How much could the Oregon Lottery make from offering sports betting? More than $100 million a year, according to the lottery’s own projections, obtained by Legal Sports Report.
The state lottery recently launched a mobile app now available on the App Store for iPhones and iPads, although its functionality is fairly limited — it does not include online lottery sales or sports betting.
Lottery officials have said in the past that they don’t believe additional legislative authorization is needed to offer sports gambling.
There are currently no concrete plans on if and when sports betting might launch in Oregon. But lottery officials told LSR that they should have a better idea of their sports betting plans by the end of 2018.
How much from Oregon sports betting?
One official says, in time, the lottery commission plans to integrate technology in its mobile app that would allow for sports betting, which could lead to $35.5 million in revenue in the first year.
According to revenue projections from the Oregon Lottery, online sports betting could net $61.4 million in revenue by its third year of implementation including an additional $46.1 million from retail outlets. It would also count on $7 to $15 million from bringing back Sports Action, a form of parlay sports betting.
All told, the lottery believes it could net more than $120 million from sports betting. However, the figures do not take into account potential cannibalization from other lottery games.
Here is the projection from the Lottery:
Next steps for Oregon sports betting
Oregon, and three other states, were “grandfathered” into sports betting prior to the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act.
The state had a lottery called Sports Action; however in 2007, lawmakers moved to eliminate the gambling game under pressure from the NCAA.
Matt Shelby, public information manager for the Oregon Lottery, said a sports betting offering will bring in new players that aren’t currently playing Oregon Lottery games.
“Overall we see sports betting as an opportunity to increase our player base and sustainably grow our revenue,” Shelby told LSR in an email.
The lottery app went live on the App Store on Sept. 11 and is expected to be offered on the Google Play store in late October or early November, according to Shelby.
“The app coincides with the development of a sports betting strategy — we see opportunity for these two efforts to intersect,” he said.
The launch of the app and development of a new sports betting strategy lines up with previous comments from the lottery commission following the repeal of PASPA by the US Supreme Court on May 14.
Diving into the lottery app
Shelby said the first iteration of the mobile app does not give players the ability to purchase. However, plans on adding that function are slowly being developed.
“We plan to iteratively add functionality over time including the ability to purchase jackpot games like Powerball and Mega Millions,” Shelby said.
Currently, the new app allows customers to verify winning tickets for scratch-offs, draw games and keno. According to presentation materials, 98 percent of customers visiting the lottery website are to check winning tickets.
Should customers scan a non-winning ticket, the app will show what lottery revenue dollars are used for, displayed via geotargeting.
Responsible gaming tips will also be available giving players a touchable set of “responsible play best practices,” which include a budgeting and timer tool modeled after dieting apps.
Finally, the app includes a retail finder with approximately 3,000 retailer location across the state. This will provide customers with the nearest location to claim their prize.
Currently, the lottery does not have plans to offer video lottery games via the app. Video lottery terminals are legal in bars and restaurants around the state.
