Industry News of the Day for October 19, 2020

Industry News:

• Sports Handle, 10.16.20 – Get A Grip: The Week In Sports Betting: Record-Breaking Monthly $750M New Jersey Betting Handle; Michigan XMas Gift, More
  • Here’s the weekend (or fashionably late) Sports Handle item, “Get a Grip,” recapping the week’s top U.S. sports betting stories, highlighting some fresh news, and rounding up key stories.

Overall Industry News:

• Online Poker Report, 10.16.20 – Social Casino Developer Playtika Files Paperwork For Initial Public Offering
  • Playtika Holding Corp, a major developer of social casino games, has begun filing paperwork for an initial public offering (IPO) in the US.
• PlayUSA, 10.16.20 – Analyst: Caesars Scoring A Big Win In Sports Betting Land Grab
  • The high-profile acquisition of William Hill US by minority owner Caesars Entertainment further reveals just how much gaming companies are willing to spend to access the burgeoning American sports betting market.
• iGB North America, 10.16.20 – Yahoo Sports Bolsters Sportsbook And DFS With BetMGM
  • Verizon Media-owned media platform Yahoo Sports has added a number of new features to its sportsbook and daily fantasy sports products through its existing partnership with BetMGM.

Federal News:

• Gambling Compliance, 10.19.20 – What A New US President And New Congress Might Do On Sports Betting (subscription paywall)
  • It died with barely a whimper two years ago, but a Senate bill calling for federal regulation of sports betting could rise from the grave if Democrats win control of the White House and Senate in the November 3 elections.

Sports League News:

• The Desert Sun, 10.17.20 – The Era Of Open Talk About Gambling On The PGA Tour Has Arrived
  • If you have been watching the CJ Cup on the PGA Tour this weekend, you have witnessed something you have never seen before.

New Jersey:

• Axios, 10.16.20 – New Jersey Is America’s New Sports Betting Capital
  • New Jersey’s sports betting market shattered its own national record in September, taking in nearly $749 million in bets.

Pennsylvania:

• Legal Sports Report, 10.16.20 – Pennsylvania Sports Betting Market Joins Record Party
  • Pennsylvania joined the list of states hitting new sports betting heights in the packed sports month of September.
• PlayPennsylvania, 10.16.20 – Sports-Packed September Scores PA Sportsbook New Record $462.8 Million Handle
  • Pennsylvania’s legal sports betting market is not even two years old yet but it continues to put up big numbers.

Washington, D.C.:

• PlayVirginia, 10.16.20 – Neighborhood Commission Trying To Block DC Sports Betting Bar Handle19
  • A DC Advisory Neighborhood Commission put off voting on whether to support the liquor license for Handle19 after a group of residents came out in opposition to having a sports betting venue in their neighborhood.

Maryland:

• Herald Mail Media, 10.16.20 – Should Sports Betting Be Legal In Maryland? Voters Will Choose
  • Maryland voters will decide whether to legalize sports betting when they cast their ballots this year.

Michigan:

• PlayMichigan, 10.16.20 – This Rule Means MI Online Casinos Won’t Be Packed With Games At Launch
  • When online sports betting launches later this year, Michigan residents can expect things to move pretty quickly. The same cannot be said of Michigan’s online casinos.

Illinois:

• Sports Handle, 10.16.20 – Pritzker Again Renews Executive Order For Remote Sports Betting Registration In Illinois
  • Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker again renewed Executive Order 2020-41, which suspends the in-person registration requirement and allows remote registration for mobile/online sports betting.
• PlayIllinois, 10.17.20 – Pritzker Extends Mobile Registration; Could Be Green Light For More IL Sportsbooks
  • Once again, Gov. JB Pritzker renews his executive order to continue allowing mobile sports betting registration in Illinois.

Iowa:

• KIWA Radio, 10.16.20 – Sports Betting On The Rise In Iowa; Record Set Last Month
  • The coronavirus pandemic has slowed the state’s traditional gambling industry — but it has been a boom time in the past few months for the burgeoning sports betting side.
• Radio Iowa, 10.16.20 – Council Bluffs Area Casinos Get Approval For Online Sports Betting
  • The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission approved four agreements for online sports gambling for properties in Council Bluffs.

Tennessee:

• Sports Handle, 10.16.20 – Tennessee Regulators Approve Sports Betting Menu With Eye Still On Nov. 1 — Or Earlier — Launch
  • In a series of meetings that ran three-plus hours on Friday, regulators in Tennessee made language changes to sports betting rules, approved a betting menu, smoothed out language surrounding collegiate sports wagering, and said they’re still aiming for Nov. 1 to launch at least three operators — if not sooner.
• PlayTenn, 10.16.20 – What Sports Can You Bet On In Tennessee?
  • The Tennessee Education Lottery’s (TEL) Sports Wagering Advisory Council held a special meeting Friday, Oct. 16 to discuss the approaching Nov. 1 launch.

West Virginia:

• iGB North America, 10.19.20 – Com Lands iGaming License In WV
  • Performance marketing business BonusFinder.com has further enhanced its presence in the US by extending its license in West Virginia to cover igaming.

New Mexico:

• Gambling Compliance, 10.19.20 – New Mexico Gaming Expansion Would Cut Tax Revenue, Report Warns (subscription paywall)
  • A proposal to allow New Mexico’s commercial casinos to offer online gambling, sports betting and table games while eliminating tribal revenue-sharing could cost the state millions of dollars annually, according to a legislative report.

Wyoming:

• KPVI, 10.18.20 – Wyoming Slept On Sports Betting. Now, The Northern Arapaho Tribe Is Going All-In
  • When Wyoming first seriously began looking at regulating gaming in 2019, the Northern Arapaho Tribe did everything they could to kill it.