Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian is leading a $4 million seed-funding round for the sports betting start-up Wagr. The app aims to reimagine sports betting by combining the two seemingly distinct worlds of social media and gambling.
A history of the app
Wagr was founded in April 2020. It provides sports fans with a platform to place bets alongside their peers in a virtually social setting. One of the company’s main goals is to establish an online gambling site for casual wagers with no prior knowledge or experience of sports betting required.
Ohanian discussed the venture in a recent phone interview: “It’s about productizing what already goes down in everyone’s group chat, which is wagers between friends about sporting outcomes,” he said. “Right now the way these get resolved is through a Cash App payment or a Venmo payment on Monday, and surely we can do better.”
Interested parties so far
Ohanian is investing through his venture capital firm Seven Seven Six. The funding round is also backed by venture capital firms Greycroft and Pear Ventures. Tinder co-founder Justin Mateen and former chairman and chief executive officer of Saks Brad Martin are also investing.
Future plans
Wagr is looking to tap into the increasingly popular casual gambling market made popular by DraftKings and FanDuel.
Co-founder and CEO, Mario Malave, discussed the app’s simplistic approach: “Our app really strips down the betting experience to the bare essentials – we’re launching with point-spread bets only,” he said. “From a user’s perspective, all you have to do is pick a team, decide who you want to bet against, and select how much you want to wager.”
The app will initially offer major sports. Gamblers will be able to place a point spread bet with a friend or family member. The company is expected to launch prop bets and money-line wagers in due time.
