Industry News of the Day for February 11, 2021

iDEA Growth Member News

• Bloomberg, 2.10.21 – MGM Sees Online Bets Surging As Casino Market Remains Sluggish (Entain)
  • MGM Resorts International’s attempt to merge with its online betting partner sputtered last month, but their joint venture continues to thrive.
• SBC Americas, 2.11.21 – Entain Expands Safer Gambling Remit To Include Video Gaming And eSports
  • Global sports betting and gaming entertainment firm Entain has extended its initiatives in responsible gambling to include new areas comprising video-gaming and esports.
• SBC Americas, 2.10.21 – FansUnite Entertainment Hires Ifrah Law To Assist US Licensing Strategy
  • FansUnite Entertainment Inc has engaged the services of prominent US gaming law firm Ifrah Law PLLC to collaborate with OneComply Inc in assisting the company with its US licensing strategy.

Industry News:

• PlayUSA, 2.10.21 – PlayUSA Rewind: Remote Registration Works Magic For Iowa Sports Betting
  • We have reached a short period of calm in sports betting. The 2020 NFL season is behind us, we are a month out from March Madness and several months away from the NHL and NBA playoffs.
• The Action Network, 2.10.21 – Expanded Betting Audience Powers Action Network Growth For Super Bowl LV
  • The increasing popularity of betting across the country helped propel the Action Network to record audience numbers for Super Bowl LV. Action Network users spent the equivalent of nearly four years on the site and in the app during the weekend, with the audience growing 87% year over year.

Pennsylvania:

• Online Poker Report, 2.10.21 – GGPoker Parent Company NSUS To Receive PA Interactive Gaming Manufacturer License: What Does That Actually Mean?
  • There was considerable excitement in the Pennsylvania poker player community yesterday. It had come out that NSUS, an investment and marketing company, would be considered for an online gambling license at today’s meeting of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB).
• SBC Americas, 2.11.21 – Online Sports Betting Options Boost Pennsylvania Super Bowl Wagering
  • The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has published preliminary figures showing $53,634,680 was wagered in the Commonwealth on last weekend’s Super Bowl through retail and online sportsbooks. That was a 74% increase over wagers placed on the game last year.

Connecticut:

• Bloomberg, 2.10.21 – No Sunset On Connecticut Corporate Taxes In Governor’s Budget (subscription paywall)
  • Connecticut should tax the highway miles of tractor-trailers, continue a corporate tax, and agree to a multi-state plan that would raise the price of gasoline for all drivers, Gov. Ned Lamont proposed Wednesday as part of his overall budget.
• The Day, 2.10.21 – Lamont, Committed To Sports Betting, Online Gaming, Offers No Details
  • In his budget address, Gov. Ned Lamont reiterated his support for the legalization of sports betting and online gaming Wednesday while offering no details about how that’s going to be achieved.
• The Hartford Courant, 2.10.21 – Legal Marijuana, Online Gambling And No Broad Tax Increases: Here’s A Look At What’s In Gov. Lamont’s New Budget For Connecticut
  • Ned Lamont released his new, two-year state budget Wednesday, a plan that seeks to close $1 billion deficits in each of the two upcoming years through a combination of state budget reserves, federal aid and targeted new revenue sources like legal marijuana and sports betting while avoiding significant tax hikes or spending cuts.
• iGB North America, 2.11.21 – CT Governor Includes Betting And iGaming In 2022 Budget
  • Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont has proposed a measure in his 2022-23 budget that would give him the power to amend or agree new tribal gaming compacts, and legalize online betting and gaming.

West Virginia:

• PlayWV, 2.10.21 – West Virginia Online Casinos Hit Nearly $2.8 Million In Revenue This January
  • Online casino betting in the Mountain State is building more momentum almost every month. The relatively new market continues to take more online wagers and generate more profits each week.

Tennessee:

• TN Bets, 2.10.21 – Tennessee Bill Would Prevent Sports Betting At High-Interest Loan Locations
  • A controversial business model by one of Tennessee’s four state-sanctioned online/mobile sportsbooks is apparently the target of a proposed new law.
• SBC Americas, 2.10.21 – WynnBET Gains Tennessee Approval And Partners With Memphis Grizzlies
  • WynnBET, the casino and sports betting app developed by Wynn Resorts, has been conditionally approved for sports gaming in Tennessee.

