What Happened To BetBull? Website & App Closed 3rd July 2022

BetBull, the mobile-first betting app launched back in 2015, have announced they are closing as of 3rd July 2022.  Registrations will stop as of 20th June and no further bets or deposits will be taken from midnight on the 24th June.  Customers can login to the site and request withdrawals up to 3/7/22 and after this date must contact support to request a manual withdrawal (support@betbull.com).

If you do not request a withdrawal BetBull will attempt to pay any funds back to you via the payment method listed on your account.  If that fails they will make an attempt to contact you through the email address you have registered with them.

Any bets that will settle on or before 26th June will be honoured.  Any ante-post bets that will settle after 26th June will be voided and stakes returned.  Should you account be locked or on a cool down period you can still withdraw any funds by contacting support.

BetBull have not announced a date at which they will stop issuing withdrawals but this is expected to be at least 6-12 months.  The company has not gone bust, it is solvent, but has made the decision to close.  Therefore funds are safe and will be returned on request.

The brand was set up to offer something different to existing operators mobile apps.  The self-built system was designed around social gambling with the tagline ‘Never Bet Alone’ and showed some initial success.  While innovative unfortunately the big brands caught up with BetBull offering competitive games and features and they never quite achieved the traction they were looking for.

BetBull ventured into the US market with Wynn in 2018 under one of the first partnerships after US law was changed.  In 2020 Wynn took a controlling share in BetBull and have decided to focus on the US digital market, however as time has gone on Wynn are questioning whether online betting is for them.  It is expected they may sell off the propritary sportsbook and digital assets, but suffice to say from 3rd July BetBull will be no more.

The exit from the UK is also party driven by the Covid pandemic, Brexit and new incoming legislation. Find out more about BetBull and why they closed below.

Who Were BetBull?

BetBull came online in 2015 as a ‘new age’ mobile-first betting brand with the aim of delivering app based gambling.  It was founded by Sadok Kohen, who made his fortune in iGaming to be a self-built mobile optimised sportsbook that would compete with the big branded names in the UK and across Europe.

They originally operated using the BetConstruct third-party provider for sports and casino games and were licensed in the UK under Vivaro Limited (who run in house brand Vbet) as a white label.  Later they moved to their own proprietary platform under their own license trading as Betbull games limited.

The novel idea behind BetBull was to create a social gambling community where you could follow other bettors through leader boards and tips.  You could even become a ‘tipster’ yourself and people could follow you.  This was at a time when many operators were only beginning to realise the power of the mobile gambling markets and many were still focused on desktop websites.

In 2018 BetBull surprised many by becoming one of the first European brands to partner in the US following the repeal of the federal PASPA rules.  They entered into a joint venture with Wynn resorts, famous for their Las Vegas casino, to launch a new interactive division for Wynn to enter into online and mobile betting markets.

Historically US gambling brands have been land-based due to the federal laws that restricted online gambling.  The likes of Wynn knew very well how to run a casino but had little experience in online betting and when laws changed in 2018 big US casino brands started hoovering up UK and European betting companies who had both know how and proprietary software and systems.  This is exactly the case here with BetBull.

Ceasars, for example, bought William Hill for a massive amount of over $3 billion only to then discard the entire UK and European arm and sell it back to 888 Holdings in 2021.  This shows how US companies care little about the static and oversaturated UK market and are simply concerned with getting their hands on the products and processes to allow them to grown online in the US.

By the end of 2020 Wynn had raised its share holding in BetBull to over 70% and launched online betting services in 9 US states.  This side of the business may continue or Wynn may sell off those assets, it is just the BetBull UK and European sites that are closing down for now.

Why Did They Shut Down?

BetBull have no given any specific reasons as to why they have chosen to close their website and mobile app. It is probably no coincidence that it comes weeks before a new white paper is due out in the UK that will further burden existing license holders with further restrictions and responsibilities.

The UK especially has long been the most competitive gambling market in the world, dominated by companies such as Flutter and Entain who generate billions in revenue each year.  While the motives behind BetBull were good it was always going to a tough ask to break into a market with such big players.

Using social betting as a their USP they did enjoy some initial success but as the new brand novelty factor wore off BetBull struggled to attract customers without spending huge amounts on advertising.  Coupled with all of this Brexit, the covid pandemic and the cost of living crisis have all played their part in supressing the market making it more difficult to compete.  At the same time the big brands have caught up to BetBull and now offer their own social gambling experiences.

BetBull were not renowned for having great odds and this was a factor in them struggling to retain customers in the long term.

Finally the move into the US with Wynn opened more lucrative avenues for the the founder Sadok Kohen.  With Wynn increasing their stake in BetBull to 71% and expanding their interactive division in the US priorities have shifted.  Frankly Wynn can make more from one US state at the minute that the whole of the UK and with more restrictive laws on the horizon they have likely made the decision to focus solely on the US.

They are not the first to do this either as many brands with involvement in the expanding US market have pulled out of the UK.  For example, recently Novibet left the UK despite boasting six figures of active customers, emphasising the the power shift towards the US market.

FAQ

Below is a copy of the FAQ from BetBull, which may be useful to you if you are reading this at a time after the website has closed down: