Industry News of the Day for May 27, 2020

iDEA Growth Member News:

• Legal Sports Report, 5.26.20 – DraftKings CEO: Three Ways US Sports Betting Can Rebound From Pandemic Shutdowns
  • DraftKings CEO Jason Robins picked out three potential long-term upsides from the shutdown during a webinar on Friday.
• Boston Business Journal, 5.26.20 – With No Pro Sports, DraftKings Bets On Fantasy, Esports And Ping Pong (subscription paywall)
  • The Boston-based online gambling operator recently acquired the rights to livestream all the matches of Bundesliga — Germany’s top soccer league — in a move meant to broaden its offering of sports content.

Industry News:

• Legal Sports Report, 5.26.20 – The Week In Sports Betting News: Can An Overseas Powerhouse Dent U.S. Market In Colorado?
  • It was an exciting three-day weekend for sports betting with The Match 2.0, NASCAR, Bundesliga soccer and news from multiple leagues about potential restart plans.
• Sports Handle, 5.26.20 – Sports Returning As U.S. Betting Handle Surpasses $22B Since PASPA Fall
  • Symbolically, May was a great month for the legal U.S. sports betting industry and the legions of bettors across the country. It marked the return of live sports on American soil, highlighted by mixed martial arts, car racing, and golf.

Federal News:

• Sports Handle, 5.26.20 – Feds Tell Court That State Lotteries Face No Threat From Them – Not Yet, At Least
  • The U.S. Department of Justice filed a 33-page brief to the First Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday, seeking to overturn a lower-court ruling last year that invalidated a November 2018 Office of Legal Counsel opinion regarding the Wire Act of 1961.
• Gambling Compliance, 5.27.20 – U.S. Justice Department Insists It Cannot Be Sued For Wire Act Opinion (subscription paywall)
  • The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is doubling down on its argument that online lotteries and the internet gambling industry cannot challenge the department’s opinion on the Wire Act because the opinion has never been enforced.

Sports League News:

• US Bets, 5.27.20 – Shortened MLB Season Adds Underdog Intrigue To Player Prop Betting
  • The coronavirus pandemic has ensured the 2020 MLB season, if we’re lucky enough to have one, will look unlike any other.

New Jersey:

• PlayNJ, 5.26.20 – New Jersey Online Poker Is Thriving Amid The Pandemic, But Will It Last?
  • Online poker in New Jersey has produced two record-setting months in a row. While many businesses are suffering because of the coronavirus and strict lockdown measures, online poker rooms in the Garden State are thriving.
• PlayNJ, 5.26.20 – Governor Green Lights Pro Sports Training Camps, Games In The Garden State
  • Professional sports teams in NJ may return to training and even competition – if their leagues choose to move in that direction.

Pennsylvania:

• PlayPennsylvania, 5.26.20 – Will A Bill To Resume Horse Racing In PA Cross The Finish Line?
  • When can horse racing resume in Pennsylvania? Even the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission hasn’t a clue. A face-to-face meeting between Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration and members of horseman’s groups is now scheduled for Thursday.
• Penn Bets, 5.27.20 – Legislation Tries To Apply Pressure On Gov. Wolf To Resume Horse Racing
  • Like casinos and other forms of entertainment, the thoroughbred and harness tracks around Pennsylvania have been shut down since mid-March by the threat from the COVID-19 virus.
• Penn Bets, 5.26.20 – Delay In Live Poker’s Return Maybe Not As Bad For Casino Players
  • Poker players itching to return to live tables received bad news last week when the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board released guidelines that will keep poker rooms closed indefinitely whenever casinos reopen.

Connecticut:

• Online Poker Report, 5.26.20 – Will Swift Reopening Of Tribal Casinos Sour Online Gambling Negotiations In Connecticut?
  • In less than a week, the two tribal casinos in Connecticut will reopen against the state government’s express wishes.

