Sports betting – Page 33

June 4, 2024

Mizuhara pleads guilty to stealing $17m from Ohtani to pay gambling debt

On Tuesday (4 June) morning, former Shohei Ohtani interpreter Ippei Mizuhara pled guilty to two federal counts of stealing $17m from Ohtani. Mizuhara fell hard and fast into gambling debt with an illegal bookmaker. His sentencing is set for 25 October.

Mizuhara, wearing a dark suit with an untucked shirt and no tie, told Judge John A Holcomb: “I worked for Victim A and had access to his accounts. I had fallen into major gambling debt. The only way I could think of to pay that was to send money from Victim A’s account” to the illegal bookmaker.

Mizuhara then pled guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of subscribing to a fraudulent tax return. The maximum penalty for the charges is 33 years in prison and a $1.5m fine. Tuesday’s proceedings took place at the Ronald Reagan Federal Building and Court House in Santa Ana, California. Previous court appearances were at the Roybal federal complex in downtown Los Angeles.

From here, the court and US Probation Office will put toge..

June 4, 2024

Spain online gambling revenue rises to €350.7m in Q1

Gross online gambling revenue in Spain amounted to €350.7m (£298.6m/$381.6m) during Q1, a 15.1% increase from the opening quarter of last year and 11.2% ahead of Q4.

The Q1 total was comfortably ahead of €313.3m in the same period last year. It is also more than the €315.3m generated in Spain in the final quarter of 2023.

Casino remains the primary source of revenue, generating €167.8m in Q1, or 47.8% of all market revenue. The quarterly total was 17.0% higher than last year but 2.1% behind Q4.

Year-on-year casino growth was helped by a 15.0% rise in slots revenue and 22.2% rise in roulette revenue. Growth was also reported across blackjack and roulette.

Elsewhere, sports betting revenue amounted to €150.3m, representing 42.9% of overall revenue for the quarter. This is 15.4% higher than Q1 last year and also 31.0% ahead of Q4.

Within this market, pre-match betting activity rocketed by 588.8% year-on-year but in-play bets were down 31.7%. Other bet types edged up 1.6% while horse ..

June 4, 2024

MLB investigating Padres player, four minor leaguers for betting on baseball

Major League Baseball (MLB) has opened an investigation into five players thought to have bet on baseball while playing in the league, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday (3 June). The players face a lifetime ban if the accusations are true.

MLB – and all of the US professional sports leagues – prohibit players from betting on their own sport. MLB players who bet on their own teams face a lifetime suspension. The penalty for betting on other teams is up to one year.

San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano was named by the WSJ, which also reported four minor leaguers are under investigation. It’s not clear if the players were betting legally or illegally. Marcano is being investigated for betting on baseball and the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was on injured reserve last season.

US professional sports have been under a microscope with regard to gambling of late. Former NBA player Jontay Porter was banned from the league for life on 17 April after violating league gambling ru..

June 3, 2024

What if Ippei Mizuhara had started betting with a legal operator in a legal market?

Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara bet millions with an illegal bookie. His addiction bloomed fast. Could he have been slowed or helped if he'd been wagering with a legal operator?

US operators have many checkpoints in place that may have indicated Mizuhara had or was developing an addiction problem. And none would have extended Mizuhara credit to gamble.

But the short answer, according to a recovering addict turned addiction counselor, is that none of that would have mattered. The best efforts by legal operators are no match for addiction.

“To a (addicted) bettor, none of those are a deterrent,” said Dave Yeager, who overcame a gambling addiction and is now a recovery counsellor. “In the throes of an addiction, when the addiction is at its highest, when the next bet is so all-consuming, then nothing else matters…. There’s just not a whole lot of things that are going to stop you from doing it.”

At its height, addiction is overpowering

Yeager, who works ..

June 3, 2024

England cricketer Carse banned for betting breach

English fast bowler Brydon Carse will serve a ban from playing cricket after breaching betting rules.

The punishment from the Cricket Regulator states 13 months of Carse’s 16-month ban will be suspended.

Brydon’s team Durham says he can train during his ban, which will run until 28 August.

The 28-year-old is charged with placing 303 bets on various matches between 2017 and 2019.

Carse did not place any bets on games in which he played. He accepted the charges and “demonstrated significant remorse”, the Cricket Regulator said.

The Cricket Regulator is responsible for monitoring compliance and enforcement of the game’s regulations in England. It was established in December 2023 and is ring-fenced from the rest of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

Educational example

“We take these matters extremely seriously and do not condone any form of anti-corruption breach in cricket,” the ECB stated.

“We support the Cricket Regulator’s decision and their consideration of the mitiga..

June 3, 2024

Ohio sports betting revenue hikes 15.8% to $73.9m in April

Sports betting revenue in Ohio reached $73.9m (£58m/€68.1m) in April, a 15.8% month-on-month increase.

The April revenue was a sizeable rise on the $63.8m reported in Ohio in March. The figure also takes Ohio to a year-to-date sports betting revenue of $317.1m.

Online accounted for $72.8m in revenue, 98.5% of the total. Retail, meanwhile, was responsible for $1.1m.

The rise in revenue was despite handle dropping 16.7% to $673.2m from March’s figure of $808.2m. Ohio operators paid out $593.1m in winnings, while $20.1m was attributed to promotions.

Year-on-year, handle was up 29.3% while revenue was 16.7% higher than the same month last year.

FanDuel still on top

FanDuel again led the way in April with online handle and revenue of $226.7m and $34m respectively.

DraftKings, meanwhile, reported April online handle of $216.8m and revenue of $20.8m.

