Betting News – Page 43

June 7, 2024

Arizona Department of Gaming opens new event wagering application window

The Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) will accept event wagering applications between 8 July and 19 July, the agency announced on Friday (7 June). The application window will close at 5pm local time on the 19 July. There are currently 17 operators live in the state and state law allows for up to 20 digital platforms.

The ADG will consider a minimum of one event wagering application each for a tribal casino and professional sports franchise.

In Arizona, event wagering operators must be tethered to a professional sports franchise or Indian tribe. The law allows for 10 licences each for pro sports venues and tribes. Nine tribal licences are spoken for, and eight of the pro-franchise licences have been issued. That means there is one tribal licence and two pro-franchise licences available.

A key question is whether or not there are anymore professional sports venues that could even qualify for a licence under the law.

Will anyone apply for pro-franchise licence?

The NFL Arizona C..

June 7, 2024

Fourth suspect in NBA gambling scandal turns himself in

On Friday (7 June) the US Attorney's office for the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York announced that the fourth, and last, suspect in the NBA sports betting scandal has turned himself in. Ammar Awawdeh is scheduled to be arraigned in Brooklyn Federal Court later today.

Awawdeh, Timothy McCormack, Mahmud Mollah and Long Phi Pham all allegedly conspired with former NBA player Jontay Porter. According to the complaint, the NBA gambling scandal revolved around Porter twice removing himself from games so that “under” bets made by the defendants would pay.

The four defendants bet on Toronto Raptors games which were played on 26 January and 20 March. They wagered with legal operators DraftKings and FanDuel, who ultimately reported suspicious activity to the NBA and the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA).

In April NBA commissioner Adam Silver banned Porter from the league for life. Porter isn’t directly named in the complaint, but is referred to ..

June 7, 2024

State of the Union: A look back at the week that was in North America

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.

NY to require gambling hotline number on ads

New York is poised to become the next state to tighten gambling advertising guidelines after the senate passed a bill that would require any ads to have warnings about “harmful and addictive behaviour”.

AB 1118 originated in the house, passed the senate and was sent back to the house for final consideration. It’s now headed for the governor’s desk. The key requirement is that a problem gambling hotline number be posted on every advertisement. .

Another bill – that would have required that all applications for three downstate casino licences be submitted by 31 August – did not get a final vote before adjournment on Thursday (6 June). The bill, SO 9673, would also have required final approval for the licences by 31 December 2025.

Still waiting…

Illinois Govern..

June 7, 2024

North Carolina betting revenue drops 40.1% in second full month

North Carolina reported gross gaming revenue (GGR) of $63.1m (£49.6m/€58.4m) in May in what was the second full month of wagering in the Tarheel State.

The $63.1m figure fell 40.1% short of April’s total of $105.3m. April was the first full month of betting in North Carolina after operators went live on 11 March.

The May revenue was also 5.1% behind the $66.5m generated in March despite the market only launching 11 days into the month. However, that three-week period included March Madness, with all three North Carolina teams – UNC, NC State and Duke – playing in the tournament.

Handle, meanwhile, stood at $525.5m, again the lowest total yet. The figure was 19.0% short of April’s $648.9m and 20.3% behind March’s $659.3m.

A total of $458.7m was paid out in winnings in May, a hold percentage of 12.3%. In April, operators reported a hold of 17%.

The state didn’t disclose how much tax revenue had been received. Digital operators are taxed at 18% of GGR in North Carolina.

Promos again..

June 7, 2024

Maine sports betting revenue dips despite handle recovery in May

Sports betting revenue in Maine declined 19.5% month-on-month during May despite the Pine Tree State reporting an increase in handle.

Adjusted gross receipts from sports betting in May amounted to $3.3m (£2.6m/€3.0m). This is less than the $4.1m posted in Maine during April.

Maine calculates adjusted gross receipts by subtracting voided and cancelled bets, federal excise tax and player winnings from handle.

