November 2022

November 7, 2022

The 2022 US midterm elections: What we are watching

As the US goes to the polls for the midterm elections, there are plenty of races that could affect the progress of sports betting regulation and gaming expansion. Paul Girvan picks out the states to watch.

The 2022 US midterm elections, while important in so many ways, contain few issues directly related to gambling regulation.

Rather, they represent an opportunity to extract a thorn that has irritated the body politic and coloured the consideration and adoption of more gaming legislation, whether it be sports betting legislation or casino regulation.

Only in two states does gaming appear directly, or indirectly, on the ballot: California and Georgia.

California

In California, a statewide ballot measures voter approval for constitutional changes, through Propositions 26 and 27.

Polling suggests both the tribal and commercial sports betting ballot measures are doomed to fail.

Prop 26 permits Native American casinos and four..

November 7, 2022

Analysts divided on potential value of FanDuel IPO after court ruling

Analysts are divided on the value that may come from a potential FanDuel IPO, after a court ruling left the hopes of a potential spin-off for the US market leader up in the air.

The reactions come following a New York court ruling that media giant Fox must pay $4.16bn if it wishes to acquire a 18.6% stake in FanDuel, which is owned by Flutter Entertainment

While the court ruling settled the question of the value of the stake that Fox had the option to buy, it left the question of a FanDuel spin-off up in the air until next year. The tribunal will determine early next year the conditions under which Fox may be able to participate in a FanDuel IPO, which Flutter had raised the prospect of before the legal dispute began.

Analysts at Barclays said that this factor was “dampening the enthusiasm” of the main ruling.

“The path to a FanDuel IPO is not yet clear with Fox stating that ‘Flutter cannot pursue an IPO for FanDuel without Fox’s consent or approval from the arbitrator’,” Barclays ..

November 7, 2022

Singapore Pools outlines digital plans as revenue beats pre-pandemic total

State-owned gaming monopoly Singapore Pools’ 2021-22 revenue levels rebounded to 20% above the pre-pandemic total, growing to S$10.1bn ($7.2bn/£6.3bn/€7.2bn) from S$8.4bn for the 2018-19 period, the last pre-Covid data set.

According to the operator, growth in sports betting primarily drove the revenue increases. Singapore Pools added five new South American football leagues to its offering, and the resumption of delayed events – notably 2021’s UEFA Euro 2020 – led to a one-time boost in revenue.

Lottery revenue also rebounded past its pre-pandemic level, but horse race betting remained below trend as a result of the continuance of Covid-19 prevention measures in the betting venues.

The money raised via betting duties and taxes amounted to S$2.1bn, which was a 30% increase from the S$1.6bn raised the previous year, but has not yet significantly increased past the pre-pandemic norm.

The surplus paid to the Tote Board was a record S$464m compared to S$456 in 2019-20 and S$455m in 20..

November 4, 2022

Fanatics hires Brandt Iden as VP of government affairs

Fanatics Betting and Gaming has hired former Michigan legislator Brandt Iden as its new vice-president of government affairs, as the business edges closer to launching its betting product.

Iden was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 2014, until 2020 when he reached the state term limit. During this time he spearheaded the efforts to legalise both sports betting and online casino gaming in the state.

He then joined Sportradar, where he was head of government affairs during a period in which the business went public on the Nasdaq exchange.

Now, he joins Fanatics ahead of the apparel brand’s long-rumoured launch of a sports betting operation.

Read the full story on iGB North America

November 4, 2022

Betr secures market access in Indiana

Betr, the new micro-betting business founded by Simplebet co-founder Joey Levy and social media personality Jake Paul, has secured market access in Indiana via a partnership with the Caesars Southern Indiana land-based casino.

Subject to regulatory approval, the new arrangement, which also includes EBCI Holdings, the gaming entity of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians that operates the casino, will allow Betr to launch real-money micro-betting in the state.

Upon Betr securing the relevant licence, consumers in Indiana will be able to place wagers on a range of in-game plays or events such as the number of strikes thrown in a baseball game or how many touchdowns will be in a football game.

The deal will predominantly be equity-based and forms part of a wider partnership between Betr and EBCI Holdings that could lead to further launches in other states.

“Market access is one of the primary expenses that comes with launching a regulated sports betting business in the US, so we have ..

November 4, 2022

So what went wrong with California sports betting?

iGB Op-Ed: Both Prop 27 and 26 look like they are headed to defeat in next week’s vote; Zak Thomas-Akoo asks what went wrong, and how can the industry learn to better sell itself to the electorate?

With 39.2 million people, California is the most populous state in the union. If it was an independent country, it would have the fifth largest economy on earth. The state is home to the jewel of the global modern economy, Silicon Valley; has one of the most potent network of colleges on the planet and is the site of America’s second city, Los Angeles. But it’s looking like none of that wealth will be flowing into sports betting any time soon, as the state’s duelling sports betting proposals are both likely heading for defeat.

According to polling by the Berkeley Institute of Government Studies (IGS), both ballot initiatives are underwater: The tribe-led Proposition 26, for retail betting only, sees numbers of 31% for and 42% against, while the commercial-led effort – which would permit o..

November 3, 2022

World Series of Politics episode 7: Election preview special

The World Series of Politics returns just in time for the 2022 US midterm elections, with analysis of a number of key races across the US.

