Casinos, lotteries and racetracks of any size can benefit from IGT’s Sports Betting Academy, as shown by the recent launch for PointsBet in Illinois.

Matteo Carli, IGT

PointsBet, whose new retail sportsbook at Hawthorne Race Course – the closest in-person sports betting destination to downtown Chicago – runs off the IGT PlaySports platform, has praised IGT for its support and availability throughout the training phases.

In an exclusive article for SBC Leaders, we also learned more about the Sports Betting Academy and how it was set up to help customers make best use of their investment in the IGT sportsbook technology. While the academy does support in-person training, challenges associated with the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed it solely online. 

“The ease and flexibility of the PlaySports virtual training tool has proved to be extremely useful in the last six months given the challenges COVID-19 has brought upon IGT and our customers,” explained Matteo Carli, IGT’s SVP Global PlaySports, ETG and Poker. 

“With restricted travel, size limits on gatherings and budget constraints, we’ve seen a dramatic rise in the number of our PlaySports customers utilizing the extensive Sports Betting Academy to train their staff in a safe and convenient way.”

One such high profile customer was PointsBet, who told us that the IGT team was with them every step of the way to ensure that it could support high-volume betting at the Hawthorne Race Course sportsbook, which opened on 25 September.

“The IGT Sports Academy team complemented the online course work with live webinars and Q&A sessions for the trainees which proved very helpful during the training and at the point of go-live of operations,” said Jenn Saragnese, PointsBet Delivery Manager. 

“The IGT Sports Academy team provided outstanding support and availability throughout the pre-training and training phases for the entire PointsBet team.”

She added: “For its retail launch in Illinois, PointsBet enrolled its new hires and trainees in the IGT Sports Academy several weeks in advance of go-live. The courses were organised and segmented well, allowing users to enroll in the correct courses for their job role.”

IGT’s Sports Betting Academy can be accessed from mobile devices, serving as a quick resource for PlaySports questions and troubleshooting at any time. After a sportsbook employee completes the online training, all course material is available as a resource for common questions, technology troubleshooting and a review of past training.

For the full article in SBC Leaders, please click HERE.