Happy Monday, everyone. Sports betting news remains focused on legislation and May betting revenue trends, especially since there is no true comparison for last year because of the Covid pandemic.
The LSR Podcast breaks down some of the jurisdictions looking to legalize but led off with one of the biggest stories last week: Hindenburg Research released a report on DraftKings Sportsbook that made some big allegations.
The stock reacted negatively initially – which Hindenburg wanted because it shorted $DKNG to coincide with the report – but made back some ground throughout the day. It closed about 5% lower on Friday compared to before the news broke Tuesday morning.
Stay tuned on all breaking news by following @LSPReport on Twitter.
Sports betting news to watch: Canada needs a vote
A bill that ends the federal prohibition on single-game sports betting in Canada needs a vote this week.
C-218 is back on the Senate agenda Monday, but other business is scheduled before it. The parliamentary session ends this week.
Sen. David Wells told LSR he is cautiously optimistic the bill will pass.
Provinces are ready for single-game betting. Canadian Gaming Association CEO Paul Burns said Sept. 6 is a realistic launch date. It could launch “almost immediately” in British Columbia, according to Stewart Groumoutis of the British Columbia Lottery Commission.
The end of 2021 could be the launch of single-game sports betting in Ontario, David Phillips of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario said.
US states to watch: AZ, ME, MA, OH
Sports betting legislation remains the big story throughout North America, and not just because Canada wants to join the party. Multiple significant states are taking the next steps toward legal sports betting as well:
- The public comment period for proposed rules for Arizona sports betting closes Monday. The state should go live Sept. 9 to correlate with the start of the NFL season.
- A bill that would legalize sports betting in Maine is on the way to the House despite its sponsor speaking out against the proposed tethering requirement.
- Massachusetts has a lot of work to do after a joint committee meeting last week. The committee will work to condense the more than 20 MA sports betting proposals to one bill.
- The Senate’s proposed legislation for legal Ohio sports betting is in the House as expected. Whether the House will move quickly and get the bill passed before the end of the month like Sen. Kirk Schuring and others want is another story.
State sports betting revenue reports: IA, MI, NJ, PA
Only one state reported increased handle last week, which is not unexpected given the slower sports betting calendar in May.
- NJ sportsbooks saw handle rise 14% over April to $814 million, though sports betting revenue fell about 3%.
- Nearby Pennsylvania had handle drop about 7% to $447 million in May. PA sportsbooks went the opposite direction than New Jersey, though, with revenue up 4%.
- Sports betting in Michigan hit its lowest full month of handle last month with $257.7 million bet in May.
- Iowa sports betting handle saw the smallest drop of the three with $114.9 million bet in May, down just 2.9% from April.