Michigan:

• The Detroit News, 2.10.21 – Detroit Casinos Report $90.8 Million In Revenue In January, First Full Month Since Reopening
  • Detroit’s three casinos reported $90.84 million in monthly aggregate revenue in January, the first full month the venues were open since shuttering in November under state orders tied to the coronavirus pandemic.
• MI Bets, 2.10.21 – The Three Detroit Casinos Have A (New) Normal-ish January Despite Coronavirus Restrictions
  • Despite capacity limits still being firmly in place, the three Detroit casinos managed to “only” be off a little under 28% year-over-year for the month of January, according to numbers released today by the Michigan Gaming Control Board.

Illinois:

• Sports Handle, 2.10.21 – Zalewski Re-files Bill To Allow Sports Wagering On Illinois In-State Schools
  • With the new General Assembly seated in Illinois, State Representative Mike Zalewski re-filed a bill Wednesday to amend the Sports Wagering Act that would allow wagering on events involving in-state colleges and universities.

Kansas:

• Sports Handle, 2.10.21 – Kansas Lawmakers Hear From Sports Betting Proponents
  • Kansas lawmakers continued the process of discussing sports betting for the fourth consecutive session on Wednesday when the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee heard proponent testimony on a bill that would allow statewide mobile sports betting, but has some quirks.
• KSNT, 2.10.21 – Lawmakers Debate Sports Betting Proposals After Senate Passed Bill In 2020
  • Sports betting is back before Kansas lawmakers.

Louisiana:

• Shreveport Times, 2.10.21 – When Will Sports Betting Be Allowed In Louisiana? It May Not Happen This Year
  • Voters in most parishes supported the legalization of sports gambling last Nov. 3, but it may be 2022 by the time bettors are legally allowed to wager in Louisiana on football and other games.

Alabama:

• Montgomery Advertiser, 2.10.21 – The Battle Begins: Alabama Lottery, Casino Amendment Passes First Test In Legislature
  • The Alabama Legislature will consider gambling again this year, but new fronts in the decades-old battle may emerge.
• Bham Now, 2.10.21 – Alabama Senate Committee Passes Gambling Bill, Includes Bham Casino + Sports Betting
  • An Alabama Senate committee passed constitutional amendment legislation yesterday that will authorize the creation of a state lottery, establish five casinos and allow sports betting.

Georgia:

• Georgia Recorder, 2.10.21 – Online Sports Betting Could Defy Odds Against New Georgia Legal Gambling
  • The odds are looking better for online sports betting in Georgia after a group of high-ranking state senators filed a bill Tuesday night that would expand legalized gambling beyond the state’s decades-old lottery.

Florida:

• PlayUSA, 2.10.21 – Florida Sports Betting: The Billion Dollar Question
  • Every great rivalry has to begin somewhere. This brings us to the Sunshine State, where every year, a different kind of rivalry takes shape. One surrounding political efforts to legalize Florida sports betting.

Texas:

• Dallas Morning News, 2.10.21 – Sports Gambling In Texas? Cowboys Are Betting On New Revenue To Help Offset Pandemic Loss (subscription paywall)
  • As much as the Cowboys and every other franchise want to tap into this revenue stream to help compensate for losses incurred during the pandemic, it won’t happen immediately.
• Texas Standard, 2.10.21 – Dallas Pro Teams Want Texas To Life Ban On Sports Betting
  • The Cowboys, Mavericks and Rangers are behind a bill set to be introduced at the Texas Legislature that would require amending the Texas Constitution.

Arizona:

• Sports Handle, 2.11.21 – Arizona Senate Committee Postpones Sports Betting Hearing
  • The path to legal sports betting in Arizona hit a speed bump — or maybe more on Wednesday.
• The Action Network, 2.10.21 – Arizona Sports Betting Bill Stalls In Senate After Encouraging House Vote
  • An Arizona Senate committee did not advance online and retail sports betting legislation for the second time in as many days Wednesday, raising questions about what appeared to be one of the most promising legal wagering bill considered this year.
• KOLD, 2.10.21 – Arizona Bill Would Legalize Sports Betting, But Exclude Small Business Operations
  • Betting on any sporting event in Arizona is one step closer to reality, after a bill advanced at the state capitol, but not everyone is happy about the proposal.