Banking on luck to win some money has always been in existence ever since the concept of money and the understanding of luck had been put in place. From ancient China to Mesopotamia and even in India, the game of dice and any game that depends on probabilities have been in existence for thousands of years.

Today, the concept of betting has trickled down to the world of sports. The passion of the fans and the relentless desire to earn money has converged in creating a massive market for sports betting apps. There have been mixed emotions about betting, and this has resulted in diversifying the legal status across different nations.

The Legal Status of Sports Betting

Depending on where your business is registered the legal statuses might change in accordance with the local laws. The laws are more stringent when it comes to online betting.

In Australia – a country considered to have one of the most lenient legislation when it comes to sports betting – betting on any sport in any part of Australia is legal.

In places like the Philippines and Argentina, betting on certain sports is legal and betting on some is not. In the Philippines, only betting for horse racing is allowed and in Argentina betting on soccer is prohibited.

In places like the United States, a few States have ruled in favor of sports betting by legalizing them. Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island are some of the states that have legalized sports betting.

In countries like India, Brazil, Russia, and Singapore, sports betting in any form is considered completely illegal.

Licensing

A factor that needs to be considered when creating your online sports betting platform is the licensing requirement. Depending on the jurisdiction under which your sports betting business falls, the licensing requirements might be different.

Licensing could also cost you money in addition to time. In some cases, the applicant will have to pay the license fee and the compliance fee for as long as the business runs. There are some countries where the fees have two components, a percentage of your revenue and a fixed annual fee.

The Restrictions on the App

The iOS App store had no problems with betting apps until August 2018. However, the policy changes made recently have created issues in distributing apps that offer anything that even closely resembles betting and gambling.

This policy was stringent to a considerable extent that a good number of apps that had nothing to do with betting also suffered. However, the issue has been fixed and the App Store does not have any restrictions these days.

Google Play Store had banned all the betting apps until 2017 but has relaxed its rules in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Franc. Play Store is expected to expand its relaxation in multiple countries. However, there is a small loophole with respect to the Android ecosystem.

Requirements

Apple App Store has a set of rules that need to be complied with if the app needs to be featured on the platform.

• The app should not be independent but has to be connected with a registered business that has a license to engage in online betting.
• The app should feature a Geo-fence that forbids access to anyone outside the geographical area where the app is licensed.
• The app should be free to download.

While the gambling apps might be free, any app that resembles gambling aids is forbidden and every app is subject to a stringent evaluation before it is listed.

The Android ecosystem also has similar rules but in addition to this, also mandates that an age limit should be set and also bans the use of the Google Play in-app billing.

Features of the Sports Betting Mobile App

Now, that the legal and App Store related aspects have been taken care of, there are a few essential features that every sports betting app should have.

Selecting the sport – Unless your app is just about getting on one game, the app should feature an option to select the sport on which the users would like to bet.

Betting guide – The presence of a betting guide not only help to onboard new users but also helps you retain them and keep them hooked to your application.

Information about the team and players – The records and the performances of a team for a particular player would greatly help in deciding whom to bet on. The more detailed information, the greater the possibility of a user betting on your app.

Match schedules – Some betting enthusiasts are so dextrous that they decide way before the game who or what team to bet on. For this purpose, this schedule of all games should be in place, so users can make informed decisions.

Betting model and categories – There are different types of working models and categories that users can deploy. Your betting application has to give an option to many of these if not all of these models and categories.

Live streaming and in-play betting -These two features enable users to place bets on the fly. As and when the match goes on, the users can place bets on players, scores, and results.

Results and summary – As soon as the betting is over the results need to be published with the final rank and positions. The summary of the match will also ensure that the users are ready for the next round of betting with information about the players and the teams.

Instant payments – After all, this is what the users came for, right? The payments need to be instant and should have the facility to be encashed as fast as possible. Integrating a payment gateway will help expedite the transfers in a really efficient fashion.

Additional Features

While the features talked about can be referred to as must-haves, there can also be additional features that make the experience of your application more interesting.

Push notifications can help remind users about the game starting or about any promotion that is happening.

If the sports betting app is expected to cater to multiple geographies, support for multiple languages can be of great help.

Offline support can help you reach users even if they do not have an internet connection. There can be tips and guides that are available offline at any moment irrespective of an internet connection.

Sports news helps keep the app active. It ensures that the users do not open the app only for betting but even for getting information. After all, any sports betting company would have quite a lot of sports news handy. The app can be used to capitalize on the information that you already possess!

A forum to facilitate communication between the users will help you decide on where to bet next and also take inspiration from phenomenal performers on the app.

A Few Examples of Successful Sports Betting Mobile Applications

William Hill – This brand enjoys a synonymy with success and sports betting. William Hill is concentrated in the United Kingdom and is also available in a couple of states in the United States, Nevada, and New Jersey. The application offers a vast selection of sports, live scoreboards, and a feature to place last minute bets, also known as punting.

Paddy Power – Considered the closest competition to William Hill, this platform lets you watch a game only after placing a bet of £1 – a very low rate compared to an app of this type. This app gives you an option to order a PPLUS card that can be used just like an ATM card to withdraw your winnings.

Thinking about the cost? Read more about it here –  How much does it cost to develop a feature-rich sports betting app?

Creating a Sports Betting App

With so much of licensing required and so many technologies and features to be put in place, creating a perfect betting app could be a hassle. However, using the right company to develop your app will ensure that the time you take to go to the market and the costs are optimized. You can drop in your inquiry if you would like to create a multi-platform sports betting app, and we will take care of all the aspects that are required to make the app a flawless one in its functionality. Inoru is the name you are looking for and we are terribly bad at modesty; our sports betting app developers (coders) are possibly the best.