Betting News – Page 67

March 13, 2024

Retail loss fails to halt February year-on-year sports betting growth in Iowa

In February sports betting revenue in Iowa increased 14.3% year-on-year to $13.6m (£10.6m/€12.4m) despite a decline in the retail market.

Revenue was comfortably higher than $11.9m in February 2023. However, the monthly total was 38.5% less than the $22.1m generated in Iowa in January of this year.

Online sports betting revenue reached $13.8m in February, although the final total was dented by a $215,241 retail loss.

As for handle, players in Iowa wagered some $220.6m on sports during the month. This was 13.8% ahead of $193.9m last year but 15.0% behind $259.5m in January.

Of this spend, $203.8m was bet online and $16.7m at retail sportsbooks across the state.

FanDuel and Diamond Jo Dubuque still the ones to beat in Iowa

As has been the case for some time, FanDuel and Diamond Jo Dubuque remain the market leaders in Iowa. For February, the partnership generated $4.6m in revenue from $56.5m in wagers.

DraftKings and partner Wild Rose Jefferson again placed second with revenue of ..

March 13, 2024

Indiana sports betting handle surpasses $400m in February

Indiana reported a year-on-year increase in sports betting handle and revenue for February, although the state also posted a month-on-month decline, despite the impact of the NFL’s end-of-season Super Bowl showpiece.

Total handle for February reached $408.7m (£319.6m/€374.0m). This was 14.7% ahead of $356.2m last year, but down 14.9% from $480.3m in Indiana in January this year.

While Super Bowl LVIII was the sporting highlight of the month, this did not carry over into betting activity. Of all the wagers placed, just $14.1m were specifically for American football.

Basketball was the single most popular sport, drawing $117.6m of bets, with baseball at just $2.1m. Parlay wagering amounted to $191.0m and betting on other sports totalled $83.6m.

As for revenue, this reached $38.0m in February. The monthly total was 37.2% higher than $27.7m in February 2023 but 29.0% behind January’s record $53.5m.

FanDuel retakes the lead in Indiana… just

Blue Chip Casino and FanDuel claimed the top..

March 12, 2024

Georgia Senate sports betting bill gets first look in house

A statewide mobile sports betting bill got its first hearing in the Georgia house on Tuesday (12 March).

With just over two weeks remaining in the legislative session, and more than five weeks since the senate passed SB386, a statewide mobile sports betting bill got its first hearing in the Georgia house Tuesday.

There was no vote in the house’s Higher Education Committee, and there could be more discussion later this week, although the committee chairman said a vote is not imminent.

Several representatives from daily fantasy companies testified that they’d like their contests added to the bill while multiple representatives from faith-based and anti-gambling groups testified in opposition.

The bill would allow for 16 online sports betting licences, including eight that would be tethered to professional sports franchises or organisations in the state.

A further seven free-standing licences would be up for grabs with one licence earmarked for the Georgia Lottery, which would als..

March 12, 2024

Genius Sports set to extend Premier League data deal until 2029

Genius Sports has been chosen as the successful bidder to extend its official betting data partnership with Football DataCo, which holds data rights to the English Premier League (EPL).

DataCo also holds rights to data from the English Football League (EFL), containing the Championship, League One and League Two, as well as all leagues overseen by the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), including the Scottish Premiership.

Genius has now entered into an exclusive period of negotiation with DataCo as it seeks to get the extension over the line. The renewed agreement is still subject to contract and the approval of the leagues and their clubs.

Genius has exclusively supplied low latency data to DataCo from the EPL, EFL and SPFL since 2019. The current deal expires at the end of the 2024-25 season, with the new contract set to last until 2029.

The fresh deal will see Genius Sports continue to distribute data from over 4,000 UK football fixtures per season.

Genius Sports repo..

March 12, 2024

Waterhouse VC: Spotlight on industry leaders

In his latest column, Tom Waterhouse of Waterhouse VC shines a spotlight on three industry leaders and discusses their paths to success.

In every industry, there are prominent figures who stand out and the wagering industry is no exception.

This month, we shine a spotlight on three distinct leaders in the industry: Tim Heath, a crypto wagering pioneer; Peter Jackson, CEO of Flutter Entertainment; and David Walsh, renowned as one of the world’s largest professional horse racing gamblers.

