Costa Rica
Continues to be the Mecca for Online
Sportsbooks
Eyeongambling (eog.com)
Only five weeks have gone by since my last
visit to Costa Rica in early June. Already,
many of the elite online sportsbooks are
working feverishly to get ready for the
upcoming Football season.
One observation that has become quite
obvious is the fact the not one but two
bookmakers have emerged as the leaders of
the Internet gambling industry.
The first sportsbook worthy of being given
such accolades has been around seemingly
forever. CRIS/BOOKMAKER.com have flourished
in the post UIGEA environment whereas the
majority of others in Costa Rica and
worldwide have struggled mightily.
One of the secrets to their success is
Cris's main guy. He surrounds himself with
intelligent people. In fact, the man who
makes many of the decisions, namely Mickey,
is no stranger to the industry. And ever
since Cris scooped Mickey away from another
enterprise he was affiliated with eight
years or so ago, Cris's business has
thrived.
This time, I was fortunate to catch Mickey
in his office on an early Saturday morning.
We chatted about the future and their
vision. What struck me the most about our
discussion was his passion and desire to
stay on top. He spoke about Cris's need to
offer a betting exchange, yet he realized
the dangers of releasing it too soon. We
talked about the competition and then he
offered me a ride back to my hotel at The
Marriott.
Here was a top dog who could easily have
called a taxi for me, yet he not only drove
me back to my Hotel, but we both went in to
order some more coffee (ok, I had to have a
muffin, too).
One last topic of conversation was about the
Line Service they are affiliated with,
namely Don Best. Mickey candidly admitted
that at one time, some of the competition
may have been faster with injury reports but
no longer. They are clearly one giant step
ahead of their nearest rival, and virtually
every office I visited, had a Don Best
screen assigned to many clerks.
Like always, both the main guy and Mickey
were gracious hosts and deserve to be
recognized for all of their accomplishments,
especially in this current environment.
The number two sports book will be discussed
tomorrow.
To discuss this and other sports or gambling
related topic please join us on our popular
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