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Virginia Sports Betting Bill Filed Ahead of 2019 Session

Posted on 21 November 2018 | by Jill Dorson

The post Virginia Sports Betting Bill Filed Ahead of 2019 Session appeared first on SportsHandle.

Virginia on Tuesday became the latest state to make an earnest move toward legalizing sports betting in 2019 when Delegate Mark Sickles (D-District 43) prefiled HB 1638 ahead of the opening of the legislative session on Jan. 9, 2019. The bill, which will be referred to committee for discussion, calls for a 15 percent tax rate on sports betting adjusted gross revenue, and a $250,000 licensing fee. There is no mention of a “royalty” or “integrity fee” to be paid to the professional sports leagues.

Lawmakers in Tennessee and Kentucky have also prefiled bills ahead of their sessions and several other states, including Michigan, Maryland and Massachusetts have publicly discussed sports betting recently.

Since the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in May, seven states states outside of Nevada have either legalized or seen its authorized licensees begin accepting sports bets. Although Virginia is very much not a gaming state as casinos are prohibited by law, apparently sports betting may be on the table.

Mississippi Sports Bettors Crush It in Football, Causing Drop in Taxable Revenue

Posted on 20 November 2018 | by Jill Dorson

Mississippi sportsbooks saw a slight rise in handle in October, up to $32.8 million against $31.8 million in September. The Gulf Coast-area sportsbooks continued to account for more than half of handle across the state, writing $21.8 million in wagers. And football remains king, accounting for $22.5 million of the total handle.

Like both New Jersey and Delaware, Mississippi’s hold, or win percentage, dropped significantly from September to October. During the first full month of football, the Magnolia State had a whopping 17.3 percent win percentage, but that plummeted to 3.59 percent in October. New Jersey’s October hold fell to 4.4 percent and Delaware’s fell to 3.5 percent.

For comparison, in Mississippi, the hold was 10 percent in August and Nevada traditionally has a 5 to 7 percent hold, so while 3.5 percent looks low, it’s not as alarming in context or as if the sportsbooks overall landed in the red.

Swanky New DraftKings Sportsbook Opens At Resorts Casino In Atlantic City

Posted on 20 November 2018 | by Brett Smiley

New York Giants Hall of Fame linebacker Harry Carson bet the New York Yankees to win the 2019 World Series on Tuesday morning, the first wager at DraftKings Sportsbook located at the Resorts Casino in Atlantic City. It’s DraftKings’ first physical location in New Jersey and the first on the East Coast, as the Boston-headquartered company continues its push from an online-only operation into physical spaces.

The sportsbook is the second of two at Resorts. The first is Resorts-branded, run by SB Tech and opened earlier this summer.

The new sportsbook features 135 50-inch televisions and a video wall that is more than 1,000 square feet. Rows of club chairs sit in front of the video screen, with a bank of teller windows to the right, and a VIP Lounge to the left. According to the Nov. 14 DraftKings press release, the facility has five teller windows, a full bar, charger stations at each seat and bar-top electronic slot games. The chairs are set stadium-style to allow for unobstructed viewing. The risk-management and trading operation, as well as the 12 sports betting kiosks, are powered by U.K.-based supplier Kambi Sports, which also powers DraftKings’ online sportsbook.

Delaware Sees Slight Dip in Betting Handle for October

Posted on 19 November 2018 | by Jill Dorson

In October, Delaware’s total sports betting handle dropped almost $2 million, from $16,830,010 in September to $14,738,223, according to the latest report from the Delaware Lottery. But that $14.7 million September handle is the second biggest since the First State became the first state outside Nevada to offer full-fledged, legal sports betting in June.

Previously the state offered parlay wagering on NFL contests only, an offering that was “grandfathered” in under the 1992 federal law ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in May. That law had banned full-fledged sports betting outside Nevada.

Delaware Park, located less than an hour from Philadelphia, remained the busiest sportsbook. Bettors placing $10.6 million in wagers there, compared to the $2.2 million handle at Dover Downs and $1.9 million at Harrington Raceway.

Legal Sports Betting in Pennsylvania Officially Launches Near State Capital

Posted on 19 November 2018 | by Brett Smiley

Legal, regulated sports wagering in Pennsylvania moved out of the hanger, onto the launch pad achieving blast off Saturday morning at the Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course in Grantville. It’s now the first venue to accept legal sports bets in the Keystone State, situated about 100 miles northeast of Philadelphia, near Harrisburg.

