Industry News of the Day for April 16, 2020

iDEA Growth in the News:

• Gambling.Com, 4.15.20 – Tennessee Sports Betting Regulations Set With 90% Hold Cap (iDEA Growth mentioned)
  • The Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation approved sports betting rules on Wednesday, setting an extremely high hold cap at 90%.

iDEA Growth Member News:

• PlayIA, 4.15.20 – DraftKings Wants To Bring eSports Betting To Iowa, But Will The IRGG Cooperate?
  • For gamblers across the Hawkeye State, the time for esports betting might be near. If such markets do open soon, Iowa bettors could have DraftKings to thank.
• Variety, 4.15.20 – DraftKings Cleared To Go Public After Merger With Harry Sloan’s Diamond Eagle
  • Sports betting giant DraftKings has been cleared to become a public company following approval of a merger with SBTech and Diamond Eagle Acquisition, the public acquisition vehicle headed by industry veterans Harry Sloan and Jeff Sagansky.

Industry News:

• ESPN, 4.16.20 – Sports Betting Numbers Show Coronavirus Pandemic’s Impact
  • New Jersey sportsbooks saw year-over-year revenue cut in half in March as the coronavirus pandemic halted essentially all major sporting events during what is normally one of the busiest months of the year for the sports betting industry.
• Associated Press, 4.15.20 – No More Bets: March Revenue Plunges As Virus Shuts Casinos
  • Revenue from casinos in numerous U.S. states plunged in March as the coronavirus forced the shutdown of in-person gambling across the country in the middle of the month.
• Online Poker Report, 4.15.20 – Closed By Coronavirus And Omitted From Federal Disbursement, Small US Casinos Plead For Relief
  • Small casinos around the US are waiting with bated breath to find out if they qualify for federal COVID-19 relief.
• Online Poker Report, 4.15.20 – The Big Celebrity Charity Poker Tournament Shows US Online Gambling ‘Ban’ Is A Fantasy
  • This is perhaps the worst-kept secret within the gambling industry: Online poker and gambling is banned in word but not in practice around the US.
• Legal Sports Report, 4.15.20 – How NFL Draft Is Becoming First Overall Pick For Sports-Starved Betting Public
  • US sportsbook operators have seen a flood of bets on the NFL Draft, as sports-starved bettors look for a return to normalcy.

Sports League News:

• Los Angeles Times, 4.15.20 – XFL Gambled By Linking Game Action To Sports Betting
  • The XFL, which lasted only five weeks, might be best remembered for the way it embraced sports betting.

Tennessee:

• Associated Press, 4.15.20 – Games Paused By Virus, Tennessee OKs Sports-Betting Rules
  • Tennessee has ended months of work setting up its rules for an online-only sports betting law that passed last year and has yet to see its first wager.
• Legal Sports Report, 4.16.20 – How Tennessee Sports Betting Minimum-Hold Rule Could Stop Market Before It Starts
  • Legal Tennessee sports betting will begin in when sports resume being played in the country. But bettors likely will find wagering in the Volunteer State less profitable than in other US jurisdictions.
• Sports Handle, 4.15.20 – Tennessee Sports Betting Rules Include Controversial, Novel ‘Payout Cap’
  • The Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation Board of Directors in a telephone conference on Wednesday unanimously approved final TN sports betting rules, and in doing so became the first jurisdiction in the U.S. to stipulate how much money legal sportsbook operators may pay out overall on total bets taken.
• Gambling Compliance, 4.16.20 – Tennessee Lottery First US Regulator To Cap Sports-Betting Payouts (subscription paywall)
  • After more than six months of debate, Tennessee on Wednesday became the first U.S. jurisdiction to institute a maximum payout for sports betting, adopting rules that include a 90 percent payout limit.
• TN Bets, 4.15.20 – Tennessee Eyes Mobile Sports Betting Launch By Return Of Major Sports
  • The Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation on Wednesday held a brief teleconference meeting to put the finishing touches on regulations for online/mobile sportsbooks that were approved via statute in mid-2019.

New Jersey:

• Online Poker Report, 4.16.20 – With Live Card Rooms Shut Down, New Jersey Online Poker Revenue Doubles In March
  • Brick-and-mortar casinos may have been forced to close, but online gambling in New Jersey has never been hotter.
• iGB North America, 4.16.20 – NJ Sports Betting Revenue Down As iGaming Soars
  • The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement has reported a 58.4% year-on-year decline in sports betting revenue in March, primarily due to the widespread shutdown of sports events as a result of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis.
• PlayNJ, 4.15.20 – AC Casino Closures Catapults NJ Online Casino Revenue Into Record Territory
  • The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement released March’s gambling revenue on Wednesday.
• Gambling Compliance, 4.16.20 – New Jersey Online Casinos Surge Amid State-Wide Shutdown (subscription paywall)
  • New Jersey’s online casinos reported record revenue of nearly $65m in March, a month when they had the state’s gaming market partly to themselves following the closure of Atlantic City’s land-based casinos.
• NJ Online Gambling, 4.15.20 – With Major Sports All Paused, NFL Draft Betting Generating Enormous Handle In NJ
  • A week from Thursday, NFL general managers and their staffs will sit alone at home on their computers and phones and start selecting players in the 2020 NFL draft.

Pennsylvania:

• PlayPennsylvania, 4.15.20 – PA Gaming Review: Futures, Online Poker And Belarusian Soccer Help Fill Betting Void
  • If the virus shutdown has shown us anything we can all agree on, it’s that Pennsylvania people are adaptable.

West Virginia:

• PlayWV, 4.15.20 – West Virginia Online Sportsbooks Offer Action On Friday’s WNBA Draft
  • According to a spokesperson, the West Virginia Lottery approved sports betting licensees’ requests to offer action on the 2020 WNBA Draft. And that means the West Virginia sports betting crowd can look forward to betting on the WNBA.

Michigan:

• PlayMichigan, 4.15.20 – Nine Years After Black Friday, Michigan Online Poker Is Still A Year Away
  • Nine years ago Wednesday, the Michigan online poker world was largely shut down when the US Department of Justice cracked down on top poker sites. It should be just about the decade mark of that Black Friday anniversary when legalized online poker officially makes its return to Michigan next year.

Colorado:

• PlayUSA, 4.15.20 – Colorado Sports Betting Not Wavering From May 1 Launch
  • Administratively, Colorado is ready. By all accounts, May 1 remains a realistic target date for the launch of legalized sports betting in the Centennial State.

Nevada:

• PlayNevada, 4.15.20 – Nevada Gaming Approves Three More eSports Events For Wagering
  • Nevada Gaming Control approved three new esports events for wagering this week.
• Gambling Compliance, 4.16.20 – New Guidelines Leave Nevada Casinos Struggling For Federal Assistance (subscription paywall)
  • Revised federal guidelines on the eligibility of gaming companies to receive payroll assistance are unlikely to help many small Nevada casinos, according to lawmakers and industry analysts.

California:

• PlayCA, 4.15.20 – California Card Rooms, Echoed By Cities That Depend On Them, Express Concerns Over Financial Situation
  • California card rooms that closed their doors in response to the coronavirus pandemic are now putting their efforts into seeking financial assistance from the state. The communities that depend on them have joined the effort, as well.