Laila Mintas’ role swung as swiftly and certainly as a point spread after a key injury when the Supreme Court cleared the way for U.S. states to allow sports betting earlier this year.
As deputy president in charge of Sportradar’s U.S. operations, Mintas went from finding ways for traditional and emerging media entities to use the data in their coverage of sports to focusing on what has been the company’s core business elsewhere in the world — working at the intersection of bookmakers, gaming regulators and sports properties.
Laila Mintas
Deputy President, Sportradar U.S.
Born: Berlin
Education: B.A., law; JD; and Ph.D; Humboldt University of Berlin
“It is an interesting environment, with the major leagues and all the different stakeholders,” said Mintas, who was raised in Berlin and made her way to the U.S. after roles monitoring betting integrity for FIFA and CONCACAF. “I was not only dealing with the day-to-day business at Sportradar, but also became the main person in doing education around betting for different stakeholders — the leagues, but also media companies, regulators, legislators and, of course, all our existing and potential customers such as bookmakers and casino operators.
“I’m now basically leading the efforts of Sportradar to help shape the betting market in a way that makes sense for all the different stakeholders to participate, but also to ensure that integrity and consumer protections are in place. The betting business has again become the main focus of my work.”
— Bill King
Getting to know...
Attribute I look for when hiring: Commitment. And nowadays I’m looking for people with betting expertise.
Misperception of working in sports: People might be surprised to find that there aren’t more women in higher positions.
Proudest professional achievement: Establishing Sportradar’s brand in the U.S. and now helping to shape the future of the betting market here in the U.S.
Woman in sports business I’d like to meet: Lisa Borders from the WNBA. She’s a very inspiring woman.
I wish I’d known at my career’s start: How hard it was for women in the sports industry. Women need to work twice as hard as men to succeed in the sports industry.
Role of sports in social issues: Sport is all about bringing people together. So I think it is very important on many of these issues and it should play a key role.
