OUR STORY
A Market Institution Is
Established
The Story Behind SharpRank
The Radio Ad
Driving home from the beach in 2019, a radio ad touting an expert making statistically impossible claims about his ability to correctly predict outcomes of sporting events, guaranteeing the listener returns, and using the phrase “risk-free” did not sit well with the SharpRank founders. For the rest of the ride home, they discussed the dissonance between this new industry, sports betting, and their own, financial services.
Although similarly built from an infrastructure standpoint, the differences between the two were staggering. Financial services, like investment banking, required licensing, exams, background checks, compliance, fingerprints, etc. Acting as a sports betting expert, privately or publicly, required none of this - it was the Wild West and a Sheriff was needed.
In order for markets to grow and mature, three key components were necessary: infrastructure, participants, and oversight. The infrastructure and participants were beginning to boom but no one had taken up the post as the independent oversight - the third party ratings agency - that exists in every other market (Morningstar, Moodys, Better Business Bureau, CarFax, Consumer Reports, JD Power, etc.).
This would be an institutional responsibility to the market. SharpRank would do it.
The team set out to build the solution to solve transparency in a traditionally murky market. The founders realized their value to this emerging market was not a nice to have it was a necessity for its evolution.
For the next 8 months they built the team, worked with PHDs in statistics on the ratings algorithms and data science, built the technology from the ground up, and executed the early stages of the business model in addition to their “day jobs”. And in early 2020, in the face of the “do one or the other, or risk failing at both” dilemma, they doubled down on themselves and went full time on SharpRank.
A Ship is safe in the harbor, but that's not what ships are built for.
Interested In Learning More?
Leagues, Teams and Conferences
Leagues, conferences, and teams rely on SharpRank for responsible gaming initiatives and data insights around fans, regions, target demos and the industry at large.
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Media Partners
As the nation's only independent ratings agency we are well positioned to provide data sets and analytics for reporting and broadcast.
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State and Governmental Entities
SharpRank partners with state and local agencies, ensuring accuracy and compliance, continuously testing for validity with a “weights and measures” lens ensuring all citizens have an equitable experience.
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