Sports betting Archives

November 15, 2023

ESPN Bet launches across 17 US states

ESPN Bet, the newly branded online sportsbook operated by Penn Entertainment, has now officially gone live across 17 states in the US.

Players can now place bets with the sportsbook on the ESPN Bet app and website in states including Arizona, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Illinois and Ohio.

ESPN Bet is the product of Penn’s $1.5bn (£1.2bn/€1.4bn) partnership with Disney-owned ESPN, the largest sports media brand in the US.

As per the agreement, Penn will operate ESPN Bet while ESPN promotes the app across its online and broadcast platforms.

The launch details

ESPN Bet is a rebranding of existing sports betting app, Barstool Sportsbook. In August, Penn said it sold Barstool Sports back to its founder Dave Portnoy for $1.

“We are excited to announce that we plan to simultaneously launch ESPN Bet across the 17 states in which we operate online sports betting, subject to final approvals,” said Penn CEO Jay Snowden, commenting on Penn’s Q3 results.

“This strategic allia..

November 14, 2023

Forging a new path in daily fantasy sports

Amid rapid expansion in all forms of online gambling, one company is attempting to blaze a new trail. Rourke Struthers, CEO of GameBlazers, is carving out a new corner of the daily fantasy sports (DFS) industry, writes Cole Rush.

“It’s a gamified approach to fantasy sports,” Struthers says of GameBlazers. The DFS platform currently offers NFL contests.

Participants receive packs of items – football players – with multipliers. A star running back might come with a 1.3x multiplier, for example. GameBlazers team owners can then use their items to field a roster of players within the salary cap.

The novel approach must contend with existing competition in the DFS space and the proliferation of online sportsbooks and casinos. Struthers says GameBlazers is more than up for the challenge.

“So many of the dollars in this industry have gone to the gambling side,” he says. “But look at video games in general and it’s a bigger category. We wanted to take that underlying concept and iterate on..

November 14, 2023

Australia lower house passes credit card gambling ban bill

The Australia House of Representatives, the lower house of the country’s parliament, has passed a bill that would introduce a blanket ban on using credit cards for online gambling.

The Interactive Gambling Amendment (Credit and Other Measures) Bill 2023 was submitted in September. It seeks to ban credit cards and other credit-related products, as well as digital currencies.

Introducing the bill has led to significant debate in parliament, with several amendments being filed to alter the bill. However, these were ultimately unsuccessful and the bill passed today (14 November) with support from both major parties in Australia.

The bill will now move forward to the Senate, the upper house of parliament in Australia, for further debate.

Breaking down the credit card bill

Aside from the ban on credit products, the bill includes a host of other measures that would come into effect.

These include heavy fines for operators that do not enforce the ban. Licensees in Australia could face..

November 14, 2023

Iowa sports betting handle hits 21-month high in October

Sports betting handle in Iowa reached its highest monthly total in almost two years during October, while revenue in the Hawkeye State also hit a 12-month high.

Players in Iowa spent $255.3m (£207.6m/€238.5m) betting on sports in October. This was up 6.9% from $238.8m in October 2022 and 3.9% ahead of $245.8m in September this year.

The total was also the most spent since a record $303.3m was bet in January 2022, some 21 months ago.

Of all bets placed in October, $231.8m were online and $23.5m at retail sportsbooks across Iowa.

Turning to sports betting revenue in Iowa, this amounted to $24.2m in October. This was up 26.7% from $19.1m last year and marginally higher than $24.1m in September this year.

In addition, the October revenue total was the highest monthly amount since $25.4m was generated in September 2022.

Out in front in Iowa with Diamond Jo Dubuque

Diamond Jo Dubuque and partner FanDuel retained their grip on Iowa’s market in October. Revenue from the partnership tot..

November 14, 2023

Indiana posts year-on-year sports betting decline in October

Sports betting handle and revenue in Indiana both fell year-on-year in October, although the US state did report month-on-month growth.

Player spending on betting in October amounted to $429.7m (£349.9m/€401.6m). This was 3.7% less than $446.2m in Indiana last year but 6.3% ahead of $404.1m in September 2023.

With the 2023 NFL season now in full swing, it was little surprise that football drew the most bets. Some $153.3m was wagered on football in Indiana in October.

Indiana players also spent $142.3m on parlay bets, as well as $38.3m on basketball betting, $27.4m baseball and $68.0m across other sports.

Turning to taxable adjusted gross revenue, this declined 3.6% from $46.9m in October 2022 to $45.2m this year. The monthly total, however, was 10.0% higher than September’s $41.1m.

Ameristar Casino and DraftKings lead in Indiana… just

As was the case in September, Ameristar Casino and DraftKings remained the frontrunners in Indiana in October. The partnership generated $17.8m fro..

November 13, 2023

ESPN BET launch: everything you need to know

Like any Disney fairytale, we’re ready for the hero to dash in and save the day. So, what kind of fairytale do we have concocted for tomorrow’s (14 November) ESPN BET launch?

First up, let’s do some background.

ESPN BET launch: has Penn Met its sports betting match?

We all know Penn Entertainment was billed as one of the pandemic success stories. At the time, few investors thought it had a big part to play in our Disney fairytale with its acquisition of Barstool Sports.

However, unlike our Disney tale of true love, Barstool and Penn was just never meant to be.

At the start of 2023, Penn sold Barstool back to Dave Portnoy for a single paltry dollar. This was mere months after completing the $500 million purchase. A poisoned apple, some might say.

Instead, enter the prince of our tale – Disney-owned ESPN.

This where our tale of true love begins and the story of ESPN BET.

A match made in heaven for ESPN and Penn

Following ESPN’s $1.5bn licensing partnership with Penn Entertainme..

