The Maryland Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC) has agreed to award licenses for mobile sports betting on a rolling basis, in an effort to launch the vertical this year.
SWARC opened applications for mobile sports betting licences on 7 September. The application period will end on 21 October at 5pm.
The application fee is $500,000.
Read the full story on iGB North America
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..
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 ..
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..
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..
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.
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.
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.
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.
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Disney chief executive Bob Chapek said work on the potential launch of a sports betting app is ongoing, revealing the business has received as many as 100 enquiries about the venture.
The conglomerate has been linked with expansion into the sports betting market for some time, with Chapek last month saying Disney remained in talks with a number of platforms in regard to potentially launching an app.
Chapek previously said Disney’s sports broadcasting arm ESPN was the “perfect” channel for the business to move into sports wagering.
Speaking at Disney’s D23 fan event this week, Chapek said sports betting remains a focus area for the business, adding that it is “working very hard” on an app.
“Sports betting is a part of what our younger, say, under-35 sports audience is telling us they want as part of their sports lifestyle,” Chapek said according to Bloomberg.
Chapek added that he had received as many as 100 inquiries from parties interested in the business. He said: “If you have a ..
FanDuel and the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) have signed a multi-year extension of their partnership.
It comes five years after the partnership was first established, and sees FanDuel become an official sportsbook partner of the WNBA. FanDuel had already operated the WNBA’s official daily fantasy game, as its official daily fantasy partner.
During future seasons, FanDuel odds will now feature on a number of WNBA’s digital channels.
Read the full story on iGB North America.
The Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC) has officially opened applications for mobile sports betting in the state of Maryland.
The application period opened yesterday (6 September) and will end at 5pm on 21 October. The application fee for mobile licences is $500,000.
SWARC approved a number of draft regulations for mobile sports betting in July. The following month, on 26 August, the regulations were published in the Maryland Register.
Read the full story on iGB North America.
