August 22, 2023

August 22, 2023

CDI closes deal for historical racing specialist Exacta

Horse racing operator Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI) has closed its acquisition of historical horse racing provider Exacta Systems.

The $250m deal allows Churchill Downs to realise significant and immediate synergies, the operator explained.

Its tracks in Virginia, Colonial Downs and Rosie’s Gaming Emporium, already house Exacta historical racing machines. This means it takes charge of the full value chain.

More historical horse racing machines (HHRMs) will be rolled out across its other properties.

Churchill Downs flexes B2B muscle through acquisition

Exacta will fold into CDI’s B2B subsidiary TwinSpires, providing content to its current third-party clients in Kentucky, Wyoming and New Hampshire.

This arm, formerly CDI’s operating business repurposed as a B2B proposition, already powers DraftKings’ horse racing app DK Horse.

August 22, 2023

Commission-free exchange Novig raises $6.4m in pre-seed round

Commission-free sports betting exchange Novig has raised $6.4m (£5.0m/€5.9m) in a pre-seed funding round from a number of well-known tech investors.

New York-based firm Lux Capital led the investment round into Novig, with participation from several prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalists.

These include famous start-up accelerator Y Combinator, the inventor of the Lisp programming language Paul Graham and Dropbox co-founder Arash Ferdowsi. Also investing is former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana.

Novig CEO Jacob Fortinsky said the business was “honoured” to have the support of the tech investors.

novig ceo jacob fortinsky

“Our vision is clear: to reshape the sports betting landscape that has long favoured exploitation over innovation and to usher in an era of integrity, transparency and empowerment,” he added. “Together, we’re rewriting the rules and putting the power back in the hands of bettors.”

Novig plans October launch date

Novig completed the investment r..

August 22, 2023

Delaware igaming wagers continue to decline in July

Delaware reported year-on-year declines across online casino and sports betting spend in July, while player wagers on igaming in the state fell to a calendar-year low of $36.4m.

The total amount wagered in July was 7.6% lower than wagers in July 2022 and also 4.0% less than in June this year.

Players spent $24.6m playing online video lottery games and a further $11.8m on internet table games.

Online casino revenue amounted to $1.2m in July. This was 5.6% behind July last year but 7.3% higher than June 2023.

Video lottery games generated $915,640 in revenue and table games $221,187. The other $44,861 came from poker rake and fees.

Delaware Park took top spot in the igaming market with $475,192 in revenue from $16.9m in bets. Bally’s Dover was second on $363,047 from $9.8m, then Harrington Raceway with $343,449 from $9.7m.

Sports betting revenue and wagers down

Looking at sports betting, monthly handle for the market reached $2.3m. This was down 14.8% from $2.7m last year and 23.3..

August 22, 2023

College betting lands Fox Bet with $80,000 New Jersey penalty

New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) has ordered Fox Bet to pay an $80,000 fine (£62,592/€73,371) for accepting bets on college basketball games taking place in the state.

The DGE filed several complaints against Fox Bet, the sports betting joint venture between Flutter Entertainment and Fox Corporation, for violating the ban on betting on college teams based in the state.

Offences stretch back to 2021, starting with the NCAA basketball game between New Jersey’s Rutgers University and Northwestern University on 13 February 2021. Markets on another game featuring Monmouth University in November that year were also spotted by the regulator.

Fox Bet then admitted two further breaches, for games involving Fairleigh Dickinson and Seton Hall University, in December 2021 and January 2022 respectively.

This amounts to a breach of the New Jersey Casino Control Act, DGE executive director David Rebuck said, ordering the business to pay $80,000 to settle the case.

News of the..

August 22, 2023

How will ESPN Bet carve out its place in the industry?

The stakes are high for ESPN's long-awaited foray into sports betting. Vice president of sports betting Mike Morrison believes the broadcasting behemoth will upend the established industry order.

“There was an inevitability about this,” ESPN’s Mike Morrison says of the sports giant’s move into betting.

Partnering Penn Entertainment to launch ESPN Bet brought years of speculation – and the operator’s partnership with Barstool Sports – to a close. This was momentous at every level.

First, the announcement came as a surprise. Penn’s sportsbook now connects with a vast audience, potentially catapulting the operator’s interactive business to the top tier of operators.

To the general news connoisseur, beloved multimedia behemoth the Walt Disney Company – owner of ESPN – entered the sports betting race.

ESPN Bet: A deal five years in the making

Sports betting is a natural extension for ESPN and speculation over deals with DraftKings and Caesars Entertainment was rife.

Morrison say..

August 22, 2023

Kentucky opens online betting pre-registration as launch nears

Players in Kentucky can pre-register for online sports wagering from 28 August, ahead of the regulated market launching next month.

Kentucky’s governor, Andy Beshear, announced the initiative in his approved timetable for the rollout of legal betting.

Retail betting is going live on 7 September, with online following on 28 September. Next week’s pre-registration launch means players can sign up for an account a month ahead of the online market opening.

“The countdown is on; we are just three weeks away from sports wagering in Kentucky,” Beshear said. “We are ready to deliver the quality entertainment experience Kentuckians asked for. We’ll also bring in money to support pensions and free up funds to build a better Kentucky.”

Vote due on Kentucky licence applications

The announcement comes as the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) meets later today (22 August) to vote on licence applications.

Earlier this month, Bet365, FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars, Circa, DraftKings and Penn Spo..

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Daily Archives: August 22, 2023