This week’s State of the Union, in partnership with Segev LLP, covers anticipation for legal mobile sports betting in New York, Bally’s Q1 results ahead of its plans to buy Gamesys and sports betting results from Indiana, Iowa and Illinois.
New York Senator eyes legal mobile sports betting by Super Bowl LVI
New York State Senator Joseph Addabbo has set out his aims for the US state to launch a legal sports wagering market by early next year, in time for the 2022 edition of the National Football League’s Super Bowl.
Last week, New York took a step closer to regulated mobile betting after a bill for the state’s FY 2022 budget contained provisions for legal mobile sports betting, revealing a $25m license fee and bidding process for potential licensees.
Addabbo is a staunch supporter of mobile sports wagering in the state and has been lobbying for this to be legalized for a number of years. Consumers in New York are currently limited to land-based betting at four of the state’s casinos.
Bally’s reports Q1 revenue growth as it raises funds for Gamesys acquisition
US operator Bally’s Corporation has announced its revenue exceeded $185m during the first quarter of 2021, as it prepares to acquire UK-based online operator Gamesys.
Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the same period was in excess of $50m, and both figures represent a marked increase on the same period in 2020, when Bally’s reported $109.1 million in revenue and $22.1 million in Adjusted EBITDA.
These increases can be attributed to a relaxation of Covid-19 protocols which were in place for much of 2020, including the final weeks of Q1.
NFL secures 22.5m Genius Sports warrants under new data deal
Genius Sports has issued 22.5 million warrants to the National Football League (NFL) as part of the recently announced license agreement between the two parties.
Earlier this week, Genius announced a multi-year distribution deal that saw it become the official betting data source for the NFL.
Indiana sports betting revenue and handle rebound in March
Indiana’s sports betting market saw handle increase to $316.7m in March, an increase of over $240m, or more than 300%, from March 2020 when casinos were forced to close due to the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, and up 15.6% from last month.
Adjusted gross revenue for the month came in at $26.3m, an increase of $9.3m from February and $20.8m from the previous March. However both figures were short of January’s records.
Overdrive Marketing acquires TheRX.com
Texas-based Overdrive Marketing Inc. has acquired longstanding online sports wagering portal TheRX.com, in a deal worth $2.4m.
In addition to offering marketing, content and SEO services, Overdrive is the operator of OddsTrader.com, a US-focused affiliate portal offering betting odds, price comparisons, statistics, live scores and injury reports.
Iowa sets new sports betting revenue and handle records in March
Sports wagering revenue in Iowa reached a new record of $13.5m in March, while the US state’s handle also hit a new monthly high of $161.4m.
The revenue total represented a 1,025.0% increase on the $1.2m reported in the same month 2020, the month in which the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic shuttered the state’s casinos and saw major leagues suspended.
Illinois sports betting revenue dips for the first time in February
Illinois’s sports betting market experienced its first month-on-month decline in February, with the state’s Gaming Board reporting a fall in both revenue and handle.
Adjusted gross revenue for the month amounted to $35.4m, down 28.3% from the record $49.4m reported in January, and the first decline since the state’s licensees took their first bets in July 2020.
Maryland sports betting bill heads to governor
A bill allowing operators to accept wagers on sporting events, and permitting fantasy sports, will be passed on to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan having passed both houses of the state legislature.
The bill was approved yesterday (April 12) when the state House of Representatives voted 122-16 after Senate amendments were added to the bill.
AZ sports betting bill heads to Governor after tribal compact extended
Arizona has taken a step closer to regulated sports betting after the state secured an extended tribal gaming compact, allowing a bill aiming to legalize wagering to clear the Senate and progress to Governor Doug Ducey.
Introduced by Representative Jeff Weninger in February, House Bill 2772 would allow consumers in Arizona to wager on sports at tribal casinos and sites owned by major league sports teams.
Bill seeks to create Florida Gaming Control Commission
A bill to create a Gaming Control Commission in Florida has been introduced in the Florida State Senate.
Senate Bill 7076 was introduced by Regulated Industries and calls for the creation of the Florida Gaming Control Commission within the Office of the Attorney General, a move that would help to expand the abilities of the Office of Statewide Prosecution to investigate illegal gambling activity.
DraftKings names Angiolet as first chief media officer
Sports betting and daily fantasy sports operator DraftKings has appointed Brian Angiolet to the newly created position of chief media officer.
In his new role, Angiolet will be responsible for overseeing and optimizing the operator’s content creation and media strategy.
Alabama casino and sports betting bill passes Senate
Senate Bill 310, which would legalize sports betting and land-based casino style games within the state of Alabama, has passed through the state’s Senate by a vote of 27-4.
The bill – which will now move to the House – would permit casino games including slot machines, historical horse racing machines, video lottery terminals and table games such as poker, baccarat, roulette and blackjack at one of six locations in the state. These six locations are in the counties of DeKalb, Jackson , Macon, Greene, Houston and Mobile.
DraftKings secures Arizona market access with expanded PGA Tour deal
Sports betting and daily fantasy sports operator DraftKings has expanded its partnership with golf’s PGA Tour to secure market access in Arizona.
Arizona’s Senate this week passed House Bill 2772, which will allow consumers in the state to wager on sports at tribal casinos and sites owned by major league sports teams and professional sports organisations.
theScore reports record handle, but negative net gaming revenue, in H1
Score Media and Gaming (theScore) has reported record handle of CAD$137.4m (USD$109.5m) for the six months ending 28 February 2021, the first half of its financial year, but the operator’s net gaming revenue remained negative.
This handle figure represents a dramatic increase from the $22.6m from the same period last year.
RSI rolls out BetRivers online casino in West Virginia
Betting and igaming operator Rush Street Interactive (RSI) has announced the launch of its BetRivers flagship online casino brand in the state of West Virginia.
BetRivers.com will operate in partnership with Century Casinos’ Mountaineer Park, with RSI having agreed a deal with the casino to launch in the state late last year.
Webis welcomes Rich Roberts as board member
Webis Holdings, owner of the advance-deposit wagering operator Watchandwager.com, has appointed Rich Roberts as an independent non-executive director of the company.
Webis said Roberts has extensive experience in the online sports entertainment industry, having spent time as a director of Sportech PLC, and successfully helped in building sports betting platform FaceOff in the US.
WynnBet pens marketing and affiliate deal with Minute Media
WynnBet, the casino and sports betting app operated by land-based giant Wynn Resorts, has entered a multi-year content marketing and affiliate partnership with Minute Media, publisher of The Players’ Tribune, FanSided and 90mins.
Under the agreement, WynnBet will tap into Minute Media’s network of owned brands, media personalities, athlete influencers and open technology platform to create story-driven content promoting WynnBet.
Bally’s to acquire Tropicana Las Vegas
Land-based gaming operator Bally’s Corporation has announced its acquisition of the Tropicana Las Vegas casino from real estate investment trust Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc (GLPI), giving the operator its first Las Vegas Strip property.
Bally’s will pay $150m for the Tropicana’s non-land assets. It will then lease the underlying land of the Tropicana property for 50 years at an annual price of $10.5m.