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Hard Rock launches sports betting in AZ with Navajo Nation
April 11, 2022

Hard Rock launches sports betting in AZ with Navajo Nation

Bookiecity

The Hard Rock Digital arm of Hard Rock International has launched its mobile sportsbook app in Arizona via a partnership with the Navajo Nation Gaming Enterprise (NNGE).

The new Hard Rock Sportsbook will allow players aged 21 or over in the state to place bets across a wide range of sports and competitions.

The app also features a selection of promotions, bet types, reward features and customer support.

The launch was made possible after Hard Rock announced a market access agreement with the NNGE in January this year.

The NNGE, a division of the Navajo Nation, the largest federally recognized Native American Nation in the US, operates five gaming and hospitality facilities across Arizona and New Mexico.

“Arizona has a rich sports culture and we’re proud to enter the state with our great partners at Navajo Gaming,” Hard Rock Digital executive managing director and chief executive Marlon Goldstein said.

‘We’re excited to debut our new platform, which players of all experience level..

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Dutch withdrawal leads to 30% revenue drop for Kindred in Q1
April 8, 2022

Dutch withdrawal leads to 30% revenue drop for Kindred in Q1

Bookiecity

Kindred’s revenue has dropped by 30.0% year-on-year to £247.0m in the first quarter of 2022, with the operator putting the vast majority of its £105m drop in revenue down to its decision to withdraw from the Netherlands.

The drop in revenue was mostly due to the fact that Kindred agreed to block all Dutch customers from 1 October, when the country opened its online gaming market, until it receives a licence.

This came in response to a change in enforcement policy towards unlicensed operators in the Netherlands, which led to LeoVegas, Betsson, Entain and Casumo all also taking the same decision.

At the time, Kindred CEO Henrik Tjärnström said the operator believed it did not have to block customers from the Netherlands as long as it did not target them, but said Kindred would not accept Dutch customers until it received clarification. However, Kindred later announced that its sites would continue to be closed to players from the Netherlands until it receives a licence.

This, it sai..

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FanDuel and Pokerstars strike partnership with Toronto NHL, NBA teams
April 8, 2022

FanDuel and Pokerstars strike partnership with Toronto NHL, NBA teams

Bookiecity

Flutter brands PokerStars and FanDuel have entered into a partnership with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), which owns Toronto’s National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Hockey League (NHL) teams.

The deal designates FanDuel’s sportsbook as an official sports betting partner of MLSE, while Pokerstars has been named as its official gaming partner.

Under the deal, both operators will offer players in Ontario entertainment options across sports, poker and casino gaming.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

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Betfan turns profit in third year of operation
April 7, 2022

Betfan turns profit in third year of operation

Bookiecity

Polish bookmaker Betfan reported sales of €77m (£64.2m/$83.9m) for 2021, while its profit came to €760,000.

The business – which started taking bets in April 2019 – noted that its sales were up 90% from 2020. This, it said, was due to an 85% year-on-year increase in customers. The number of markets it offered, meanwhile, was up by 20%.
In addition, it said it achieved profitability in “record time” as no previous Polish bookmaker had made a profit within three years.
“When we started our business three years ago, we had very ambitious plans and we have been consistently pursuing our objectives ever since,” Betfan co-owner and chairman Łukasz Łazarewicz said. “We benefit from the fact that the betting market has grown by around 50% last year and this year it is expected to grow by between 15% and 20%.
“However, Betfan has been growing much faster than the industry itself and we will aim to maintain this trend in the coming years as well. At the same time, we have a strong advantage in ..

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TheScore Bet pens first partnership with Toronto Blue Jays
April 7, 2022

TheScore Bet pens first partnership with Toronto Blue Jays

Bookiecity

TheScore Bet, a subsidiary of Penn National Gaming, has entered into a 10-year partnership with baseball team the Toronto Blue Jays, becoming the team’s exclusive gaming partner.

The agreement is both the Blue Jays’ first gaming partnership and theScore Bet’s first professional team partnership.

