Betting News Archives

September 23, 2022

PointsBet launches in Louisiana with Penn National Gaming

Online gambling operator PointsBet Holdings has launched online sports betting in the US state of Louisiana via its partnership with Penn National Gaming (PNG).

PointsBet’s online sportsbook is now active in the state and taking bets after the operator secured approval from the Louisiana Gaming Control Board.

The roll-out marks the fourth state launch under the partnership with PNG, which was announced in August 2019 and extended in March 2021 to include Pennsylvania and Mississippi.

The launch represents PointsBet’s 12th online sportsbook operation in total in the US, with the operator also active in New Jersey, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Colorado, Michigan, West Virginia, Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania and Kansas.

“The PointsBet team is excited to share that we are now officially live in the pelican state and that Louisiana is our 12th state of online operations,” PointsBet US chief executive Johnny Aitken said.

“The sports community of Louisiana, one that our very own brand amb..

September 23, 2022

Fitzdares partners with Fulham FC

Fulham FC has named bookmaker Fitzdares as the club’s official betting partner.

Under the terms of the agreement the new partners intend to launch a messaging campaign that “will bring a sense of fun into the game”.

Fitzdares allows players to place bets in numerous ways, including online, through text and by phone. It also operates a private club in Mayfair, where members can watch live sport.

“This partnership has its roots in the 19th century and we are bursting with excitement to finally join up with London’s original football club, said Fitzdares CEO William Woodhams.

“Dare I say, the only place better to watch football than The Fitzdares Club is at the Cottage. We will be adding a Craven Cottage Pie to our menu immediately to bring a taste of West London royalty to Mayfair.”

Fulham sales director Jon Don-Carolis added: “We are delighted to welcome Fitzdares as Fulham FC’s official UK betting partner.

“Our organisations are proud of our heritage and embrace innovation while ..

September 23, 2022

English football must distance itself from the Pogos

iGB op-ed: Zak Thomas-Akoo argues that in the wake of criminal scandals regarding offshore operators based in the Philippines, the continued association by English football clubs with the sector could be a ticking time-bomb for scandal.

Most fans of Premier League clubs probably couldn’t tell you much about the Pogo sector, but it has become deeply embedded in top-flight English football.

A Philippines Offshore Gambling Operation (Pogo) is a Philippines-based gambling site that broadcasts games of chance to other jurisdictions – usually elsewhere in Asia. Almost by definition, this comes without approval by local authorities in the operator’s target markets. While China has been the highest-profile target, a number of Pogos also specialise in the Korean or Vietnamese markets.

The sector is also widely believed to be infiltrated by criminal organisations and has been linked to crimes such as human trafficking, slavery and prostitution, with the situation getting so bad that a senator..

September 23, 2022

Mississippi player spending reaches $21.2m in August

Consumers in Mississippi spent $21.2m (£18.9m/€21.7m) wagering on sports in August, halting a four-month consecutive decline in the US state.

Sports betting handle for the month was 15.9% higher than $18.3m in July, but 0.9% down from $21.4m in August of last year.

Revenue also increased month-on-month, with the $2.7m generated in August being 8.0% higher than $2.5m in July, while this total was also 42.1% up from $1.9m in August 2021.

Coastal casinos were again most popular with consumers in Mississippi, with these venues drawing $14.2m in bets and turning $1.7m in total revenue for the month.

Spending at central casinos amounted to $4.2m, with revenue at $618,375, while northern casinos processed $2.2m in bets and generated $1.7m in revenue.

Baseball was the sport of choice for consumers during the month, with players wagering $8.5m at coastal casinos, $1.4m at central casinos and $1.3m at northern casinos.

The Mississippi Gaming Commission also noted that percentage for the mo..

September 22, 2022

Playtech moves away from plans to sell Snai amid good trading

Playtech will put aside any plans to sell off its B2C Snaitech business – at least temporarily – after the business determined that its recent success meant it could deliver more value by remaining part of the group.

Comments on the subject came from Playtech leadership following the business announcing its H1 results, in which revenue was up 73% year-on-year to €792.3m. Revenue from Snaitech specifically almost tripled to €446.0m.

The supplier had reportedly been considering a break-up of its business, including a sale of the Snaitech arm it acquired in 2018, after plans to sell the entire business fell through. The Playtech board approved an offer from land-based slots giant Aristocrat, but shareholders ultimately rejected this deal.

A group called TTB Partners then announced that it was considering a bid of its own, and received support from Playtech chief executive Mor Weizer (pictured). However, amid changing market conditions, TTB ultimately declined to submit a bid for the ga..

September 21, 2022

German municipalities now unable to tax betting shops

The German supreme court for administrative matters, the Federal Administrative Court, has ruled that municipalities will no longer be able to levy a betting shop tax.

A lawsuit had been originally brought about by the bookmakers that operated betting shops in the German city of Dortmund. Since 2014, the city had been levying a municipal tax based on the dimensions of the physical area of the betting shop – which was defined as areas where bets were processed and monitored. The tax was designed to be passed directly onto consumers.

