Sportradar has partnered with Baseball Australia and will offer live broadcasts of Australian baseball games, as well as work with teams and players from all levels of baseball in the country.
The sports technology company and the governing body of baseball in Australia signed a multi-year partnership that, in addition to live streaming, will allow Sportradar to power Baseball Australia’s new OTT platform. Sportradar will also distribute betting data and content and will provide other audiovisual services.
The move is designed to engage more baseball fans globally and Baseball Australia hopes to benefit from Sportradar’s vast betting and media network and customer base.
Live Streams of Australian Baseball Games
The Swiss-based sports, media, and betting company will try to engage baseball fans by offering an on-demand live-streaming service of Australian Baseball League (ABL) games. Sportradar already broadcast the first round of ABL games on 10 November.
The eight-team competition produces 160 regular-season games, so baseball fans will get all the baseball action they can handle. ABL matches will initially be available via a web platform, and from the 2023/24 season, Sportradar will build and launch a dedicated ABL app.
Sportradar will serve as the new Official Integrity Partner of the ABL too. The betting and media company will use its Universal Fraud Detection (UFDS) to monitor Australian baseball and detect suspicious activity. Sportradar has offered the UFDS to leagues and competitions for over 15 years and contributed to the delivery of over 600 sanctions and 50 criminal convictions related to match-fixing and similar offences.
A Technology-Driven Partnership
Dave Edwards, Sports Media and Partnerships Director at Sportradar-Oceania, was pleased with the partnership and hoped Sportradar would help them increase their reach and engage fans in Australia and globally. He defined the collaboration as a “technology-driven partnership” that enabled “rights holders” to control the marketing of their assets and learn more about their fans.
Baseball Australia Chief Executive Glenn Williams said that the Sportradar partnership was “a huge boost” for the sport in Australia. Williams was excited that fans would be able to see all Australian baseball content on one platform, “from Little League to the ABL and Team Australia.”
ABL General Manager Paul Gonzalez said the “groundbreaking agreement” provided fans with more than just high-quality streams. It also ensured the integrity of the league and provided an opportunity for the ABL, which now worked with “a global brand” that is no stranger to collaborating with elite sports and athletes.
