Bettors in Tennessee and Illinois now have access to one of the most popular global sportsbooks in bet365.
The UK powerhouse operator has been deliberate in its rollout into the United States and is now live in 13 states.
Launching around March Madness betting makes sense for both markets. Illinois shares in the midwest’s love of basketball, while the Tennessee Volunteers men’s basketball team is one of the top-ranked squads in the country.
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Could bet365 shake up Illinois?
A new sportsbook entering Illinois could shake up the state a bit, given last year’s changes. Gov. JB Pritzker raised the sports betting tax rate as part of his 2024 budget. What was initially a 15% tax is now a scale ranging from 20% to 40%.
That has led many sportsbooks, including the largest in DraftKings and FanDuel, to look for ways to mitigate the additional costs. The first place those cuts typically happen is in the marketing and promotions budget.
That means bet365 could enter the Illinois scene with an aggressive advertising push for market share as one of the top spots in the state.
More conservative in Tennessee?
The same plan of attack may not work so well in Tennessee since it is one of the only sports betting jurisdictions worldwide that taxes handle instead of revenue.
The Volunteer State has been a trying state for operators since its launch. The Tennessee sports betting market originally called for all of its operators to hold a minimum of 10%, though sportsbooks rarely hit that mark. Frustration from officials and operator requests to rethink the minimum hold requirement eventually led to Tennessee implementing the 1.85% handle tax.
That creates a tough situation for a new entrant: Any bet365 promo customers acquired may not be profitable bettors for the company. That could create a double whammy for bet365 as it would lose out on revenue to winning bettors while having to pay the handle tax on top of it.