Bet365 was third again for handle with a total of $48.9m, generating $5.1m in revenue. BetMGM and ESPN Bet reported handles of $45.2m an..

June 3, 2024

US April round-up: Betting growth in Virginia, mixed month for Colorado

Analysing the latest monthly sports betting results from across the US, iGB takes a look at year-on-year growth in Virginia during April and a month of mixed fortunes in Colorado.

Virginia reported an increase in both sports betting revenue and handle in April. However, while Colorado saw player spending rise year-on-year, total wagering revenue was lower.

Beginning in Virginia with player spending, this amounted to $563.5m (£442.4m/€519.2m. This represents a year-on-year rise of 32.3% but 11.3% less than March’s $635.5m total.

Bettors spent some $559.3m betting online, plus $4.2m at retail sportsbooks in land-based casinos across Virginia.

As for adjusted gross revenue, this hit $54.6m, which is 40.4% higher than April last year and 28.8% more than $42.4m in March this year.

Of this total, $54.5m came from online betting, while just $110,208 was generated in retail revenue.

Adjusted gross revenue is calculated by taking off player winnings, bonuses and promotion and other ded..

June 3, 2024

BetMakers pens market access deals with Bet365 in New Jersey and Colorado

BetMakers Technology Group has entered into market access agreements with Bet365 to supply the operator with its fixed odds horse racing betting offering in New Jersey and Colorado.

Under the agreements, BetMakers will offer fixed-odds bets on thoroughbred horse racing to Bet365 customers across both states. Both deals run for a period of two years.

Bet365 will be licensed to distribute BetMakers’ thoroughbred racing content to players in New Jersey. The arrangement also covers thoroughbred and harness racing in Colorado.

In New Jersey, Bet365 will pay BetMakers a market access fee. This is based on a percentage of all fixed-odds bets placed in the state on thoroughbred racing events. In addition, Bet365 will pay a content fee based on a percentage of fixed-odds bets placed in both New Jersey and Colorado on applicable BetMakers Global Racing Network content.

BetMakers said the deal marks the entrance of the first major operator to New Jersey’s fixed-odds horse racing market. As ..

May 31, 2024

Illinois’ proposed high sports betting tax rate could backfire on lawmakers

Illinois' general assembly made a money grab earlier this week, but gambling stakeholders say it could backfire. Lawmakers sent a FY2025 budget that includes a progressive tax rate topping out at 40% to Governor JB Pritzker.

On the face of it, raising the sports betting tax rate seems like a good way for any state to bring in more revenue. But stakeholders say Illinois consumers will likely be the recipients of unintended consequences. During the house budget debate, one Republican representative suggested an appropriations line for funds to treat the Democrats’ unchecked “spending addiction”.

The budget bill is now headed to Pritzker’s desk and it seems like a slam dunk that he will sign it. That, stakeholders say, will seal the fate of Illinois bettors.

“Players are probably going to see fewer promotions and that is not good for the consumer,” West Virginia lawmaker and government affairs chief for Play ‘n Go Shawn Fluharty told iGB. “It could impact the lines and that is ano..

May 31, 2024

Key Penn shareholder: Sell ESPN Bet to save face and prop up share prices

The Donerail Group, a shareholder of Penn Entertainment, is calling for the company to sell assets amid strategic interest.

Significant shareholder Donerail sent a letter to the Penn board of directors and board chair David Handler. In the letter, Donerail urged the company to sell assets to generate “meaningful and certain” value creation for investors.

Donerail stated its belief that Penn’s casino assets alone are valued at over double the company’s current market capitalisation.

The hedge fund manager noted heavy criticism of Penn from the investment community over its capital allocation strategy. It highlighted that Penn’s shares are down more than 80% over the last three years.

Donerail said: “The growing pattern of guidance misses, alongside a demonstrated unyielding appetite to continue to invest in the company’s fledgling interactive projects, irrespective of past results and without a clear return framework, has significantly damaged the credibility of this management team..

May 31, 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.

SCOTUS sets conference Florida wagering case date

The US Supreme Court will conference on 13 June to discuss West Flagler Associates (WFA) Ltd vs Deb Haaland. The case could change the course of legal sports betting in Florida. WFA earlier this year filed a writ of certiorari. The focus of the case is whether or not US Department of the Interior Secretary Haaland should have allowed the 2021 compact between the state of Florida and the Seminole tribe to become “deemed approved”.

The compact allows for the Seminoles to offer retail and digital wagering throughout Florida. Bets placed anywhere in Florida that run through a tribal server are considered to have been placed on tribal lands, according to the compact. This scenario is not used anywhere else in the US. WFA argues that the compact violates the Indian..

May 30, 2024

Nevada gambling revenue declines again in April

Total gambling revenue in Nevada amounted to $1.24bn (£977.0m/€1.15bn) during April, an increase on last year but the second consecutive month of decline in the Silver State.

The monthly total was 6.9% ahead of $1.16bn in April last year but 3.9% less than $1.29bn in Nevada in March this year. March was also lower than February’s total, with February having been boosted by Nevada’s hosting of the NFL’s Super Bowl.

Once again, slots proved to be the primary source of revenue for operators, generating a total of $886.8m. This is 5.9% higher than in April last year. Multi-denomination slots drew the most revenue at $586.8m during the month, a rise of 26.4%.

High-stakes slots also saw more revenue, with increases across both $25 (up 137.6%) and $100 machines (up 14.5%). In contrast, revenue from all lower-stakes machines was down year-on-year.

Blackjack and baccarat drive growth

Looking elsewhere in Nevada, revenue from table, counter and card games – including sports betting – climb..

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Tag: Sports betting