Over the last decade, the online wagering industry has expanded significantly through the proliferation of mobile-focused platforms. Heath and Jackson lead companies at the forefront of digital innovation in the industry.

YOLO

Originally from Australia, Heath is a serial wagering industry entrepreneur and venture capitalist. After university, he started a software development and ecommerce firm, Heathmont.net.

In 2013, he launched Coingaming Group, a crypto wagering operator and supplier which reb..

March 12, 2024

Maryland second state with lower February sports betting handle

Player spending on sports wagering in Maryland reached $442.6m (£345.7m/€404.7m), an increase on the previous year but lower than January’s total.

Handle was up 30.4% from $339.4m in February 2023. However, it was 18.8% behind the $545.0m bet in Maryland during January this year.

The drop in handle follows the same trend as New York, with the Empire State announcing a reduction in February handle despite the Super Bowl. However, this could also be attributed to the shorter month of February and the NBA All-Star break that ran between 16-21 February.

Of the total in Maryland, $428.4m was wagered online, including $13.4m in free bets, and $14.1m at retail sportsbooks.

Sports betting handle was 18.8% behind the $545.0m bet in January

Taxable win – the amount remaining after deducting prizes, promotional wagers and other amounts – reached $28.1m. This was 51.2% ahead of $18.6m last year but 48.9% short of January’s $55.0m.

Mobile taxable win amounted to $27.1m, while retail wagering..

March 11, 2024

Entain, Betfred and Flutter join GC Industry Forum led by Nick Rust OBE

Directors of Flutter, Betfred, Entain and The Rank Group have been named among the nine appointed members of the Gambling Commission’s (GC) new Industry Forum, which will be chaired by Nick Rust, OBE.

Rust, who previously spent six years as British Horseracing Authority chief executive, was appointed as Industry Forum chair in November 2023.

Over a two-year term, Rust will oversee a forum that includes Ashley Padgett, director of compliance and anti-money laundering at Flutter’s UK and Ireland (UK&I) division, as well as Entain’s customer operations director for UK&I Leo Walker.

As well as Entain and Flutter, other UK gambling industry leaders will be represented. Betfred’s head of media Mark Pearson has been appointed to the forum, as well as David Williams, director of public affairs at Rank Group.

Merkur UK’s director of public and political relations, Tony Boulton, and Betsmart Consulting founder and director, Kirsty Caldwell, will also be joined on the forum by Charles Cohen,..

March 11, 2024

Tennessee online handle continues month-on-month decline

Players spent $378.2m (£294.9m/€346.1m) betting on sports online in February, the third consecutive month of decline in the Volunteer State.

Total handle for February was 15.6% higher than the same month last year. However, it was also 18.8% behind the $465.8m bet in Tennessee in February this year.

The monthly handle figure accounted for $2.2m in adjustments. Without these, gross handle for February in Tennessee reached $380.4m.

Year-on-year, gross handle increased 16.2%. However, on a month-on-month basis, gross handle for online betting for Tennessee was down 18.6%.

Privilege tax for the month amounted to $7.0m. This total was 9.4% ahead of February 2023 but 18.6% behind January’s $8.6m.

The Tennessee Sports Wagering Council (SWC) did not disclose data in terms of revenue. The SWC oversees the licensing and regulation of online sports wagering in Tennessee.

Heavy hitters compete in Tennessee

There was also no breakdown of each licensed operator in the state. Tennessee opene..

March 11, 2024

North Carolina prepares to launch online sports betting

North Carolina will today (11 March) open its legal sports betting market at noon EST today, with several major operators set to go live.

The Tar Heel State confirmed its launch date in January. Online sports betting will go live at noon EST in North Carolina, with retail set to follow in due course.

Governor Roy Cooper signed House Bill 347 into law in June 2023, paving the way for legal betting. However, the bill also came with a series of requirements, set out in a timeline for implementation.

governor roy cooper signed house bill 347 into law in june 2023

This included publishing regulations before 8 January 2024 and operators accepting wagers prior to 14 June 2024. The state met these last month, with operators to begin taking bets well ahead of June’s deadline. Operators were also given a deadline of 26 January to submit their internal controls before the market opened.

Who is launching in North Carolina?

Earlier this month, the North Carolina State Lottery Commission award..