Betsafe is an international sportsbook popular in the Baltic region. It is headquartered in Malta and is a subsidiary of Betsson, the online gambling giant listed in Sweden.
Betsafe was founded in Norway in 2006 by André Lavold and a group including his brother, Christer Lavold, and Rudi Thomassen and Anders Berntsen.[1] In 2011, Betsafe was acquired by Betsson which saw the acquisition as a way to grow its presence in Northern Europe.[2] [3] At the time, revenue for the 12-month period ending April 2011 was reported to amount to €33.4 million with operating profit of €6.9 million. The deal was worth €32.5 million, half of which was paid in cash and the other half in Betsson shares, corresponding to 4.7x multiple of Betsafe's operating profit.[4]
Victoria Silvstedt was an ambassador for Betsafe filming five different commercials in Mallorca.[5] The partnership was discontinued in 2012.[6]
In 2016, Betsson merged TonyBet and Triobet into Betsafe following their acquisitions to strengthen its position in the Baltic States.[7] [8]
It is a prolific sponsor of sports teams across the Baltics. In Lithuanian basketball, Betsafe was the title sponsor of four teams in the Lietuvos krepšinio lyga, branded Betsafe-LKL, in addition to sponsoring the Lithuanian Basketball Federation.[9] The deal with the league has been extended, most recently for an additional three years in 2022.[10] The Baltic Women's Basketball League is also a recipient of Betsafe sponsorship.[11]
BK Liepāja in the Latvian Basketball League also received a sponsorship from Betsafe in 2017.[12] Felix Stephensen was sponosred by "Team Betsafe" in 2014.[13]