Tag Archives: Sports betting

The man who revitalised Fremont Street

The man who revitalised Fremont Street

Downtown Las Vegas was once associated with Sin City’s Rat Pack era, but the Fremont Street experience is – quite literally – very different today. Enter Circa Sports’ Derek Stevens, an industry outsider who is playing a huge role revitalising the area by bringing a brand new casino and sports betting experience.

Derek Stevens of Circa Sports is a gambling industry outsider. He built up a successful auto parts business in his native Michigan before moving into the casino business, purchasing the Golden Gate in 2008. He’s honest about what attracted him to the city.

“The key thing that brought me to Vegas was the fact there’s no income tax in the state of Nevada,” he says, bluntly. “I run an investment portfolio, so that was helpful.”

Derek Stevens poses next to Vegas Vickie, an iconic symbol of ‘Old Vegas’

“But,” he adds, “I’m more of an operator.” He’s also someone who likes a challenge, acquiring a casino on the cusp of the Great Recession. Stevens “really fell in love with downt..

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Kahnawake council launches legal challenge against Ontario igaming laws

Kahnawake council launches legal challenge against Ontario igaming laws

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawàke (MCK) has launched a constitutional challenge against iGaming Ontario and the attorney-general of Ontario, arguing that the province’s regulation of gambling is unconstitutional.

The Council – which runs its own gambling licensing regime – said that the Ontario regime did not meet the requirements for gambling outlined in Canada’s constitution.

As a result, it has filed a motion in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to challenge the legality of Ontario’s igaming framework, which it said was “illegal and unconstitutional”.

Ontario igaming legal status

Commercial betting and gaming are legal in Canada only if it is “conducted and managed” by a provincial government. While in most provinces that offer online gambling, the government runs a monopoly, Ontario instead launched a licensed regime this year, with more than 30 different licensed operators so far.

While a specific definition of conducting and managing is not provided, the Mohawk Council of ..

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GB gross gambling yield recovers to almost £10bn in 2021-22

GB gross gambling yield recovers to almost £10bn in 2021-22

Great Britain’s gross gambling yield (GGY), excluding lotteries, increased 16.5% to £9.93bn ($12.0bn/€11.53bn)
from April 2021 to March 2022.

The figures were supplied through industry research from the Gambling Commission.

While this is a significant rise, the total is 0.8% below the 2019-20 numbers, which mostly occurred pre-pandemic. Despite the increase in the headline numbers since this, the Commission reports that the number of bettors in the sector have fallen.

“Since Covid-19 restrictions were lifted in 2021 and products and opportunities to gamble are available to consumers again, the overall percentage of the adult population who gamble remains lower than it was pre-Covid (28%),” said the Commission.

This can be explained by gaming spend increasing to a proportionally larger extent than the number of consumers. However, as the Commission outlines, there are strong signs of increased participation in gambling activities from younger demographics.

“There are signs of a r..

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Waterhouse VC: Crunch time in the US

Waterhouse VC: Crunch time in the US

In his latest column, which goes live first on iGB, Tom Waterhouse of Waterhouse VC scrutinises the gambling stock performance in the US, and the variable of customer acquisition costs.

As discussed in our June newsletter, investors in US online wagering operators are growing impatient with the losses recorded for the sake of gaining market share.

One reason we focus primarily on suppliers over operators is because operators rely heavily on their customer acquisition cost (CAC).

In mature, highly taxed, regulated markets, a handful of operators earn the majority of profits because they have the lowest CAC and the best operational efficiencies.

ONE-Year Performance of Operators with Exposure to US Online Wagering.

Sportsbet take 2

Flutter’s third quarter results demonstrated FanDuel’s (Flutter’s US brand) clear market leadership. It has a 42% gross gaming revenue (GGR) market share in mobile sports betting and 18% market share in igaming.

As shown above, Flutter is the only opera..

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Elys secures conditional sports betting approval in Ohio

Elys secures conditional sports betting approval in Ohio

Gaming technology provider Elys Game Technology has secured conditional approval for a sports betting proprietor licence in Ohio.

Issued by the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC), the Type C sports gaming proprietor licensure will enable Elys to roll out its sports betting technology in the state.

Ahead of this launch, Elys has entered an agreement to purchase 100 point-of-sale terminals and 100 self-service betting terminals for installation at host locations throughout Ohio.

Read the full story on iGB North America

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Lahcene Merzoug on PressEnter’s management buyout

Lahcene Merzoug on PressEnter’s management buyout

Fresh from announcing a management buyout, PressEnter CEO Lahcene Merzoug talks to iGB about the new leadership's strategy and future plans.

So, the cat is out the bag; PressEnter Group will be under new (or should we say old?) management.

There are many questions that remain: Will the new chairman stay the course or head to uncharted waters? What form will the shape of the business’ future growth take? And what’s the plan with the company’s brands?

The business formerly known as Betpoint has reinvented itself before, though only the new owners know what the plan is now. Current CEO and future executive chair Lahcene Merzoug explains in his own words.

What was the rationale behind the management buyout, and what important factors led the executive team to decide to go down this route?

The management team has grown the business into what it is today, so we could clearly see the potential in the company and its operations. When the opportunity to buy PressEnter Group arose, ..

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Maryland’s regulated sports betting market officially opens

Maryland’s regulated sports betting market officially opens

Maryland’s online sports betting market is officially live, with seven operators now active in the state as of today (23 November).

Barstool, BetRivers, BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, FanDuel and PointsBet can now accept wagers in the state.

Caesars and DraftKings launched before the regulated market officially opened, in preparation for the imminent commencement.

Read the full story on iGB North America

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Genius and the NFL score streaming deal with three Canadian sportsbooks

Genius and the NFL score streaming deal with three Canadian sportsbooks

Genius Sports and the National Football League (NFL) have entered to a Canadian video streaming licensing agreement with three sportsbook operators – Bet365, Canada-facing Bet99 and esports-focused Rivalry.

Bet365, Bet99 and Rivalry will be permitted to provide their customers with video streams of all regular and post-season NFL matches through Genius’s Watch & Bet solution.

Genius became the exclusive distributor of NFL data and live video feeds in April 2021. In return, Genius issued 22.5m warrants to the NFL.

Genius said that it will use machine learning-powered live streaming technologies to facilitate video streaming and bet tracking for players in Canada.

[Read full story on iGB North America]

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Massachusetts receives 15 applications for sports betting licences as deadline passes

Massachusetts receives 15 applications for sports betting licences as deadline passes

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) has completed the application process for new sports betting licences in the state, with 15 operators having put forward submissions.

The deadline to apply for a licence passed at 2pm local time on November 21, with the MGC receiving three applications for Category 1 licences, five for a Category 3 license tethered to a Category 1 licence, and six were received for stand-alone Category 3 licences.

An additional Category 3 licence application to be tethered to a Category 2 licence was also submitted, while the MGC noted that Category 2 licences, which only current horse tracks or simulcast facilities are eligible for, will be accepted on a rolling basis after the deadline.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

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Louisiana online sports betting handle hits record $219.0m in October

Louisiana online sports betting handle hits record $219.0m in October

Players in Louisiana spent a record $219.0m (£184.1m/€213.2m) betting on sports online during October, while the state also reported a nine-month high for retail wagering.

October’s online handle was 3.8% higher than the previous record of $211.0m, which was set in February of this year – the first full month of legal online betting in the state – and also 24.4% above the $176.0m spent by consumers in September.

However, despite higher player spending, revenue from online wagering was 4.1% lower month-on-month at $26.0m, compared to $27.1m in September.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

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