
Operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the product aims to provide familiar betting experiences regardless of the availability of real-world sporting events.
“We bring the content users like over the weekend and run it 24/7, so off-peak periods are always filled with content users love,” Cassettari explained.
From supplementary product to revenue driver
Although virtual sports have historically been positioned as supplementary sportsbook content, Logifuture’s performance figures suggest their commercial contribution can extend considerably further.
According to Cassettari, Zoom Sports has contributed to sportsbook turnover growth of between 20% and 30% across its operator clients.
Meanwhile, approximately three in every 10 sportsbook users engage with the product, highlighting its ability to attract an audience beyond occasional virtual sports bettors.
Perhaps more significantly, Logifuture has identified a substantial difference in revenue generation among customers engaging with both traditional and virtual sports.
Cassettari revealed: “We see an increase of 70% in average revenue per user (ARPU) when a user plays both Zoom and traditional sports, making it a great opportunity for operators to increase engagement and loyalty.
“Zoom generates 30% of sportsbook bets for our clients, offering more than two million Zoom events per year across more than 400 markets today.”
Letting player behaviour dictate development
Despite offering more than two million annual events, Logifuture is not pursuing expansion through volume alone.
Instead, Cassettari emphasised that player behaviour remains central to decisions surrounding new sports, betting markets and product development.
“We base all our work on data and study player behaviour at the core of our business,” he explained. “Whatever is trending on the real sportsbook, we recreate and adapt for Zoom to compensate when real sports aren’t happening.”
This approach has resulted in a focus on familiar betting options, including match winners, totals, both teams to score and combination bets, alongside offerings such as bet builders and player props.
Looking ahead, Logifuture intends to expand Zoom Sports into additional sporting categories while placing greater emphasis on localisation and individual operator requirements.
However, Cassettari stressed that expansion must remain commercially justified.
He concluded: “We are increasing market offerings while removing what doesn’t work, prioritising quality over quantity. Rather than polluting the offering with excess events, we focus on delivering what actually works for operators and players.”
