Happy Monday, everyone. There was plenty of sports betting news last week including everything that surrounded the launch of the NFL Playoffs, one of the best sports betting events in the US.
Football never had a chance at capturing the top spot in terms of news for last week, though. New York was a very popular topic, taking the industry on a roller coaster of emotions for a few brief hours.
The crew talked New York and other topics on the latest LSR Podcast. For more up-to-the-minute coverage on the industry follow @LSPReport on Twitter.
Top sports betting news: Mobile NY sports betting gets new life
Anyone who’s been around the US sports betting industry for even a few months should know better than to get excited about news concerning mobile sports betting in New York.
The odds of legalization have definitely gotten shorter, however. That’s thanks to Gov. Andrew Cuomo‘s declaration Tuesday night that he’s now in favor of mobile sports betting as a source of revenue for the state.
In his budget, Cuomo and his team will propose a lottery-style monopoly with the stated hope of increasing the state’s take from sports betting tenfold. That goal could prove difficult to reach based on what we’ve seen from other single-operator models in the US.
Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. and Assemblyman Gary Pretlow responded two days later with a sports betting bill that looks a lot like their previous legislation with a significant difference: two skins per casino instead of one.
Cuomo expects up to $500 million in state revenue from his model. The bill, meanwhile, suggests $79 million in annual tax revenue based on conservative market estimates.
Another push to legalize MA sports betting coming
Sen. Brendan Crighton will try again to get Massachusetts sports betting legalized this year.
Crighton tweaked his previous effort a bit to include a $10 million application fee, which could bring in $70 million up front for the state, he said.
Operators would pay a 15% revenue tax. Betting on collegiate events is allowed as long as they don’t include schools from the Bay State.
Senate leadership kept sports betting out of an economic development bill signed last week but expressed interest in a standalone bill this year. The House approved sports betting in their version of the bill last summer by a 156-3 vote.
Beshear wants KY sports betting
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear made it clear he wants to see sports betting in Kentucky legalized this year.
Beshear said it was “silly” that the state hasn’t legalized sports betting yet on the first episode of Governor Andy Beshear: First Year Reflections. He also noted how you could drive across five of Kentucky’s seven borders to place legal bets, like in Illinois or Indiana.
Rep. Adam Koenig hopes there’s enough time to pass his sports betting legislation but knows there might not be enough time. The state legislature also has to deal with legalizing historic horse racing, which is a critical industry for the state.
ESPN broadcasts NFL Playoffs with sports betting content
ESPN streamed the Ravens-Titans NFL Wild Card game on six networks Sunday, including a broadcast with sports betting integrated.
The Daily Wager version of the stream on ESPN+ included live odds and other betting data throughout the broadcast.
Meanwhile, Nickelodeon broadcasted a kid-friendly stream of the Chicago Bears and the New Orleans Saints game on Sunday. The NFL and Nickelodeon featured live in-game content on companion site NFLNickPlay.com including questions that resembled player props.
The first prop-like question showed up a few days before the game asking kids to predict which quarterback would throw for the most yards. Kids could also predict who would win Nickelodeon’s top player award.
MGM wants to buy betting partner Entain
MGM Resorts‘ first offer to buy Entain was rejected at the beginning of the week, but MGM isn’t stopping there.
MGM initially bid $11 billion for Entain, the former GVC. The two are 50/50 partners in the BetMGM brand but that apparently doesn’t get MGM a discount: the London-listed Entain dismissed the 1,383 pence per share offer, which was already a 22% premium.
Later in the week, MGM’s largest shareholder IAC told MGM it would help fund the transaction with another $1 billion. The investment reflects the confidence IAC has in MGM and the deal, IAC said.
Entain’s stock price closed at 1,475 pence Friday, which suggests the market expects a higher bid.
TwinSpires nears launch in Tennessee as Churchill changes brand
Churchill Downs made the news twice last week: once when it was approved to launch in Tennessee and also when it announced a branding change.
Churchill will no longer use its BetAmerica brand and is instead shifting to the TwinSpires horse betting brand.
As for Tennessee, Churchill’s sportsbook will be the fifth to go live in the state once it completes its final testing. Three other companies could be approved to operate sports betting in Tennessee by the end of the month in the hopes of launching to take bets on the Super Bowl:
- William Hill
- WynnBET
- Zen Sports
PointsBet adds another Detroit partner
PointsBet is now an official sports betting partner of the NBA‘s Detroit Pistons, marking its second partnership in the city.
The Australian-listed sportsbook is also a sports betting partner of the Detroit Tigers, which was the first sports betting agreement signed with an MLB team.
Michigan is an important state for PointsBet. Along with a mobile sportsbook, PointsBet is debuting its online casino in the state.
BetRivers rolls out The Bus
Former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jerome Bettis, also known as The Bus, is now an exclusive partner of BetRivers.
Bettis signed a content deal with the brand, which operates Rivers Pittsburgh.
He’ll serve as a brand ambassador and spokesperson at BetRivers promotions and events.