However, in 2017 the Federal Administrative Court ruled that the tax could not be based on the area of the shop, leading to the city rewriting the statute as a 3% stake tax – this was in addition to the federally imposed 5% stake tax for sports betting.

Following this, the Münster Higher Administrative Court allowed an appeal about whether this tax by multiple levels of government was inadmissible due to similarities with taxes imposed under the Lottery A..

September 21, 2022

FanDuel expands responsible gambling efforts

Flutter Entertainment-owned FanDuel Group has announced a series of new responsible gambling initiatives to coincide with the American Gaming Association’s (AGA) Responsible Gaming Education Month.

The group hosted its first, business-wide “Play Well Day” where workers were invited to an employee-only event, promoting the role of staff in creating a culture that embraces safer play.

During the Play Well Day, FanDuel announced the appointment of professional boxer, mixed martial artist and wrestler Amanda Serrano as a responsible gaming ambassador.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

September 21, 2022

New Hampshire reports slight sports betting handle improvement in August

Player spending in New Hampshire improved marginally month-on-month in August, while the state experienced year-on-year growth across revenue and handle.

Consumers wagered a total of $43.4m on sports during the month, up 19.6% year-on-year and 1.6% higher than $42.7m in July of this year.

A large portion of this was spent betting online via DraftKings, with this reaching $32.9m. The remaining $10.5m was wagered at retail sportsbook locations across the state.

In terms of revenue, gross gaming revenue from sports betting for the month amounted to $4.2m.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

September 21, 2022

Colorado sports betting handle reaches $4.82bn in FY2021-22

Consumers in Colorado wagered a total of $4.82bn on sports during the US state’s 2021-22 financial year.

During the 12-month period, players in the state spent $4.78bn betting on sports over the internet, as well as $59.7m at retail sportsbook facilities across Colorado.

Basketball was the most popular sport among consumers by some margin, attracting a total of $1.20bn in wagers over the course of the year. Football bets amounted to $768.6m and baseball $506.2m, while $872.5m worth of parlay wagers were also placed.

In terms of revenue, total gross gaming revenue from sports betting was $282.6m for the financial year. The majority of this came from online, with this form of betting accounting for $279.6m, while retail revenue reached just $3.0m for the year.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

September 21, 2022

Betway fined £400,000 for marketing on “children’s webpages”

Online gaming operator Betway has been fined £408,915 ($463,178/ €467,776) by the Gambling Commission for marketing on “children’s webpages”.

The regulator determined that the Super Group-owned brand was marketing on the children’s pages of the West Ham United Football Club’s website, breaching Commission rules on socially responsible advertising.

The Commission said that the operator’s logo – which linked to its website – appeared on a page on the West Ham site which offered the option of printing off a picture of a teddy bear for children to colour in. It was visible on this page between 14 April 2020 and 6 November 2021.

Additionally, between 24 October 2021 and 15 November 2021, a similar logo that linked to Betway’s homepage was featured on the “Young Hammers at Home” page of the club’s site.

GC director of enforcement, Leanne Oxley, said the regulator had no reason to believe Betway was targeting children deliberately, but that the rule breach was still serious.

“Protecting ..

September 20, 2022

Dutch regulator issues 21st online licence

Dutch regulator de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has issued its 21st online gambling licence, to a business known as Smart Gaming BV.

As yet, little information has been provided about Smart Gaming, which is registered in the Dutch town of Aalsmeer.

The KSA said that it will list the domain name that the business will use as soon as this is known, but Smart Gaming has not yet submitted the domain it intends to use.

The business is the 21st operator to receive a licence to operate in the Dutch online gambling market. It follows the ComeOn Group, which announced that it would launch its flagship ComeOn brand in the Netherlands after receiving a licence last week.

Also last week, the KSA launched a gambling harm prevention research programme, developed by Hague-based health organisation ZonMw. It said that the aim of the scheme will be to gather new knowledge on the prevention and treatment of gambling addiction and gambling-related harms, so it can be formed into new treatment measures.
..

September 20, 2022

FDJ opens talks over ZEturf Group acquisition

French national lottery operator Française des Jeux (FDJ) has entered into exclusive negotiations over the acquisition of online horse racing and sports betting brand ZEturf Group.

Details of the talks or financial terms of the potential deal were not disclosed, but FDJ did state that the purchase would form part of wider plans to expand its presence in France’s online gambling market.

Founded in 2001, ZEturf employs approximately 100 staff and processed almost €800.0m (£701.6m/$802.5m) in wagers, including more than €100.0m in pool bets, in 2021.

According to FDJ, online horse racing betting accounts for more than 50% of ZEturf bets. This makes the business France’s second largest operator in this segment with a market share of around 20%.

In addition to its activities in France, ZEturf operates in the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.

Should the acquisition proceed to the next stage, the deal would be subject to approval by competition and regulatory authorities

The talks come a..

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