Tag Archives: Sports betting

Laila Mintas announces new venture, PlayEngine

Laila Mintas announces new venture, PlayEngine

Former PlayUp US chief executive Laila Mintas has co-founded a new venture, PlayEngine, and joined as chief executive.

The new business is a “microservices-based” B2B sports betting and igaming platform. The business said that it will “provide its customers with a tailor-made, individual solution that is reliable, scalable, fast and secure”.

Its sportsbook offering will allow clients to accept payments from cryptocurrency as well as fiat money and will include a “travelling wallet” to allow players to use the same wallet in different jurisdictions.

PlayEngine was initially created through the Berkeley Skydeck startup incubator.

“I am very excited about being a co-founder and the CEO of PlayEngine,” Laila Mintas said. “The sports betting and igaming market is just too competitive to work off legacy tech.

“There is a huge need for agile and modern technology and I truly believe that we have the most automated and data-driven product in the market, which will enable the sportsbettin..

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The 2022 US midterm elections: What we are watching

The 2022 US midterm elections: What we are watching

As the US goes to the polls for the midterm elections, there are plenty of races that could affect the progress of sports betting regulation and gaming expansion. Paul Girvan picks out the states to watch.

The 2022 US midterm elections, while important in so many ways, contain few issues directly related to gambling regulation.

Rather, they represent an opportunity to extract a thorn that has irritated the body politic and coloured the consideration and adoption of more gaming legislation, whether it be sports betting legislation or casino regulation.

Only in two states does gaming appear directly, or indirectly, on the ballot: California and Georgia.

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California

In California, a statewide ballot measures voter approval for constitutional changes, through Propositions 26 and 27.

Polling suggests both the tribal and commercial sports betting ballot measures are doomed to fail.

Prop 26 permits Native American casinos and four..

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Fanatics hires Brandt Iden as VP of government affairs

Fanatics hires Brandt Iden as VP of government affairs

Fanatics Betting and Gaming has hired former Michigan legislator Brandt Iden as its new vice-president of government affairs, as the business edges closer to launching its betting product.

Iden was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 2014, until 2020 when he reached the state term limit. During this time he spearheaded the efforts to legalise both sports betting and online casino gaming in the state.

He then joined Sportradar, where he was head of government affairs during a period in which the business went public on the Nasdaq exchange.

Now, he joins Fanatics ahead of the apparel brand’s long-rumoured launch of a sports betting operation.

Read the full story on iGB North America

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Colorado sports betting handle surpasses $450m in September

Colorado sports betting handle surpasses $450m in September

Player spending on sports betting in Colorado jumped 10.3% year-on-year in September, while the state also reported a month-on-month rise in both handle and revenue.

Monthly handle for September was $450.2m (£403.2m/€461.7m), up from $408.3m in the same month last year and also 55.2% ahead of $290.1m in August this year.

Consumers bet a total of $445.6m online during the month, in addition to $4.6m at retail sportsbook facilities across the state.

Gross gaming revenue reached $51.3m, which was 126.0% up from $22.7m in September 2021, while this total was 98.1% higher than $25.9m in August of this year.

Online wagering revenue was $50.7m, with just $659,647 being attributed to retail wagering activity during the month.

Football was by far the most popular sport to wager on in September, primarily due to the new NFL season beginning at the start of the month, with Colorado players spending a total of $145.7m.

Baseball wagers amounted to $83.2m and college football bets $52.7m, whil..

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HOFV among latest to secure sports betting approval in Ohio

HOFV among latest to secure sports betting approval in Ohio

Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company (HOFV) has become one of the latest operators to secure conditional approval for new online and retail sports betting licences in Ohio.

HOFV will operate in the state through its partnerships with Rush Street Interactive (RSI) and Betr, the new micro-betting business founded by Simplebet co-founder Joey Levy and social media personality Jake Paul.

The HOFV/Betr mobile sportsbook will allow consumers in Ohio to wager on sports online. The app will feature a new micro-betting option, whereby users can bet on a wide range of actions in a live sporting event such as pitches in baseball and shots in soccer.

The new HOFV/RSI retail sportsbook, operating as BetRivers Sportsbook, will open at the Hall of Fame Village’s Fan Engagement Zone in Canton, Ohio.

The Ohio Casino Control Commission approved both licences ahead of the state opening its legal sports wagering market on January 1, 2023.

“The legalisation of sports betting in Ohio, opens up a..

