The latest articles on DEV Community by vancal (@guesschain). https://dev.to/guesschain https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4025611%2F487fb71d-a2f4-45b8-a2fa-b3782cb2ef07.png https://dev.to/guesschain en vancal Sat, 11 Jul 2026 23:29:17 +0000 https://dev.to/guesschain/how-i-built-a-group-chat-that-handles-betting-pool-billing-24eo https://dev.to/guesschain/how-i-built-a-group-chat-that-handles-betting-pool-billing-24eo <p>I've been the guy running that spreadsheet for three tournaments. After the last one, I decided to just build something that does all of this automatically.</p> <h2> What It Does </h2> <p>BuddyLot is a group chat with game rooms built in. You create a room for a football match, the odds sync automatically from major platforms, your friends place their bets, and game billing tracks every transaction in a shared ledger. No spreadsheets, no chasing payments, no disputes about who bet what.</p> <p>The key difference from a sportsbook: there's no house edge. The money moves between friends, not to a corporation. You set the rules, you run the room — the platform just handles the math.</p> <h2> Tech Stack </h2> <ul> <li>Frontend: Flutter (the app itself runs on <a href="http://www.buddylot.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">www.buddylot.com</a>)</li> <li>SEO site: static HTML + CSS + JS on hello.buddylot.com, served via Cloudflare</li> <li>Voice chat: &lt;100ms latency, built for watch parties</li> </ul> <h2> Current State </h2> <p>Phase 1 is live: group chat, voice channels, and football prediction rooms with real-time odds. Phase 2 (in development) brings blackjack with friends — deal at your own table, play for stakes, auto-settle.</p> <p>It's free forever for communities. If you've ever been the person running a betting pool spreadsheet, you'll understand why I built this.</p> <p><a href="https://hello.buddylot.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">hello.buddylot.com</a></p> <p><em>Originally written for my blog where I also have guides on <a href="https://hello.buddylot.com/blog/how-to-run-a-betting-pool.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">running betting pools</a> and <a href="https://hello.buddylot.com/blog/football-betting-odds-explained.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">explaining football betting odds</a>.</em></p> <p>Tags: #showdev #webdev #flutter #gamedev #startup</p> fintech flutter showdev sideprojects