Rush Street Interactive (RSI) has agreed a deal to launch retail and online sports betting in partnership with the Little River Casino Resort in Michigan.
Under the agreement, RSI will become service provider for a new in-casino retail sportsbook at the property, which is operated by the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians with plans in place to open the facility early in the third quarter.
Michigan launched legal retail sports wagering in March, days before the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic disrupted sporting fixtures worldwide.
The deal also covers the launch of a co-branded online sports betting and online casino, as soon as regulations in Michigan allow.
Last month, Michigan’s Gaming Control Board (MGCB) opened the process to accept online gaming supplier licence applications ahead of the state’s igaming roll-out, with this expected to take place in 20201.
“The successful track record of Rush Street Interactive as a provider of in-casino sportsbooks in Pennsylvania, New York and Illinois, was very significant to us when we chose them as our partner,” Little River Casino Resort general manager Andrew Gentile said.
“Rush Street’s ability to provide a road map of how they’ve enabled other land-based casinos to operate market-leading sportsbooks kept us from having to reinvent the wheel.”
RSI president Richard Schwartz added: “Being only a lakeshore away in Chicago, the RSI team views this partnership as an opportunity to help bring a property-wide lift to Little Rivers Casino Resort—from slots to tables to restaurants—thanks to the tremendous and growing popularity of sports wagering.”
The partnership comes after the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) earlier this month approved minimum reopening guidelines for Detroit’s three commercial casinos, which will limit each property to 15% of legal capacity and ban smoking on the gaming floor.