It will allow theScore Bet to have exclusive national marketing rights across sports betting, casino, online casino and fantasy sports.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

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Caesars to open in-stadium sportsbook through New York Mets partnership
April 6, 2022

Caesars to open in-stadium sportsbook through New York Mets partnership

Bookiecity

Caesars Entertainment has agreed a multi-year partnership with the New York Mets, which includes plans to open a sportsbook at the Mets’ Citi Field.

Caesars will become an official sports betting partner of the team, which will allow for integrations with the operator’s VIP programme as well as marketing opportunities at Mets games.

In addition, the operator will open a new 13,000 square-foot sportsbook at Citi Field at some point during the 2022 season. The sportsbook will include a multi-tiered dining room and outdoor patio seating.

The deal comes soon after New York launched its online sports betting market, with Caesars being one of only nine operators permitted to do business.

“New York is a key state for us following the successful launch of our Caesars Sportsbook app in January,” said Chris Holdren, co-president of Caesars Digital. “The Mets’ fanbase is one of the most loyal in baseball and this partnership offers us the chance to treat those passionate fans like Caesars.

..

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French regulator partners with football league on anti-cyberbullying campaign
April 6, 2022

French regulator partners with football league on anti-cyberbullying campaign

Bookiecity

French gambling regulator l’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has released a campaign in conjunction with major league football governing body Ligue de Football (LFP) to bring awareness to the cyberbullying of professional football stars.

According to the campaign, football players are regularly subjected to online abuse and accused of purposefully causing bettors to lose wagers they had placed.

A number of athletes have spoken out about this, after they had received abuse online after appearing in football matches.

The new campaign has been promoted by a video, which shows empty football kits on a pitch saving and scoring goals during a match. The bodies of players are not visible, reminding viewers that real football players are not “invisible men” that they can bully online without consequence.

The match sequences in the video are styled after matches from Ligue 1, which is sponsored by Uber Eats, and Ligue 2 BKT, which is sponsored by Balkrishna Industries.

The video also feat..

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Equipment sales help Novomatic revenue rise in 2021
April 5, 2022

Equipment sales help Novomatic revenue rise in 2021

Bookiecity

Austrian gaming equipment supplier Novomatic has reported revenue of €1.84bn (£1.52bn/$2.02bn) for 2021, despite a dip in gaming operations revenue.

This was up by €98.7m, or 5.6%, from Covid-hit 2020, when revenue was €1.74bn.

Revenue from gaming operations was €1.03m, down slightly from €1.07bn the previous year. This was attributed to closures of gaming halls- from January to June 2021, an estimated two thirds of Novomatic’s arcades closed temporarily due to the pandemic.

Revenue from the sales of gaming technology made up the remaining €806.2m in revenue. This was up by 20.3%. The company attributed this rise to its Ainsworth business, which saw its sales rise from €67.9m in 2020 to €118.3m in 2021.

Novomatic acquired Ainsworth in 2018.

Total turnover from operators using Novomatic equipment or software in Europe came to €102.91bn. Much of this came from its lottery division, with €35.48bn. Betting operator turnover was €24.17bn, followed by casino turnover at €20.98bn.

Turno..

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DraftKings to offer sports betting in Puerto Rico with Foxwoods deal
April 4, 2022

DraftKings to offer sports betting in Puerto Rico with Foxwoods deal

Bookiecity

DraftKings and Foxwoods operator the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation have expanded their partnership in order to allow the online betting giant to take bets in Puerto Rico through a sportsbook at Foxwoods El San Juan Casino.

Subject to receiving licences and approvals, DraftKings will host a retail sportsbook at the tribe’s casino in Puerto Rico’s capital. The sportsbook is expected to open “in the coming weeks”.

The two operators already partnered to allow the DraftKings brand access to the Connecticut market. In Connecticut the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation is one of only two permitted online gaming operators and three permitted sportsbook operators.

“We have made tremendous strides in the sports betting space in our relationship with DraftKings, who has continued to be a valuable partner, through our online and retail experiences in the state of Connecticut,” said Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation chairman Rodney Butler. “As we expand our partnership with DraftKings to the ..

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