September 2024 – Page 2

September 13, 2024

State of the Union: Fox’s FanDuel play, bettors want cash from athletes, questionable political donation

Welcome to iGB's State of the Union, a look at the biggest North American sports betting stories we've covered over the week and briefs on others we found interesting.
Fox aiming to secure stake in FanDuel
The Fox Corporation this week confirmed plans to attempt to buy into FanDuel at a deeply discounted rate. How discounted? About $2.2bn below market value in the current conditions.

When Flutter Entertainment bought The Stars Group in 2020, it created a situation that would allow Fox Corp to buy up to an 18.6% stake in FanDuel. Earlier this week, at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia and Technology Conference, Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch confirmed that his company is now moving forward with that option, reports Sportico.

According to Murdoch, analysts value FanDuel at $35bn. At that valuation, the 18.6% stake would be worth $6.5bn on the open market. Fox could buy it for about $4.3bn under the terms of the agreement. Fox, which previously had wagering platforms in several states,..

September 12, 2024

US lawmakers decry sports betting practices while introducing SAFE Bet Act

New York representative Paul Tonko and Connecticut senator Richard Blumenthal lambasted the practices of US sports betting operators on Thursday (12 September) as they introduced the SAFE Bet Act, which would establish a rigorous federal framework around digital sports wagering.
Legal sports betting became a states’ rights issue in 2018, when the US Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). Since then, nearly 40 US states and jurisdictions have legalised some form of wagering.

Tonko and Blumenthal outlined the parameters of the bill, which was first announced in March, at a press conference in Washington on Thursday. They were joined by three other speakers.

Mark Gottlieb and Harry Levant, executive director and gambling policy adviser for the Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) at the Northeastern University School of Law, talked about the public health impacts of sports betting. Gordon Douglas gave an emotional account of his son And..

September 12, 2024

Fanatics Sportsbook goes live in Washington, DC

Washington, DC bettors now have a fifth choice for digital wagering, as Fanatics Sportsbook has launched in the nation's capital.
The Fanatics Sportsbook announcement on Thursday (12 September) was the second major one in the US capital this week. On Tuesday, Caesars Sportsbook shared that it will take over the GambetDC kiosks at 53 small-business locations in the District.

Since the DC Council in June decided to open the betting market, Caesars and BetMGM were able to effectively take off the geofences that limited their platforms to special zones and DraftKings and FanDuel have both gone live.

During hearings as the council considered creating a competitive market, Fanatics testified that it was interested in entering the market. The platform is live in neighbouring Maryland and Virginia and Fanatics now has a retail sportsbook at Commanders Field, home of the NFL’s Washington Commanders.

Fanatics’ first deal with a women’s pro team
Fanatics Sportsbook got market access t..

September 12, 2024

Mass Gaming Commission to set hearing about DraftKings’ bungled email

People on the self-exclusion list in Massachusetts received the email about a ‘bonus bet'.
A widespread notification from DraftKings in mid-August about settlement of PGA Tour golf bets mostly was met with harmless bemusement and confusion from those receiving the email.

The recipients consisted of those who have made wagers on golf using the online sportsbook – just not this particular bet. It also included some who don’t even have a DraftKings account.

But it is another group of recipients that may land the Boston-based sports betting giant in hot water with regulators.

DraftKings message was intended for 13 bettors
That’s because during a Massachusetts Gaming Commission hearing on Thursday (12 September), it was revealed that the email was intended to be sent to only 13 bettors whose wagers were relevant to the settlement. But it actually went out to more than a million users. The potential hot water comes from the fact that the commission found that 184 residents on the vol..

September 12, 2024

GSGB H1: UK gambling participation flat as nearly a third of customers play non-lottery verticals

The UK Gambling Commission today published its latest iteration of the Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB), looking at gambling participation across the UK between 15 January and 28 April. Participation remained flat on 2023, as majority of participants gambled to win “big money”.
The data follows the annual GSGB survey published for the first time in July and looks at how much UK adults are gambling.

Participation for the actual survey sample increased 8% as the sample size grew from 4,801 in the GC’s equivalent report last year (January to April), to 5,191 this year.

Gambling participation remains flat across the board
Overall gambling participation between January and April was the same as last year at 48% across the entire sample. This dropped to 27% when excluding lottery.

When taking a deeper look at online gambling rates, 16% of participants had gambled via desktop or mobile apps in the last four weeks (excluding lottery). Broken down by sex, slightly more men (20%) p..

September 12, 2024

Apuesta Total CEO warns against reintroduction of consumption tax on Peru gambling

Apuesta Total CEO Gonzalo Perez has warned the Peru government against the introduction of a consumption tax on gambling operators.
Law no 31557, which looked to regulate online gaming and sports betting in Peru, came into effect on 9 February. This sets out a tax of 12% on gross gaming revenue (GGR), although legislation originally included a 1% tax on the value of every bet, or consumption tax.

That 1% consumption tax was removed from legislation in July 2021. However the Peru congress is now discussing its reintroduction, with the potential rate not yet confirmed.

Perez fears this could be hugely detrimental to the licensed gambling industry and is urging the government to reconsider. “The consumption tax is, depending of course on the percentage they will apply and depending on the base fee, very harmful for us,” Perez tells iGB. “We are trying to reach the government to talk, to explain the possible impact.

“The proposed 1% consumption tax discussed in congress was crazy beca..

