Betting News – Page 26

August 16, 2024

Casino expansions lift US Q2 GGR

US gross gaming revenue (GGR) increased by 8.9% year-on-year to $17.63bn (£13.66bn/€16.04bn) in the second quarter of 2024.
The American Gaming Association (AGA) stated that casino expansions in states such as Illinois, Nebraska and Virginia drove the increase. This led to traditional casino GGR improving by 1.8% to $12.49bn.

However, there were also sharp rises in sports betting and igaming GGR.

Sports betting GGR rocketed by 35.3% year-on-year to $3.16bn in Q2, while igaming GGR increased by 25.2% to $1.97bn.

Q2 record
In total, it was the 14th consecutive quarter of year-on-year growth and the highest-grossing Q2 revenue performance on record. However, the total figure was slightly below the quarterly commercial gaming revenue record of $17.7bn registered in Q1.

Over the first six months of the year, total GGR was up 7.7% to $35.48bn. Traditional casino GGR was up 1.1% to $24.83bn, while sports betting GGR improved by 28.7% to $6.67bn and igaming GGR rose by 25.6% to $3.95bn.

Q..

August 16, 2024

Notre Dame suspends men’s swim programme, citing gambling violations

The University of Notre Dame announced on Thursday (15 August) that it is suspending its men's swimming programme for at least one year due to widespread conduct violations, including gambling.
In a statement, the Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua said an independent investigation was launched after officials heard reports of potential misconduct. The investigation uncovered “deeply embedded” cultural issues. This included “numerous violations of NCAA rules prohibiting gambling on intercollegiate swimming and other athletic competitions”.

As a result, Notre Dame will suspend the entire programme for “at least” one academic year. There have been multiple college betting scandals, including one in Iowa, in recent years but none involving an entire team.

No individual athletes were named in the announcement. Rather, Bevacqua asserted that the “overwhelming cultural dynamic on the team necessitates a full suspension”. The team’s coaching staff is believed to be uninvolve..

August 16, 2024

Massachusetts operators hold 10.3% as Bally Bet makes debut

Massachusetts sportsbook operators were the winners in July, according to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission revenue report released on Thursday (15 August).
The state’s seven mobile operators and three retail operators combined for a 10.3% hold and handle was up significantly over July 2024.

Bally Bet, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, ESPN Bet, Fanatics Sportsbook and FanDuel took a combined $405.3m (£315.3/€369.3m) in wagers compared to $294.9m in July 2023. Massachusetts’ handle was down against June’s $509.3m. Four digital operators recorded hold of over 10%.

Massachusetts operators paid more than $8m to the state in taxes.

Boston-based DraftKings retained its spot as the market-share leader, taking $202m in wagers, holding 10.3% and recording adjusted gross revenue (AGR) of $20.9m. FanDuel was second with $119.9m in handle and a hold of 10.97%.

Bally Bet had lowest hold of all operators
Massachusetts was back up to seven operators for July, after Bally Bet launched o..

August 15, 2024

MGM enters joint venture with Grupo Globo to launch BetMGM in Brazil

MGM has established a joint venture with media giant Grupo Globo to enter the licensed betting market in Brazil. The offering will use BetMGM’s branding and LeoVegas’ betting and gaming technology.
The venture will leverage Grupo Globo’s consumer network of approximately 70 million daily users across tv, digital, radio and print media. It is the largest media group in Latin America.

Once its licence is approved, the JV will launch in 2025 with its headquarters in Sao Paulo.

In a statement, BetMGM said the venture would maintain exclusive rights to all of MGM Resorts’ iconic brands and will count on the customer bases of both companies to establish a widely known betting offering.

MGM CEO Bill Hornbuckle said the JV was a key milestone in the operator’s growth strategy.

“Brazil is one of the most exciting and vibrant emerging gaming markets in the world, and no one has more exposure and expertise in this market than Grupo Globo.

“This historic alliance allows us to quickly enter t..

August 14, 2024

KTO pulls out of Chile, Peru to narrow focus on Brazil betting market

KTO Group has pulled its sports betting brand from Peru and Chile to focus on the licensed Brazil market once it launches in January 2025.
KTO founder and CEO Andreas Bardun told iGB its LatAm presence had been reduced to just Brazil as the company prioritises growing its market share in the region.

