Bet365 continues to expand the scope of its ‘Sub On S’ product, the bookmaker’s version of the now widely popular ‘Super Sub’ format introduced in the UK this year.

The Staffordshire-based multinational is launching the product in Italy ahead of the country’s new gambling market coming into effect on 13 November – a market anticipated as highly competitive.

Sub on Play On sees a bet placed on a player, such as a first or anytime goalscorer bet, to be transitioned onto that player’s replacement in the event they are substituted during a match.

The concept was first introduced for UK football markets by Flutter Entertainment’s Paddy Power with ‘Suber Sub’, and was subsequently adapted by Evoke’s William Hill with its ‘Impact Sub’ feature and by bet365.

Bet365 has since extended the concept to horse racing with ‘Position Payout’, which allows customers to bet on which place a horse will finish as opposed to win or each way. Though not a direct adaption of Sub On Play On, the product does have a similar end game in giving bettors more variety.

The company launching Sub On Play On in Italy this week comes ahead of a new market being launched with 46 companies holding 52 licences. Football betting in Italy is a lucrative business, with research from the Italian Football Federation putting the total amount wagered on football at €16.1bn in 2024.

However, various observers, such as those speaking at the SBC Summits in Malta and Lisbon this year, have reflected on Italy as being a market for the big players due to taxation and marketing restrictions.

Bet365, arguably the biggest name in global online betting and gaming, is fortunate to include itself in this category of big hitters. This does not exempt the firm from Italy’s competitiveness though, with the bookmaker going up against the likes of Lottomatica, Flutter Entertainment, SKS365 and Entain, among 37 others.

The firm may be targeting a competitive edge by offering its Sub On Play On product to Italian customers, with football being by far the biggest market in Italy.