November 13, 2023

Kansas sets new sports betting handle and revenue records in October

Kansas broke its sports betting handle record for the second straight month in October, with players wagering $249.7m (£203.9m/€233.8m), while revenue also reached a new high.

The monthly handle beat the previous record of $219.3m in September by 13.9%. It was also 31.5% ahead of $189.9m in Kansas in October 2022.

Of all wagers placed in Kansas during the month, $240.9m were with online operators and $8.8m at retail sportsbooks.

As for revenue, this amounted to $14.4m across online and retail, representing a new record for Kansas.

In total, some $13.1m of revenue came from online betting and $1.2m retail.

Boot Hill Casino and DraftKings lead online in Kansas

Boot Hill Casino and DraftKings remain the clear online leaders in the Kansas market. The partnership generated $6.3m in online revenue from $114.3m in bets.

Kansas Star Casino and FanDuel followed with revenue of $4.8m off $67.4m. Kansas Crossing Casino and BetMGM complete the top three with $1.6m in revenue and a $20.8m h..

November 13, 2023

Kenya Gambling Control Bill 2023 proposes new regulator and sweeping reform

Kenya has introduce a Gambling Control Bill in an effort to establish a new Gambling Regulatory Authority.

The Gambling Control Bill 2023, currently before parliament, establishes a new Gambling Regulatory Authority. Once approved, it will replace the current Betting, Control and Licensing Board (BCLB).

KENyA GAMBLING CONTROL BILL 2023 TO INTRODUCE NEW AUTHORITY

Incorporating the board’s present mandate, the new Authority will also be responsible for both licensing and regulation.

“The bill seeks to regulate betting, casinos and other forms of gambling, including the authorisation of prize competitions, public lotteries and media promotions,” the bill states.

The state-backed Gambling Control Bill is sponsored by National Assembly Majority leader Kimani Ichung’wah.

Cracking down on unlicensed and underage gambling

The newly-introduced Gambling Control Bill is designed to greatly enhance the board’s original mandate.

This follows previous statements in 2022 that the majorit..

November 13, 2023

ITIA bans seven Belgian tennis players for match-fixing

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has issued bans to seven Belgian players after a court ruled they were involved with a match-fixing syndicate in the country.

All seven players were found in breach of the ITIA Tennis Anti-Corruption Programme (TACP). As a result of their involvement in tennis match-fixing, they will serve bans of various lengths.

The players in question are Arnaud Graisse, Arthur de Greef, Julien Dubail, Romain Barbosa, Maxime Authom, Omar Salman and Alec Witmeur. All were convicted by a criminal court in Belgium and agreed sanctions with the ITIA.

The case relates to a Belgian match-fixing syndicate led by Grigor Sargsyan. The recent criminal case led to the conviction of Sargsyan, who was handed a five-year custodial sentence.

Described by the Washington Post as “the man who built the biggest match-fixing ring in tennis”, Sargsyan had traversed the globe since 2018 to build a network of more than 180 professional players across five continents.
..

November 13, 2023

New York sets US-first with $2bn online sports betting handle in October

New York in October became the first US state to process over $2.00bn (£1.64bn/€1.87bn) in online sports bets during a single month, while revenue also hit a new high in the market.

Players in New York wagered a total of $2.01bn online and via mobile in October. This is the highest ever for a state in the US offering legal sports betting to consumers.

The October total was 30.5% ahead of $1.54bn reported in the same month of last year. This figure was also 14.2% up from $1.76bn in September this year.

Monthly revenue in New York also reached a new high of $166.3m. This was marginally up from the previous record of $165.5m set in September and 14.1% higher than $145.7m last year. Mobile betting has been available in New York since January 2022.

FanDuel remains the market leader in New York

Turning to individual operators, Flutter Entertainment-owned FanDuel continues to lead the New York market. In October, Flutter posted $83.1m in revenue from $891.9m in internet-based wagers.

Dr..

November 10, 2023

Affordability checks: GC chief dismisses black market fears

GC chief executive Andrew Rhodes again dismissed arguments that “intrusive” affordability checks would drive customers towards the black market.

In a bid to quell the gathering storm around affordability checks, Andrew Rhodes, the Gambling Commission’s (GC) chief executive, addressed the largest-ever gathering of industry leaders on the 10 November.

Amid conflicts with stakeholders across the UK betting landscape, Rhodes looked to outline the challenges the industry faces with the implementation of the government’s Gambling Act Review white paper.

Affordability polarisation

Acknowledging the increasing polarisation within the industry, Rhodes looked to re-iterate the Commission’s impartiality as an independent regulator.

“We have clear statutory objectives and responsibilities. We don’t have a commercial interest in what happens, but that doesn’t mean we ignore commercial realities,” he said.

“The debate on gambling has been exceptionally hard to engage in during the past year. ..

November 10, 2023

IGT enters Puerto Rico online sports betting market with Ponce Plaza

International Game Technology (IGT) has partnered with Ponce Plaza Hotel & Casino to launch online and retail sports betting in Puerto Rico.

Under the technology and services agreement, IGT will use its PlaySports solutions to power the Ponce Plaza sports betting offering. Ponce Plaza is located in the city of Ponce on the Puerto Rico southern coast.

IGT and Ponce Plaza will jointly launch Puerto Rico’s first casino brand-led retail and mobile sportsbook. Sports betting will be delivered as ‘PlayBets by Ponce Plaza’.

The agreement expands on an existing partnership between the two parties. IGT has been providing gaming equipment to Puerto Rico’s Ponce Plaza for a number of years.

“Ponce Plaza Hotel & Casino has been serving the local community since 2008,” Ponce Plaza general manager Ramon Muñoz said. “We could not be prouder to be the first casino operator in Puerto Rico to run and operate its own sportsbook and to give sports fans an amazing betting experience backed by a local ..

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Tag: Sports betting