Happy Monday, everyone. News flow was dominated by sports betting stories out of Illinois last week, which is on its way to becoming a very important market in the US.
The LSR Podcast crew touched on some of the hot Illinois sports betting topics in the latest episode.
Other news that involved Illinois that dropped later in the week – including this week’s top story – were outlined on the @LSPReport Twitter account.
Top sports betting news: FanDuel Sportsbook launches in Illinois
One of the biggest stories out of Illinois broke Friday afternoon when FanDuel Sportsbook announced its mobile sportsbook was officially live.
FanDuel became the third mobile sportsbook in the state, joining BetRivers and DraftKings Sportsbook. The launch came the same day its retail partner, Boyd‘s Par-A-Dice Casino, received permission to begin sports betting.
It’s no surprise FanDuel Sportsbook wasted little time launching. Gov. JB Pritzker again allowed remote registration, this time through at least Sept. 19. There’s also little marketing time to pick up customers before the lucrative NFL betting season begins.
FanDuel entered the market with fewer fireworks than DraftKings, though. DraftKings CEO Jason Robins called BetRivers owners Rush Street “corrupt idiots” for trying to keep the company out of the state in a now-deleted tweet.
PointsBet, NBC partner
Australian-listed PointsBet has had strong US sports betting ambitions since before it launched in New Jersey. It now has a significant partner to meet those goals.
PointsBet signed a multi-year agreement to be NBC‘s official sports betting partner. The company committed to spending $393 million in marketing across NBC’s networks. NBC gets a 4.9% stake with the option to buy more in the future – just below the threshold to be considered an operator.
The news is significant for all of PointsBet’s markets but especially Illinois, where the company will have a strong retail presence around Chicago. The increased exposure from NBC should help drive traffic to Hawthorne Race Course and the three off-track betting facilities where in-person mobile sports betting sign-ups can take place.
Colorado, Nevada post strong July sports betting numbers
The return of major US sports in July brought significant action to the nation’s sports betting capital as well as a fresh market.
Nevada sports betting handle more than doubled in July compared to June. Sports betting in Colorado, meanwhile, continued to ramp up with handle up 55% over June.
The $59.2 million in handle from Colorado was less than Nevada’s handle on baseball alone, though. That shows plenty of potential for the Colorado market to grow.
LSR also broke the news that Colorado could be the latest venue for a sports betting regulatory review into FanDuel Sportsbook for a potential mistake involving double chance NHL bets.
Betting exchange operator gets NJ partner
The first regulated US sports betting exchange could launch in New Jersey.
Sporttrade partnered with Twin River, the future owners of Bally’s in Atlantic City, to launch its betting exchange sometime next year.
Betting exchanges are not as attractive for the US market because of the Wire Act, which limits gambling to intrastate action only. But CEO Alex Kane told LSR professional liquidity providers will compete to offer the best price through a market-maker program.