Washington, D.C.:

• The Washington Post, 5.26.20 – D.C. Lottery Says Its Sports Betting Platform Will Launch By The End Of May
  • The D.C. Lottery said its online sports betting platform, GambetDC, will launch by the end of the month and gamblers will be able to place bets via the GambetDC app in early June.
• NBC Sports, 5.27.20 – D.C. Lottery Will Begin Taking Sports Bets Soon
  • States are increasingly eager to use sports betting as a source of revenue, and in the nation’s capital, that betting will come directly through the government-run lottery.

Michigan:

• PlayMichigan, 5.26.20 – More Than Half Of Michigan’s Casinos Will Reopen By Next Week
  • As Michigan temperatures go up this week and the state’s COVID-19 statistics continue to trend down, casinos are reopening throughout Michigan.
• Detroit Free Press, 5.27.20 – Closed Casinos Are Huge Loss For Detroit: How Much It Could Hurt
  • One revelation to emerge from Detroit’s 2013-2014 bankruptcy was the extent of the city’s dependence on tax receipts from the three casinos.

Ohio:

• Legal Sports Report, 5.27.20 – Ohio Sports Betting Bill Wakes Up From Long Slumber For Committee Vote
  • Ohio Rep. Dave Greenspan tells Legal Sports Report that his H 194 will advance through the House Finance Committee on Wednesday with a small technical amendment.

Illinois:

• Sports Handle, 5.26.20 – Illinois’ Arlington Park Won’t Commit To Racing Without Spectators
  • Arlington Park President Tony Petrillo did not make a commitment to “spectatorless” racing at his track during last Friday’s Illinois Racing Board meeting, adding another layer of intrigue to the 2020 horse racing season in the Land of Lincoln ahead of Friday’s potential Phase 3 re-opening of the state.
• PlayIllinois, 5.26.20 – Illinois Legislature Takes Another Swing At Amending Tax Code For Future Chicago Casino
  • The Illinois Legislature has agreed on the terms of an amendment that will restructure the Chicago casino tax. If Gov. J.B. Pritzker signs the amendment into law, it could raise hopes that the project will actually become a reality.
• US Bets, 5.26.20 – Downtown Chicago Casino Hopes Boosted With Passage Of Illinois Budget
  • The possibility of a casino in downtown Chicago received a measurable boost in the early hours of Sunday morning when Illinois lawmakers approved a $40 billion budget for the fiscal year starting July 1.

Louisiana:

• Legal Sports Report, 5.26.20 – Louisiana Sports Betting Referendum One Step Closer To Reality
  • Both chambers of the Louisiana legislature agree that voters should have the opportunity approve legalization of sports betting in November.

Colorado:

• PlayColorado, 5.26.20 – Sky Ute Sportsbook Sports Betting App Stealthily Launches In Colorado
  • Colorado sports bettors now have another app at their fingertips with the Sky Ute Sportsbook.
• PlayColorado, 5.26.20 – Sasquatch Casino Hopes To Take A Big Foothold Of CO Sportsbook Market
  • Ed & Shirley’s Inc. is a Colorado company that operates both Sasquatch Casino and Wild Card Saloon in Black Hawk. Those two CO casinos will soon be another option for residents and visitors looking for legal sports betting in Colorado.

Nevada:

• Gambling Compliance, 5.27.20 – Governor Gives Green Light To Nevada Casinos Reopening On June 4 (subscription paywall)
  • Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak will allow the state’s gaming industry to reopen on June 4 after being closed for more than two months due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Arizona:

• The Action Network, 5.26.20 – Legal Sports Betting Likely Out In Arizona In 2020
  • Sports betting will likely not be heading to Arizona in 2020.

Oklahoma:

• Law360, 5.26.20 – Gov. Insists Tribal Gaming Compacts Didn’t Renew (subscription paywall)
  • Oklahoma’s governor is not backing down from his argument that he has the right to renegotiate tribal-state gambling compacts, telling a federal judge in a suit brought by the Cherokee, Chickasaw and Choctaw nations that the compacts didn’t automatically renew as the tribes contend.