KTO has been active in Brazil since 2019, when it initially launched in a single state. Prolific expansion and various regional and national sports sponsorships have helped it gain a foothold in the market.

“I believe anyone should aim to have at least 10% market share in Brazil long term, and we aim to be a market leader,” Bardun explains. “To be considered amongst the top brands, I think you need to have at least 10%.

“We know we’re probably far off that at the moment, but if you consider pound for pound what we have done in Brazil because we are coming from very humble backgrounds with very small investment into the company and to be able to compete with the big boys, we are very confident that we can achieve this.”

KTO filed its betting licence in July, within the initial 90-day window of preference which closes tonight (20 August). Meaning it will be among the first licences approved and launched by the 1 January 2025 launch date.

Brazil is set to be a hugely competitive market, with giants such as Betano, Bet365 and Flutter’s Betfair joining KTO in the list of companies that have applied for a betting licence.

A March International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) study estimated sports betting turnover could reach $34bn (£26.8bn/€31.1bn) by 2028, with onshore gross win potentially standing at $2.8bn.

KTO exits Peru and Chile to focus on Brazil

ENV Media published a survey on brand recognition and market share among betting brands in Brazil in July, placing KTO as the third most well-known and trusted brand for 9.1% of its surveyed readers.

ENV analysed operators’ social media followings, website traffic and keyword prominence on Google to determine its results. The data did not take into account actual account users and active players across the brands surveyed.

KTO fell only slightly behind Betfair (9.5%) and Betano (9.4%) in the survey.

To reaffirm it is focusing all efforts on Brazil ahead of its licensed betting launch, KTO pulled out of both Chile and Peru earlier this year, although Bardun said he could reconsider launching a regionally licensed product in Peru in 2025.

Bardun believes the headway the company has made in Brazil already stands KTO in good stead to progress, particularly on the recent growth of online casino.

“[Igaming] is growing and I think it will continue growing because the Brazilian market is still in its infancy at the moment,” Bardun says.

“It’s still learning about betting and we can see the the growth of online casino over the last two years. Betting now is turning more to casino, so I think there’s a lot more room to grow and mature.”

Hard work pays off in Brazil

Bardun believes the company’s humble origins and clear localisation strategy mean it is well-placed to gain market share.

“The one thing I am most proud of is that we are out working everyone,” Bardun says of the group’s determination.

“It’s about outworking everyone, because if you can’t outspend, you have to outsmart and outwork. And I think that’s what we have managed to do so far.”

Delays to regulation could hinder larger operators?

Brazil’s journey to a legal market certainly hasn’t been straightforward, and the final regulations were published within just three weeks of the 20 August deadline for prioritised applications.

In Bardun’s view, the 90-day window wasn’t long enough and instead should’ve been “at least 180 days” and preferably six months.

Earlier this year, over 130 companies expressed interest in the market, though with hours to go until the deadline, it looks unlikely to reach that figure. Latest government data showed less than 100 applications had been submitted at the time of writing.

“There’s a huge laundry list of things that needs to be done before 1 January,” Bardun declares. “And we are lucky because we are only operating in Brazil at the moment so we can put all our resources into this, but I can imagine the complications there for big organisations that have massive road maps planned ahead.”