Industry News of the Day for June 1, 2021

Overall Industry News: 

• Forbes, 5.31.21: Sportsbook Stock Investors Betting On Online Casino Expansion In US (subscription paywall)
  
  • The COVID-19 held a small silver lining for sports bettors and gamblers, as casino closures forced many jurisdictions to reconsider legislations limiting or restricting online gambling altogether. The young US regulated sports betting marketplace found itself in a peculiar predicament, with doors closed and little to bet on for those that managed to remain open. 
• SBC, 6.1.21: Tech Innovation Driving Sports Betting: What Gives An Operator The Edge? 
  • As more and more states move to legalize sports betting, attaching hefty compliance costs and regulatory constraints, the common one-size-fits all approach often employed is no longer sufficient for operators to achieve sustainable profits. White-label solutions may have found a place in the grey to black markets, where there is a route to avoid tax and social responsibility costs, but the model is no longer viable in regulated territories. 
• Philadelphia Inquirer, 5.30.21: Action Network’s Patrick Keane, a Media Deal-maker, Is Riding The Sports-Betting Craze 
  • Keane, 50, is chief executive officer of the Action Network Inc., a media company aimed at sports bettors that was created four years ago, before the U.S. Supreme Court struck down federal restrictions on sports wagering. For Action Network, the timing couldn’t have been better 

Rhode Island: 

• IGB, 6.1.21: Rhode Island Sports Betting Revenue Reaches $3.2m in April 
  • Sports betting revenue in Rhode Island amounted to $3.2m in April, while the US state’s handle reached $29.0m during the month. 

Connecticut: 

• WFSB, 5.28.21: Sports Wagering Could Net CT $1.5 Billion Annually 
  • PlayCT said the state could rake in $1.5 billion in wagers each year to go along with $100 million in operator revenue. 

California: 

• Legal Sports Report, 5.28.21: Why Tribal California Sports Betting Initiative Stops Short Of Mobile 
  • On Thursday, the California Secretary of State announced that a petition for a sports betting ballot question was approved. The ballot measure would authorize tribes in the state to operate roulette, dice games and sports betting in California on tribal lands. Gaming expansion on tribal lands will also require an amended compact with the state. 
• Sports Handle, 5.28.21: Sports Betting Measure Lands On California Ballot For 2022 Election, But Will There Be A Separate Initiative For Mobile? 
  • But if sports gambling is legalized in the Golden State, it may not occur until 2022 at the earliest. On Thursday, the California Secretary of State announced that a certain ballot measure to amend the state’s constitution will appear on the next statewide general election in November 2022. The announcement appears to quiet speculation that a sports betting measure could get lumped in with a gubernatorial recall vote, one that may be held at some point this fall. 

Maine: 

• News Center Maine, 5.28.21: Maine Lawmakers Vote Down Three Sports Betting Bills Leaving One To Be Worked On 
  • After four sports betting bills were introduced in this legislative session, one remained after the Legislature Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs voted down the other three during a work session Friday. 

Virginia: 

• IGB, 6.1.21: Virginia Sees First Sports Betting Revenue And Handle Declines in April 
  • The Virginia Lottery in April reported the first month-on-month decline in sports wagering revenue and handle since the US state’s regulated market launched in January. 
• SBC, 6.1.21: Virginia Sportsbooks See April Decline But Still On Course For Fastest State To Reach $1bn 
  • Virginia sports betting has seen a month-on-month decline for the first time since launching in January, continuing a nationwide trend of falling betting volume. The drop in wagering to less than $240m in April was expected, a product of a slower spring and summer sports schedule, according to PlayVirginia. 

Massachusetts: 

• Legal Sports Report, 5.28.21: MA Sports Betting Once Again Left Out Of Senate Budget 
  • It looks like the path to legal MA sports betting will again have to come through standalone legislation. The Senate did not include sports betting revenue in its budget proposal despite multiple amendments trying to add it. The House also excluded sports betting in MA from its proposal. 

Illinois: 

• Online Poker Report, 5.31.21: The Illinois Legislative Session Ends Today – Is The Online Gambling Effort Dead? 
  • The Illinois legislature should reconvene for a veto session in the fall. It cancelled that session last year due to COVID, but it is standard practice under more normal circumstances. Lawmakers may take that opportunity to finish what they started in the spring. 
• Bleacher Nation, 6.1.21: House Passes Amendment to Lift Sports Betting Ban on In-State Colleges 
  • Illinois residents could soon place bets on their favorite in-state collegiate programs after the House of Representatives passed an amendment that would allow such betting for the next two years.