MINNEAPOLIS, MN / ACCESSWIRE / November 9, 2022 / SharpLink Gaming Ltd. (Nasdaq:SBET) ("SharpLink" or the "Company"), a pioneer of technology-driven sports fan activation and conversion solutions for the U.S. sports betting and iGaming industries, today announced that Dave Abbott, former Managing Director of U.S. Sports Media at Sportradar, has been appointed as SharpLink's new Chief Technology Officer, effectively immediately.
Building on his 20+ years of experience driving transformational innovation and platform growth for leading technology companies, Abbott brings SharpLink deep technical expertise in customer relationship management software, data integration and architecture and productization in the sports technology industry.
Rob Phythian, Co-Founder and CEO of SharpLink, stated, "Given Dave and my long and storied history of collaboration, partnership and teamwork, having worked together in the past to help put both SportsData and Sportradar U.S. on the map, I have first-hand knowledge of and appreciation for his vision, skill and ability to create and monetize bleeding-edge innovations and impactful solutions. A true technology visionary, Dave will be charged with inspiring and growing SharpLink's engineering teams, driving forward our technology roadmap, and advancing our mission to be the provider-of-choice for game-changing technologies for fantasy sports and free-to-play gaming as well as hyper-localization of fan engagement.
Prior to joining SharpLink, Abbott spent more than eight years at Sportradar (Nasdaq:SRAD), serving first as Senior Vice President of Innovation and Technology and rising to Managing Director of U.S. Sports Media, where he focused on the growth and development of the company's media strategy in the United States. Founded in 2001, Swiss-based Sportradar is a sports technology company serving over 1,700 sports federations, media outlets, betting operators and consumer platforms across 120 countries. Sportradar's U.S.-based business traces its start to its 2014 acquisition of SportsData, a provider of sports-related live data and digital content co-founded by Abbott and Phythian in 2010. Following the acquisition, Abbott, Phythian and Tom Masterman, SharpLink's recently named Vice President, Revenue and SportsData alumnus, joined Sportradar to establish and build the Company's U.S. presence.
"The timing is ideal for ‘putting the band back together,'" said Abbott. "The notable success that Rob, Tom and I shared while working together at SportsData and Sportradar is a testament to our corresponding strengths, commitment to results, common core values and similar work ethics. I'm delighted to be reuniting with them and look forward to working closely with SharpLink's highly talented team at this important evolutionary phase of the U.S. sports betting market. I have great confidence that SharpLink will prove to be our biggest success, yet."
A frequent speaker at sports industry conferences and trade events, Abbott has also volunteered over the past several years as a mentor to CEOs of emerging software companies in association with the Minnesota Emerging Software Advisory. He earned his MBA in Finance from the University of St. Thomas - Opus College of Business and a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Minnesota, Institute of Technology.
About SharpLink Gaming Ltd.
Founded in 2019 and based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, SharpLink is a leading online technology company that connects sports fans, leagues and sports websites to relevant and timely sports betting and iGaming content. SharpLink uses proprietary, intelligent, online conversion technology to convert sports fans into sports bettors for licensed, online sportsbook operators. SharpLink's intelligent C4 Sports Betting Conversion technology delivers and determines the best sportsbook betting offers and experience for each identified user. Using sophisticated, behavioral modeling and tracking technologies, and by analyzing user's past and present behaviors, we serve sports fans with personalized betting offers specifically tied to each fan's favorite sports, teams and players. Additionally, SharpLink specializes in helping sports media companies develop strategies, products and innovative solutions to drive deep customer engagement with highly interactive sports games and mobile applications. SharpLink is run by industry veterans with several successful exits in the sports gaming and iGaming sectors. For more information, please visit the SharpLink website at www.sharplink.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Such statements include statements regarding the expected growth in the online betting industry, the Company's ability to grow its business, the potential benefits of the Company's products, services and technologies and other statements that are not historical facts, including statements which may be accompanied by the words "intends," "may," "will," "plans," "expects," "anticipates," "projects," "predicts," "estimates," "aims," "believes," "hopes," "potential" or similar words. Actual results could differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements due to certain factors, including without limitation, the Company's ability to achieve profitable operations, government regulation of online betting, customer acceptance of new products and services, the effects of the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19) and future measures taken by authorities in the countries in which we operate on our operations, the demand for our products and our customers' economic condition, the impact of competitive products and pricing, the lengthy sales cycle, proprietary rights of the Company and its competitors, general economic conditions and other risk factors detailed in the Company's annual report and other filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company does not undertake any responsibility to update the forward-looking statements in this release.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
SHARPLINK INVESTOR RELATIONS:
SharpLink Gaming Ltd.
Dodi Handy, Director of Communications
Phone: 407-960-4636
Email: [email protected]
SHARPLINK MEDIA RELATIONS:
Hot Paper Lantern
Michael Adorno, Vice President, Communications
Phone: 212-931-6143
Email: [email protected]
SOURCE: SharpLink Gaming Ltd.