On the subject of player spending, total handle for May amounted to $39.9m. In contrast to the revenue decline, total wagers were up 4.2% month-on-month from $38.3m in April.

Consumers won a total of $36.3m from sports betting during May while Maine collected some $331,279 in tax.

DraftKings the clear leader in Maine

At present, Maine is home to just two approved online sports betting operators in the form of DraftKings and Caesars. The former has led the market by some distance since it opened in November last year.

For May, DraftKings posted $2.9m in adjusted gross receip..

June 6, 2024

Two more arrested in NBA betting scandal

Two more people were arrested and arraigned in the NBA sports betting scandal on Thursday (6 June) morning, the US Attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York announced. That brings to three the number of conspirators arrested. One still remains at large.

Timothy McCormack and Mahmud Mollah were both released on $50,000 bond on Thursday morning. They were questioned by federal investigators as early as 30 May, according to the complaint.

Both allegedly bet on games in which then-Toronto Raptor Jontay Porter removed himself early so certain prop bets would pay. Porter is not directly named in the complaint, but the complaint refers to an NBA player who was banned for life. NBA commissioner Adam Silver issued Porter with a lifetime ban in April. He is the only player in the league to have been banned for betting thus far.

Porter was found to have bet on Raptors games and shared personal health information with his co-conspirators.

Two suspects won more than $1m tota..

June 6, 2024

Truesdale to exit as chief executive of Jockey Club

The Jockey Club has announced Nevin Truesdale is to step down as its group chief executive, with his departure expected by the end of the year.

Nevin Truesdale has led the Jockey Club as chief executive since April 2020. Prior to this, he spent time as its chief financial officer and group finance director.

Before joining the organisation, Truesdale worked at British Gas for almost five years. This included spells in various senior financial roles.

Truesdale will continue to lead the Jockey Club in the coming months. He will work with the board of stewards and executive team to manage the transition to his successor.

Under his leadership, the Jockey Club has seen growth across all revenue lines and attracted new commercial partners to racing. The organisation has also expanded its customer base and digital platforms.

Truesdale has also played a prominent role in campaigns against various issues facing the racing sector. These include leading the petition to parliament against bett..

June 6, 2024

Stats Perform scores global cricket betting data extension with ICC

Sports data and live streaming provider Stats Perform has signed an extension to its global betting partnership with the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Stats Perform will continue to collect and distribute official ICC data and live streams to licensed betting operators worldwide. The deal represents an exclusive agreement between the two parties.

The agreement will see Stats Perform provide a range of services for the ICC tournaments to its betting operator partners. These include real-time ball-by-ball match data and low latency video streams.

The partnership covers all major men’s and women’s ICC events. These include the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup, which is running from 1-29 June. Other covered events include the ICC Cricket One Day World Cup, ICC Champions Trophy and the ICC World Test Championship.

Alex Rice, chief commercial officer of Stats Perform, said the provider is delighted to be working with the ICC again.

“It reinforces our dedication to collecti..

June 6, 2024

GamCare calls for improved at-risk employee support ahead of Euro 2024

Gambling support charity GamCare has called upon employers to increase their support for staff vulnerable to gambling addiction ahead of the Euro 2024 tournament.

With Euro 2024 set to begin next week, GamCare has urged employers to open safe spaces for workers to discuss any gambling addiction issues, as well as direct them to appropriate services to encourage support.

GamCare also outlined a five-step plan employers could adopt to support their staff and provoke discussion on gambling harms.

Samantha Turton, head of remote support services at GamCare, says the discrete nature of gambling addiction means it’s imperative to open avenues for at-risk punters to seek help, especially in the workplace.

“Last year we saw steps for more GPs to ask questions from patients around gambling, which is an important step forward,” Turton said. “We believe workplaces could be the next place to create more awareness about gambling and could be a win-win for organisations and staff, with people fe..