September 12, 2024

Flutter’s Olympics betting handle increased threefold at Paris 2024

Flutter Entertainment has revealed its global handle for the Paris 2024 summer Olympic Games more than tripled from the last edition of the Games.
The group did not disclose exactly how much its customers around the world bet on Paris 2024 in its report.

The increase in handle, Flutter said, was due to growth within new markets. It highlighted the US, with 23 states now offering legal sports betting, compared to 10 at the Tokyo Games. However, it also noted the value of bets placed through its FanDuel brand in those 10 states more than doubled.

Flutter said Paris 2024 also benefit from more favourable viewing times for its customers in both Europe and the US. In addition, it noted an “abundance” of dramatic storylines that captured the attention of bettors.

“Many people who aren’t typical sports fans are Olympics fans,” FanDuel sports trader Eric Gerson said. “It’s a unique chance to branch out to new audiences we wouldn’t normally reach.”

Popularity of parlay bets rockets for Flu..

September 12, 2024

Chinese Football Association bans 43 players, officials for match-fixing

The Chinese Football Association (CFA) has imposed lifetime bans on 38 soccer players and five club bosses accused of gambling and match-fixing. A two-year probe found that 120 matches were compromised.
In comments on Tuesday (10 September), Zhang Xiaopeng of the Chinese ministry for public security said the investigation “uncovered a series of online gambling, match-fixing and bribery cases”. They involved 128 suspects and 41 clubs.

Who’s involved?

Among those banned for life are midfielder Jin Jingdao, forward Guo Tianyu and goalkeeper Gu Chao, all of China. They can no longer take part in football or football-related activities. Seventeen others received five-year bans.

In a press conference on Wednesday, South Korea’s Son Jun-Ho protested his innocence. A tearful Son said he was “dumbfounded” by the “ridiculous charges”.

“They threatened that if I didn’t admit to the charges, my wife would be arrested,” he declared. “I said I hadn’t done anything like that.”

China targets spor..

September 11, 2024

Bet limits discussion in Massachusetts reveals disconnect between regulator, operators

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) led a nearly three-hour discussion about bet limits on Wednesday (11 September). It was the second attempt at doing so after most operators stood the commission up in the spring.
The meeting revealed a disconnect between operators, regulators, consumers and responsible gaming advocates about how or if a regulator should have a hand in how operators manage risk.

Every operator live in Massachusetts participated in the meeting. The last time, only Bally’s, which wasn’t yet live with Bally Bet, attended.

Statement from DraftKings on decision to not participate in Massachusetts Gaming Commission roundtable on practice of limiting bettors: pic.twitter.com/thbltgu8jc
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) May 21, 2024

In addition, there was a panel of stakeholders, ranging from a bettor/journalist to responsible gaming advocates to those with experience running casinos and sportsbooks. The conversation centred on how and why bettors may be limited…

September 11, 2024

Caesars betting kiosks to replace GambetDC’s in US capital

When the DC Council in June approved a budget that included opening the Washington, DC sports betting market to competition, there was one question mark. What would happen to the small businesses – mostly convenience stores – that have GambetDC kiosks?
That question was answered on Tuesday (10 September) when Caesars Entertainment announced that it will replace GambetDC betting kiosks at 53 small businesses in the District. The company did not share when the new kiosks would be put into place.

On Monday (9 September) Caesars got the go-ahead to replace GambetDC through an Office of Lottery and Gaming executive order.

From May 2020-July 2024, DC had a single-source digital sports betting market. The DC Council in 2019 agreed to give Intralot, its lottery operator, the sports betting contract. There was no bid process and, when Intralot rolled out GambetDC, problems with the platform were almost instantly apparent.

Among the complaints were a difficult customer interface, non-comp..

September 11, 2024

Apuesta Total CEO: There isn’t room for everyone in Peru’s regulated market

Apuesta Total CEO Gonzalo Perez expects three or four operators will dominate the newly-regulated online market in Peru, while the remaining brands will fight for single-digit market share.
Law no 31557 came into effect in Peru on 9 February of this year as the government sought to regulate online gaming and sports betting in the country.

Operators active in Peru before the announcement had until 10 March to submit a licence application. Gambling regulator Mincetur warned those who did not comply could face a fine of up to Sol990,000 (€245,394/£212,401/$257,838) or criminal prosecution.

According to the law, Mincetur will process licence applications within 30 business days of submission. Perez said operators have a 15 November deadline to submit final certifications for their platform and content. Failing to meet that deadline could result in authorisation being revoked.

During that initial window in March, 145 licence requests were submitted. Meanwhile new entrants to Peru were g..

September 10, 2024

US lawmakers Tonko, Blumenthal to introduce federal wagering legislation

On Tuesday (10 September) US Representative Paul Tonko and US Senator Richard Blumenthal announced they will hold a press conference on Thursday (12 September) to introduce new federal online sports betting legislation.
The press conference is set for 1pm ET, and will also be streamed live on Tonko’s X page.

Tonko has previously filed two pieces of federal wagering legislation. Both would have put at least some federal framework around legal sports betting, which is a states’ rights issue. The US Supreme Court in May 2018 overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). The act was a federal ban on sports betting.

Within months of the decision, brick-and-mortar casinos in four states were offering in-person sports betting. New Jersey sportsbooks were the first to offer digital betting, starting 6 August 2018. New Jersey governors Chris Christie and then Phil Murphy led the lawsuit that overturned PASPA.

According to a press release, representatives from the..

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