Industry News of the Day for June 11, 2021

iDEA Growth Member News: 

• SBC, 6.10.21: Golden Race Prepares For US Entry With Kindred Deal 
  • Golden Race has signed a new partnership with Kindred Group which will enable the former to provide new online virtual sports to the US market. 
• Forbes, 6.11.21: DraftKings’ Founders Say Profitability Depends On Rollout Of States Legalizing Sports Betting (subscription paywall)
  
  • Fourteen months after going public via SPAC merger in the midst of the pandemic, daily fantasy and sports betting operator DraftKings is riding a wave of fast-paced growth as more U.S. states legalize sports gambling or consider legislation to do so. 
• SBC, 6.10.21: SBC Digital North America: Igaming and sports betting crossover trend set to continue (Cameron Hickey, PointsBet mentioned) 
  • Operators must take the cross-over of gaming verticals into consideration when trying to use land-based venues as a supplement to their mobile strategy. 

Overall Industry News:  

• SBC, 6.11.21: SBC Digital North America: igaming ‘an important part of the business model’ 
  • As the betting and gambling industry in the US continues to expand, much of the focus remains on betting verticials, but igaming continues to play a dominant role. 
• SBC, 6.11.21: SBC Digital North America: Balancing short-term player acquisition with preparing for future market expansion 
  • “There will come a time where operators need to ratchet down the spend to break even, and in those moments we feel we will be at our strongest.” The thoughts of Jon Kaplowitz, Head of Penn Interactive, made as part of a ‘Leaders in Gaming’ track session sponsored by GAN at this week’s SBC Digital North America on ‘how decisions igaming operators make now will impact growth in the future’. 

New York: 

• US Bets, 6.11.21: Exclusive: NY’s Total Sports Betting Handle Is Just $231.1 Million  
  • One of the mysteries of the nascent sports betting industry in the United States has been the handle originating from New York. The Empire State launched retail sports wagering in July 2019, and it is currently available at four non-tribal casinos north of Manhattan. 

Louisiana: 

• Beloit Daily News, 6.10.21: Louisiana Lawmakers OK Sports Betting Rules, Send To Edwards 
  • Months after most Louisiana voters agreed to legalize sports betting, lawmakers Thursday gave final passage to rules that will allow wagering through sports book sites, mobile apps and kiosk locations in parishes where voters supported the activity. 
• Legal Sports Report, 6.10.21: Louisiana Sports Betting Bills Squeak Through On Last Day Of Session 
  • Senators passed the main Louisiana sports betting regulatory bill, SB 247. Following a conference committee, the Senate also passed SB 142, which appropriates revenue from sports betting. The bills now head to Gov. John Bel Edwards, who signed HB 697 earlier this week. 

Massachusetts: 

• CBS Bost, 6.10.21: Hearing On Legalized Sports Betting Planned At Massachusetts State House 
  • It’s been more than two years since Gov. Charlie Baker announced plans to legalize professional sports betting in Massachusetts. But the Commonwealth still has yet to join neighboring New Hampshire and Rhode Island in allowing people to gamble on sports legally. 
• Legal Sports Report, 6.11.21: Massachusetts Sports Betting Bills Finally Get Hearing Next Week 
  • The Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies will meet at 10 a.m. Thursday to discuss MA sports betting proposals. There are 19 bills on the agenda as senators and representatives have continued to file bills since the beginning of the year. 

Iowa: 

• IGB, 6.11.21: Iowa Reveals Month-on-month Betting Revenue And Handle Declines In May 
  • Net receipts for the month amounted to $6.1m, which was 20.8% lower than the $7.7m recorded in April of this year, marking the second consecutive month of decline in Iowa. 
• Play Iowa, 6.10.21: As Temps Rise, May Sports Betting Handle Cools Slightly In Iowa 
  • May started with the Kentucky Derby and ended with the Indianapolis 500, but those sporting events don’t carry the betting pop of March Madness or the Super Bowl. 

Connecticut: 

• Legal Sports Report, 6.10.21: Decision Time: Final CT Sports Betting Skin Bidding Period Closes 
  • The Connecticut Lottery is on the clock as the window to bid for the final CT sports betting skin closes at 2 p.m. Friday. The Lottery formally asked four sportsbooks to submit binding bids for the RFP after receiving 15 responses during the request for qualifications period. 

Delaware: 

• IGB, 6.11.21: Delaware Igaming Revenue Down In May Despite 125.6% Hike In Spend 
  • Online gambling revenue in Delaware declined 17.3% year-on-year to $910,282 in May despite player spending more than doubling to $26.7m. 

Ohio: 

• Play Ohio, 6.10.21: Ohio Senate Makes Changes To Sports Betting Bill, Eyes Passage Soon 
  • For the past three weeks, the Ohio Senate Select Committee on Gaming heard industry feedback on its sports betting bill. Wednesday, the committee released a substitute bill that mostly ignored their requests. 
• Legal Sports Report, 6.10.21: Will Ohio Sports Betting Bill Pass By The End Of June? 
  • Sen. Kirk Schuring, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Gaming, held a brief meeting Wednesday afternoon to introduce a substitute bill. The committee met again Thursday to hear testimony, mostly from problem gambling groups and people focused on electronic bingo. 

Washington:  

• Legal Sports Report, 6.10.21: Washington Sports Betting On Track For NFL Launch After New Tribal Compacts  
  • On Thursday, the Washington State Gambling Commission approved renegotiated gaming compacts with 15 tribes in the state. The new compacts now include WA sports betting and will next be sent to Gov. Jay Inslee’s office for his signature. 

Florida: 

• Sun Sentinel, 6.11.21: Seminole Hard Rock CEO praises gambling deal as a potential $500 million annual boon for Florida 
  • Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming and chairman of Hard Rock International, has steered the Seminole Tribe of Florida’s casino operations for two decades. 

Illinois: 

• IGB, 6.10.21: Illinois betting revenue dips slightly in April despite retail improvement 
  • The $43.6m in revenue came on handle of $537.2m, down 14.4% from March’s record, when betting on the NCAA basketball tournament boosted revenue. The vast majority of betting revenue came from online bets, which brought in $40.9m, down 2.2%. This came on handle of $513.3m.