KTO is one of 17 operators to have already applied for a betting licence within the initial 90-day window of preference. This means KTO will be granted a licence within the first wave, in time for the 1 January launch date.

First mover advantage will be crucial in brazil says kto ceo andreas bardun
KTO Brazil was launched in 2018 and Bardun believes the company will benefit from a first-mover advantage in the licensed betting market.

“We entered Brazil maybe four or five years ago now when there wasn’t so much attraction, people couldn’t really see the potential,” Bardun told iGB. “And we realised there wasn’t any kind of localisation of the product.

“We thought this is a good oppor..

August 13, 2024

Flutter beats street and won’t tax winners in the US; DraftKings backs off plan

Flutter CEO Peter Jackson said on Tuesday (13 August) that his company has no plans to follow DraftKings' lead with a winners' surcharge. The company, the market-share leader in the US, reported second-quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations and raised earnings guidance for FY2024.
DraftKings in early August announced that it will introduce a winners’ surcharge in four high-tax states beginning 1 January 2025. Industry watchers have since been waiting to see if other companies, and Flutter in particular, would follow suit.

“We have no plans to introduce a surcharge to winners,” Jackson said during the Q&A portion of the call. He then declined to entertain the issue further when others asked.

Less than an hour after the Flutter call ended, DraftKings released an announcement saying it would not move forward with the idea.

DraftKings Statement on Gaming Tax Surcharge pic.twitter.com/cucbsQJIVD
— DraftKings News (@DraftKingsNews) August 13, 2024

Other companie..

August 13, 2024

Nebraska wagering bill gets out of committee, but floor vote uncertain

On Monday (12 August) Nebraska's General Affairs Committee advanced a constitutional amendment that would put the decision of whether or not to expand gaming to include digital sports betting to the voters.
The committee voted, 5-2, to send LR3CA to the floor, but failed to advance framework legislation. If the Nebraska wagering bill passes and voters approve the ballot referendum, the legislature will be tasked with deciding what digital wagering will look like.

In addition the framework legislation, LB13, includes language that would have put the constitutional amendment on the ballot this year. Unless an exception is made, the decision won’t go to the voters until 2026.

Senator John Cavanaugh introduced a change to LR3CA before it passed. According to the Lincoln Journal-Star, Cavanaugh said the change “keeps power in the hands of the legislature, allows voters to speak on it and then lets the legislature decide once it’s legal how proscriptive you want to make it”.

He al..

August 13, 2024

EstrelaBet and SportyBet among latest Brazil betting licence applications

With just over a week to go until the 20 August deadline, on Monday (12 August) EstrelaBet and SportyBet submitted licence applications to operate betting in Brazil.
Reals Bet then applied today (13 August), taking the total number of applications in Brazil to 13.

Operators that apply within the 90-day initial submission window will ensure their applications are processed ahead of 1 January 2025. That is currently expected to be the launch date for the legal market.

After that date, operators active without a licence will face punitive measures.

The trio joins the likes of Betano and Betsson in applying for licences to operate in what looks set to be a huge market. A recent International Betting Integrity Association study predicted Brazil could reach $34bn (£26.8bn/€31.1bn) in sports betting turnover by 2028.

EstrelaBet chief business officer Fellipe Fraga recently told iGB the company was waiting for the final regulations to be outlined before it applied for a licence.

“There a..

August 13, 2024

North Carolina handle lowest since March launch; Indiana records another high hold

Sports betting handle in North Carolina fell for the fourth consecutive month in July, although revenue increased for operators in the Tar Heel state thanks to an improved hold.
Total handle for July was $340.4m (£266.6m/€311.4m), down 14.5% from June. It is also the lowest monthly total since North Carolina launched legal online sports betting in March.

July is traditionally a quieter month in the US sports betting calendar and, while the MLB season is underway, North Carolina doesn’t have a team in the league.

There were only three major sporting events taking place in July. Wimbledon from 1-14 July, and the Copa América concluded on 14 July – with matches played at the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina – and the Olympics started at the tail end of the month.

Stronger hold grows North Carolina sports betting revenue
During the month players wagered $328m with North Carolina sports betting operators, who handed out a further $12.4m in promotional credits. Playe..