In the rapidly evolving world of ad technology, non-gaming apps publishers are constantly seeking the optimal balance between maximizing revenue and preserving the user experience. To gain insight into this high-stakes environment, we spoke with Branimir, the former Ad Monetisation Lead at SofaScore, a premier live score and sports statistics platform boasting 30 million monthly active users globally.
Branimir, with nearly eight years of ad tech experience on the publisher side, including five years at SofaScore, shares his playbook on daily operations, the power of user-centric testing, and how non-gaming apps are adapting to new, high-yield ad formats.
A regular day for an ad monetization leader is a blend of operational rigor and strategic planning. Branimir’s routine begins with an essential task: checking the previous day’s performance and ensuring the ad stack is functioning flawlessly, a necessity given SofaScore’s bi-weekly app release cycle. This frequent release schedule creates constant risk for bugs in the ad stack, demanding continuous monitoring and close partner collaboration.
Building the entire monetization infrastructure has been a huge highlight for Brainimir. “Highlight for me was definitely forming the team and basically forming the ad stack and setting all open bidding and SDK bidding and all partners,” he notes, emphasizing the excitement of starting from scratch and achieving results.
For years, non-gaming apps like SofaScore prioritized non-invasive ad formats to protect their core user experience. However, the industry is witnessing a shift, driven by the high value advertisers place on impactful inventory.
While traditionally avoided for being “invasive,” Branimir’s experience shows that Interstitial and Rewarded ads are now essential for non-gaming publishers.
The key to successfully implementing these formats, Branimir advises, is relentless testing. Publishers must find the “right spot” where the revenue boost outweighs any negative impact on user experience. He believes the revenue gap between gaming and non-gaming apps in the use of these formats will narrow in the coming years as non-gaming publishers cannot ignore their high value.
Despite the rise of video and full-screen formats, banners are “definitely not dead.” For non-gaming apps with short user sessions like users quickly checking a score banners remain vital. SofaScore heavily relies on the sticky 320×50 bottom banner because it “doesn’t disturb user behaviour” and ensures an impression is generated even during a user’s brief, three-to-four-second session.
An effective monetization strategy must be dynamic. Branimir stresses that there isn’t a general rule for waterfall vs. bidding; it’s entirely about constant experimentation.
“It’s all about not following just one path… you need to have like two or three [strategies]. You need to test like two or three different strategies, because you never know which one is going to work better.“
Even after years of avoiding it, SofaScore saw a positive revenue impact from implementing SDK bidders, underscoring the need for perpetual testing.
When testing new ad formats, the most underrated metric is not eCPM, but the overall user behaviour.
“They should probably keep more eye… on the whole user behaviour. Are they potentially losing users and audience and page views and screen views because of that new ad format?“
A short-term revenue boost is unsustainable if it causes a long-term loss in users. Publishers must monitor engagement rate, bounce rate, and app store reviews to maintain the crucial balance between revenue and audience trust.
During major sporting events, both traffic volume and eCPMs explode. The challenge is balancing scale (filling impressions) versus yield (getting the highest price). The strategy is to follow trends, adjust price floors to capture higher bids, and critically, learn from previous mistakes to optimize for the next surge.
SofaScore leverages a dedicated AI and data analytics team to build predictive models based on user types. This allows them to adjust their monetization strategy including ad types and pricing for different user cohorts, moving beyond a one-size-fits-all approach. AI isn’t just for ads; SofaScore also created an in-app purchase, “AI Predictions,” proving AI can directly enhance user engagement and monetization through features.
While AI is making a significant impact, Branimir does not believe it will replace Ad Operations jobs in the next two to three years, especially for large, global publishers.
“I don’t see that an AI model will be developed that can change the things that guys in ad ops do right now and that’s monitoring all the differentialities between the regions, the traditional differentialities between user behaviour.”
AI will primarily serve as a powerful assistant, automating monitoring and easier tasks, allowing AdOps professionals to focus on higher-level strategic planning, campaign implementation, and developer collaboration. However, those in creative and design might have more to worry about, given how quickly AI can generate ad creatives.
Looking ahead to 2026, Branimir’s ultimate advice is to always test, and focus on audiences.
“Play with audiences and with audience solutions… building audience segments, testing new audience solutions and ID solutions is going to be more and more important in the future.“
The ad tech landscape is moving decisively toward first-party data. Publishers who invest in creating their own DMPs and audience segments will be the ones best prepared, as advertisers will increasingly bid higher for targeted, well-defined audiences, driving a necessary and closer collaboration between publishers, agencies, and advertisers.
