Industry News of the Day for December 3, 2019

iDEA Growth Member News:

• Sports Handle, 12.2.19 – DraftKings Sportsbook NFL Pick’em Frontrunner Talks Strategy, Sweating, Stretch Run
  • DraftKings Sportsbook’s “Super Pool” NFL Pick’em Contest for New Jersey bettors only, which flew under the radar with an NFL Week 4 launch and little fanfare, is now descending before a Week 17 landing as the success of varying strategies come into focus.
• Play Pennsylvania, 12.2.19 – Fox Bet Partners With 76ers, Joining The Crowd Of Online Sportsbooks At Wells Fargo Center
  • On Nov. 25, FOX Bet and the Philadelphia 76ers officially announced a new partnership. FOX Bet is the sports betting brand of FOX Sports and The Stars Group (PokerStars).

Industry News:

• Legal Sports Report, 12.2.19 – The Week In Sports Betting News: Yeah, It’s Never Been OK For NFL Players To Bet On NFL Games
  • This is usually a slow time of year for sports betting news but plenty happened last week despite the holidays cutting it short. Let’s recap some of the biggest stories.
• Bloomberg, 12.2.19 – What Are The Odds Sports Betting Brings New Troubles?: Quick Take (subscription paywall)
  • One of the main objections to legalizing sports betting used to be that it would tempt players and officials to rig games. But that’s become something of a moot point following an explosion of illegal sports gambling via online bookmakers.

Pennsylvania:

• Play Pennsylvania, 12.2.19 – Harrah’s Philadelphia And The Eagles Are Teaming Up With A New Partnership
  • Expect to see lots more mentions of Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino and Racetrack at Lincoln Financial Field, which is home to the Philadelphia Eagles. Harrah’s parent, Caesars Entertainment, has a new marketing deal with the struggling 5-7 Eagles.

Michigan:

• Detroit Free Press, 12.3.19 – Sports Betting Legislation Getting Support From Michigan Indian Tribes
  • Leaders of Michigan’s Indian tribes, whose support could be crucial to allowing sports betting in Michigan, are generally on board with legislation that has passed the state House and will be taken up by a Senate committee Tuesday, says the bill’s sponsor.

California:

• Legal Sports Report, 12.2.19 – Lawmakers To Tackle California Sports Betting Bill In January Hearing
  • California lawmakers plan to continue their effort to put a sports betting initiative on the ballot despite the state’s Native American tribes opting to break off and file their own amendment.

Illinois:

• Chicago Sun-Times, 12.2.19 – Illinois Sports Betting Market Could Rival Nevada’s – Once It Finally Launches
  • Within four years, bettors could be placing nearly $5.2 billion in bets in Illinois, according to one market forecast. Sports wagering has yet to go live here, though.

Washington, D.C.:

• Play USA, 12.2.19 – Play USA’s ‘On The Record:’ The Small Business Of DC Sports Betting
  • Thanksgiving may be over, but this year entrepreneurs in Washington, DC, have something else to be thankful for: inclusion. Thanks to language in a DC sports betting bill, the District is the only place where small business owners can apply for a license to operate a sportsbook.

Tennessee:

• Las Vegas Review-Journal, 12.2.19 – Spread Of Sports Wagering Snags One Of Nevada’s Top Women In Gaming
  • Last week, the state of Tennessee took another bite out of Nevada’s collective sports betting regulatory expertise by luring attorney Jennifer Roberts to Nashville to become that state’s director of sports gaming regulation for the Tennessee Education Lottery Corp.

Missouri:

• Missouri Net, 12.3.19 – Sports Betting And Alleged Illegal Slots Addressed In Missouri House Committee Report
  • Legislation legalizing sports wagering has the backing of a bipartisan Missouri House gaming committee.

Iowa:

• KCRG, 12.2.19 – Millions Have Already Been Wagered On Sports In Iowa, With Most Bets Placed Online
  • Casinos across the state have had three full months to take bets on sporting events, leading to millions of dollars in wagers, but a majority of the money that people are betting is happening without anyone stepping foot in a casino.
• Quad-City Times, 12.2.19 – ‘This Gave Me A Reason To Start watching Again:’ Bettors Flock To Legal Sports Gambling In Iowa Quad-Cities
  • In two of the first three months that sports betting has been live, online wagering has made up more than half of all sports wagers in Iowa.

Virginia:

• SBC Americas, 12.3.19 – Virginia Takes Divergent View To New Gaming Opportunities
  • A new study, Gaming in the Commonwealth 2019, produced by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, citing findings from The Innovation Group, has painted a divided picture of attitudes towards expanding gaming in the state of Virginia.

Rhode Island:

• Gambling Compliance, 12.3.19 – Rhode Island Seeks To Increase Mobile Sports-Betting Registration (subscription paywall)
  • Rhode Island is readying a big push to take its sports-betting operations to the next level after a move to go mobile this fall led to a sizable jump in wagers on NFL contests and other games.

Nevada:

• Play USA, 12.2.19 – William Hill’s Purchase Of CG Technology Could Mean Vegas Sportsbook Dominance
  • William Hill recently announced that they purchased the sportsbook assets of CG Technology. This deal is subject to certain closing conditions, including regulatory approval in Nevada and the Bahamas, where CG Technology consults the Atlantis on Paradise Island.

Sports League News:

• Legal Sports Report, 12.3.19 – NFL Suspension Of Josh Shaw Shows Where Communication Can Improve In Legal Sports Betting Era
  • With the NFL‘s recent announcement to suspend Arizona Cardinals cornerback Josh Shaw, everyone in the legal US sports betting market should keep their eyes wide open.
• Sports Handle, 12.2.19 – Analysis Of Josh Shaw’s Ban: Is Transparency Required From Leagues When Releasing Details On Betting Investigations?
  • Last week on Black Friday, one of the slowest news days of the year, the NFL announced the suspension of an active player for gambling for the first time in more than two decades.