Ahead of the elections, Brendan and Brandt take a look across the US, including a final examination of whether there’s any hope of the people of California voting to legalise sports betting.

In Texas, there may be less clarity as the industry may have to consider whether to prioritise betting or casinos, while Brandt is “optimistic” that sports betting legislation could be passed in Georgia once a new legislature is elected.

There’s also a look at Washington DC’s efforts to fix what has been a struggling sports wagering regime, and at efforts to get legal betting up and running in Massachusetts.

The pair look further afield as well, pondering the impact of Lula da Silva defeating Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil’s presidential election while, in the UK, Brandt throws his name into the ring as a prime ministerial candidate, but Brendan has other ideas.
..

November 3, 2022

Taking cover: How to handle bettors’ sensitive data

The popularity of legal sports betting and igaming has quickly spread. But challenges have surfaced in issues related to intellectual property, data protection and security. Russell Karp of DataArt explains how sportsbooks can manage and secure their data to overcome these challenges.

Nowadays, data collection, reporting and protection are as urgent as ever. These issues often intertwine with compliance within and across jurisdictions. With a mound of information to manage, operators must put extra effort into ensuring that bettors’ data is secure both on sportsbook platforms and mobile apps. So how can a sportsbook manage and protect data?

Data Management

Three of the most common data management challenges for sportsbooks include:

The inability to load high volumes of transactional data from gaming machines to legacy systems due to formatting and support issues. Many legacy systems exist in silos and don’t communicate well with other technologies, making it difficult to manage and..

November 3, 2022

Colorado sports betting handle surpasses $450m in September

Player spending on sports betting in Colorado jumped 10.3% year-on-year in September, while the state also reported a month-on-month rise in both handle and revenue.

Monthly handle for September was $450.2m (£403.2m/€461.7m), up from $408.3m in the same month last year and also 55.2% ahead of $290.1m in August this year.

Consumers bet a total of $445.6m online during the month, in addition to $4.6m at retail sportsbook facilities across the state.

Gross gaming revenue reached $51.3m, which was 126.0% up from $22.7m in September 2021, while this total was 98.1% higher than $25.9m in August of this year.

Online wagering revenue was $50.7m, with just $659,647 being attributed to retail wagering activity during the month.

Football was by far the most popular sport to wager on in September, primarily due to the new NFL season beginning at the start of the month, with Colorado players spending a total of $145.7m.

Baseball wagers amounted to $83.2m and college football bets $52.7m, whil..

November 3, 2022

HOFV among latest to secure sports betting approval in Ohio

Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company (HOFV) has become one of the latest operators to secure conditional approval for new online and retail sports betting licences in Ohio.

HOFV will operate in the state through its partnerships with Rush Street Interactive (RSI) and Betr, the new micro-betting business founded by Simplebet co-founder Joey Levy and social media personality Jake Paul.

The HOFV/Betr mobile sportsbook will allow consumers in Ohio to wager on sports online. The app will feature a new micro-betting option, whereby users can bet on a wide range of actions in a live sporting event such as pitches in baseball and shots in soccer.

The new HOFV/RSI retail sportsbook, operating as BetRivers Sportsbook, will open at the Hall of Fame Village’s Fan Engagement Zone in Canton, Ohio.

The Ohio Casino Control Commission approved both licences ahead of the state opening its legal sports wagering market on 1 January 2023.

“The legalisation of sports betting in Ohio, opens up a ..

November 3, 2022

NorthStar Bets scores Ontario partnership with NBA

NorthStar Gaming, operator of the Canada-facing NorthStar Bets brands, has entered into a regional partnership with the National Basketball Association (NBA) in Ontario.

Under the agreement, NorthStar Bets will become an authorised gaming operator of the NBA in the Canadian province.

NBA marks and logos will appear across NorthStar Bets, while users will also benefit from access to real-time NBA data when placing bets.

In addition, NorthStar Bets and the NBA will collaborate on a series of initiatives to help protect the integrity of NBA games.

The deal builds on previously announced partnerships from NorthStar aimed at providing consumers with more pre-game and live in-game betting opportunities across a number of leagues, including the NHL.

“As an authorised gaming operator, NorthStar Gaming will connect our players with official data and stats from the NBA and provide them with an insights-packed user experience,” NorthStar Gaming founding partner and chief executive Michael Mo..

November 3, 2022

Austrac orders SportsBet and Bet365 to conduct money laundering audits

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac) has ordered an audit of both Bet365 and Flutter-owned SportsBet, to determine if the operators have broken money laundering rules.

If SportsBet or Bet365 is found to be non-compliant with the rules, Austrac may then take further action, such as a court-ordered fine.

Austrac, a government body focused on money laundering, noted the action was “the result of an extensive supervisory campaign that assessed entities within the corporate bookmaker sector and follows the recent commencement of an investigation into Entain”.

The auditors will examine compliance with four areas of money laundering laws.

The first is whether the two operators adopted and maintained “an AML/CTF programme that has risk-based systems and controls in place to effectively identify, mitigate and manage money laundering and terrorism financing risks”.

They will next look at whether the operators conducted proper money laundering risk assessments.

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Monthly Archives: November 2022