The conversational sportsbook has arrived
Betcris becomes one of the first major operators to embrace conversational betting, launching ChatBet on WhatsApp through the Plannatech platform.


For more than two decades, online sportsbooks have evolved through websites, mobile apps and faster user interfaces. Betcris, however, believes the next evolution won’t be another interface at all. It will be conversation.
That future prospect is now a reality, as Betcris has become one of the first major regulated operators in Latin America to launch a fully conversational sportsbook experience, enabling customers to discover markets, ask questions, receive recommendations and place bets naturally through WhatsApp using text or voice.
Powered by ChatBet and integrated through the Plannatech platform, the launch marks the arrival of what the companies believe is a new category for the industry – the Conversational Sportsbook.
Rather than asking players to learn how a sportsbook works, the sportsbook now understands the player.
Instead of navigating menus, customers simply describe what they want.
Instead of searching hundreds of betting markets, they ask questions.
Instead of switching between multiple apps, the entire experience happens within a conversation.
For an industry built around reducing friction, it represents one of the biggest changes to the customer experience since the arrival of mobile betting.
From navigation to conversation
Across every digital industry, consumer behaviour is changing.
People no longer search for information the way they once did. They ask questions.
Millions of consumers now use conversational AI every day because it understands intent rather than requiring users to navigate menus or learn interfaces.
Betcris believes sports betting is entering the same transition.
Imagine watching Mexico during the World Cup.
Instead of opening a sportsbook, searching through hundreds of markets and manually building a bet, a customer simply opens WhatsApp and types:
“Arma una combinada de 200 pesos para el partido de México con gol de Santi Giménez.”
Or sends a voice note saying:
”¿Qué me recomiendas para el partido de esta noche?”
Within seconds, the sportsbook understands exactly what the customer means, responds naturally in Spanish and presents a personalised betting experience.
No searching, no scrolling, no complicated navigation. Just conversation.
Built for Latin America, not translated for it
Unusually for the sports betting industry, the experience has been designed specifically for Spanish-speaking markets by native Spanish-speaking product specialists, AI engineers and trading experts who understand how customers communicate across Latin America.
The platform recognises regional expressions, football nicknames, abbreviations, slang and natural conversation, even when customers mix Spanish and English within the same message or switch seamlessly between voice and text.
Rather than translating content into Spanish, the experience has been built to think, respond and communicate in the way Latin American customers naturally do.
That localisation extends far beyond language. It reflects how fans discuss football, how they ask for betting recommendations and how they naturally express betting intent during live sporting events.
Why WhatsApp?
In Latin America, WhatsApp is more than a messaging platform. It is where families communicate, businesses sell products, banks support customers and brands build relationships.
It is already one of the region’s primary digital channels, making it the natural place for operators to engage customers.
Rather than asking players to download another app or learn another interface, Betcris is bringing its sportsbook into conversations that customers are already having every day.
The solution has been deployed using Meta-approved capabilities for regulated businesses, providing operators with a compliant framework for conversational engagement.
Changing how customers interact with Betcris
For Betcris, the adoption of conversational technology is not simply another feature in an already feature-rich platform. 
“We’re introducing an entirely new way for customers to interact with our brand,” a spokesperson for Betcris says. 
“WhatsApp is already where millions of people communicate every day, so bringing our sportsbook into that environment creates a faster, simpler and more natural experience.
“Working alongside the ChatBet team has been exceptional. They became an extension of our own throughout the project, helping us shape the experience from onboarding through to launch. Together with Plannatech, the implementation was collaborative, efficient and delivered far faster than many would expect.”
More than a betting channel
The Conversational Sportsbook is designed to become far more than somewhere to place bets.
Players can discover matches, compare statistics, understand betting markets, receive personalised recommendations, ask questions about teams and competitions, explain what kind of bet they are looking for or simply chat about football before deciding whether to wager.
For operators, conversational engagement creates something traditional sportsbook interfaces have never been able to deliver at scale: rich first-party data based on natural customer intent.
Every conversation provides valuable insight into customer preferences, behaviour, interests and language, enabling increasingly personalised experiences while strengthening acquisition, engagement, retention and customer lifetime value.
Innovation should be easy to adopt
Sportsbook platform provider Plannatech is excited not just by the commercial potential offered by the product, but also by how quickly it can be implemented for its partners. 
“The best technology removes complexity rather than creating it,” says a Plannatech spokesperson. 
“This launch demonstrates how quickly operators can introduce genuinely innovative customer experiences when the right technology partners work together. Conversational betting has moved from concept to reality, and we’re proud that Betcris is leading that evolution on the Plannatech platform.”
The beginning of a new category
Josh Swerdlow, Co-Founder & CEO of ChatBet, believes that his team has created an entirely new category of sportsbook by enabling operators to transform messaging platforms such as WhatsApp into intelligent betting and gaming experiences.
“The first generation of online sportsbooks was websites. The second was mobile apps. We believe the third generation will be conversational,” says Swerdlow.
“Consumers already ask ChatGPT everything. Soon they’ll expect exactly the same experience from the brands they trust, including sportsbooks. Instead of browsing menus, they’ll simply describe what they want. Instead of adapting to technology, technology will adapt to them..
“Across Mexico and Latin America because WhatsApp isn’t just another app – it’s where everyday life happens. People already talk about sport there every day. Now, they can discover markets, ask questions and place bets without ever leaving the conversation.”
Swerdlow is confident that the type of conversational interactions now available to Betcris customers will soon become the norm. 
“It’s been a privilege working alongside Betcris and Plannatech to bring the Conversational Sportsbook to market,” he adds. 
“This launch proves conversational sports betting isn’t a concept anymore. It’s live, regulated and scalable. Together with Betcris and Plannatech, we’ve shown that operators can deploy this new customer experience quickly on top of their existing infrastructure.
“We also believe sport is only the beginning. The same conversational interface will naturally extend into casino, lottery, customer support, payments, loyalty and responsible gaming. We don’t see conversational gaming as another feature, we believe it’s the next interface for the entire industry.”
 
Dingnews.com 06/07/2026

 


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