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UK gaming tax intake rises in H1 of 2022-23, but remote duty down

UK gaming tax intake rises in H1 of 2022-23, but remote duty down

UK provisional betting and gaming tax intake for the six months to 30 September has risen 11.0% from £1.46bn to £1.62bn ($1.85bn/ €1.88bn) compared to the same period the previous year.

The largest contributors to this figure is the Lottery Duty, which represents 30% of the total, and the Remote Gaming Duty which contributes 28% of the total. However, both the duties declined both in absolute terms and percentage of the total from same period the previous year.

The 2022 figures had a high degree of variability month to month, demonstrating both seasonal variation and a decreased month-to-month stability in the figures post-pandemic – as commented on by HRMC.

“Since the 2020-21 financial year, monthly receipts have been more unpredictable and, instead, receipts across each quarter are now more representative,” it said.

As a result, the figures had a large range. At the high end, almost £500m of the total was gathered in April alone – while in September, just £93m was received by th..

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888’s Howard Mittman on Betting 2.0

888’s Howard Mittman on Betting 2.0

Sports betting 1.0 was all about acquisition and, as it moves into sports betting 2.0, product is the key differentiator for sportsbook operators, according to 888 Holdings’ US president Howard Mittman. Robin Harrison hears how Mittman is developing a media-led, content-driven offering that leverages the power of the Sports Illustrated brand.

888 Holdings’ Howard Mittman sees sports betting as a “cultural phenomenon” in the US, sitting at the centre of sports, media technology and betting.

For Mittman, this makes his role at the operator, where he has served as president of US operations since April, a perfect fit.

“Throughout my career, the experiences I have enjoyed the most are ones where I found myself at interesting cross-sections,” he says. “Whether it was technology and culture, fashion and culture, or sports and culture.

Howard Mittman has served as president, US for 888 Holdings since April 2022

“This creates an interesting opportunity to have a perch and a purview tha..

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DC sports betting handle continues to climb in September

DC sports betting handle continues to climb in September

Sports wagering handle in Washington DC increased for the second consecutive month in September but fell 26.2% year-on-year.

Handle for the month amounted to $19.4m (£16.8m/€19.5m), which was 48.1% higher than $13.1m in August of this year, but down 26.2% from $26.3m in September 2021.

Gross gaming revenue was $3.6m, double the $1.8m generated in August and also 125.0% higher than $1.6m in September last year.

Looking at individual operator performances, Caesars retained its grip on top spot in DC with $1.4m in revenue from $7.3m in total bets during September.

Gambet, operated by the DC Lottery and powered by Intralot, placed second with $1.1m in revenue from $6.0m in player spending. BetMGM, which is partnered with MLB team the Washington Nationals in DC, was next with revenue of $678,061 from a $4.0m handle.

Flutter Entertainment’s FanDuel, which runs a FanDuel-branded retail sportsbook at Major League Soccer team DC United’s Audi Field, generated $250,932 in revenue from $1.6m..

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Caesars launches online sportsbook in Ohio ahead of market opening

Caesars launches online sportsbook in Ohio ahead of market opening

Caesars Entertainment has announced the launch of its online sportsbook in Ohio ahead of the US state opening its regulated sports betting market in January 2023.

Ohio is due to commence legal sports wagering on 1 January and players in the state are now able to register and deposit funds with Caesars in preparation for this launch.

Consumers that sign up with Caesars ahead of January can take advantage of a special early registration offer, whereby if they deposit $20, they will receive an additional $100 worth of bet credits.

Read the full story on iGB North America

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World Cup could be make-or-break for industry marketing

World Cup could be make-or-break for industry marketing

iGB op-ed: Many will be paying close attention to how the industry markets its products during the 2022 Fifa World Cup. Daniel O’Boyle writes that the industry’s actions during the tournament may be the difference between fuel for a further crackdown or a chance to change the tide of the debate on gambling.

Yesterday, France announced a series of new rules and recommendations on bonuses. The contents of the regulations published by regulator l’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) are interesting for sure, but there may be more to think about beyond that.

The new rules on transparency are good, and other markets would largely benefit from requiring operators to make the terms surrounding bonuses as clear as possible.

Other rules, particularly the ban on sending bonuses to “excessive” gamblers, are clearly well-meaning but likely too vague to be implemented in the way that is hoped.

The non-binding “recommendations”, meanwhile, are hard to judge without knowing how motivated operators..

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