William Hill US, a subsidiary of UK-headquartered bookmaker William Hill, is running the casino’s sportsbook operations. As part of its deal with Hollywood Casino’s parent company, Penn National Gaming, the sportsbook conducted what it called “live wagering test day” on Thursday to certify the staff and equipment are in compliance with state regulatory requirements. Additional testing was scheduled Friday from 2 p.m. to midnight, satisfying the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) to subsequently authorize the facility to officially open at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

Although without fanfare or a ribbon cutting seen at official launches in Delaware, New Jersey, Mississippi or West Virginia (at least not one visible from afar), the sportsbook indeed went live on Saturday morning. Two William Hill officials confirmed to Sports Handle that the sportsbook at Hollywood Penn opened and is open for business.

Get a Grip: The Week in Sports Betting and Sports: PA Launch Has Arrived

Posted on 16 November 2018 | by Jill Dorson

The post Get a Grip: The Week in Sports Betting and Sports: PA Launch Has Arrived appeared first on SportsHandle.

It’s information overload everywhere, and there’s not time enough to sleep and eat and stay fully apprised of what’s happening on this crazy blue dot of ours (two out of three ain’t bad).

Here’s the weekend Sports Handle item, “Get a Grip,” recapping the week’s top stories, and rounding up key stories in sports betting, gaming, and the world of sports at large. You may have missed them, and they are worth reading.

12 Billion Reasons There Is So Much Hype Around Pennsylvania Sports Betting; Launch Pad Readies at Hollywood Penn

The Hollywood Casino in Pennsylvania will make history on Saturday when it fully opens the first legal sportsbook in PA to the public. More than a year after legalizing sports betting, Pennsylvanians will finally be able to legally place a bet — and the state will begin to reap expected financial gains from sports betting. They already have, actually, in the form of $10 million application fee apiece from the six properties so far to apply for a sports wagering license.

Of the eight states that have legalized sports betting, Pennsylvania is the only that that has just about two of everything — NFL teams, MLB teams and NHL teams. The only pro sport with only one Pennsylvania franchise is the NBA.

Michigan Could Become First State to Pay Leagues Sports Betting ‘Integrity Fee’

Posted on 16 November 2018 | by Brett Smiley

So far the National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball and PGA Tour are 0-for-7 in persuading state lawmakers to mandate payment of an off-the-top “integrity fee” or “royalty,” putting a percentage of legal sports bets into league coffers.

Now, a key lawmaker in Michigan sponsoring a bill that would legalize sports betting and iGaming in the state could give a win to the leagues.

According to a report from Reuters, following a U.S. Sports Betting Policy Summit in Washington D.C. this week, Michigan state representative Brandt Iden (R-District 61) changed his mind on the fees after “spending significant time with the leagues.”

‘Cover City’: NFL Week 11 Picks, Preview, Prop Bets With Christian Pina

Posted on 15 November 2018 | by Brett Smiley

Sports Handle is pleased to present Cover City: A Pro Football Betting Podcast, hosted by Eric Rosenthal (@ericcports). Rosenthal is a professional sports bettor who focuses on NFL and college football. He’s wagered more than $25 million in the last nine years, getting banned from many sportsbooks along the way.

There’s six teams on a bye and it’s not an easy card this week. Sometimes, less is more. The defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles are 9-point underdogs on the road at New Orleans and the line may grow. Eric makes the case for Tennessee Titans against the Indianapolis Colts, while Christian calls out all the fraudulent teams. And of course, the guys spend some time on the Chiefs-Rams Monday Night Football tilt which is expected to be a fireworks show with an NFL record 63-point total.

Listen and subscribe on Spotify here. Download the PropSwap app for iOS systems here and Android here. Time codes for the episode follow below.

1:45 — Carolina Panthers -4 at Detroit Lions

4:18 — Dallas Cowboys +3 at Atlanta Falcons

8:40 — Minnesota Vikings +2.5 at Chicago Bears

12:42 — Philadelphia Eagles +9 at New Orleans Saints

18:00 — Tennessee Titans +1 at Indianapolis Colts

26:55 — Houston Texans -3 at Washington Redskins

29:30 — PropSwap.com Futures Focus. More than just a futures marketplace, check out PropSwap for favorable real-time betting opportunities and get 10% off your first purchase by visiting PropSwap.com/Handle.

35:15 — Tampa Bay Buccaneers +1.5 at New York Giants

38:35 — Denver Broncos +7 at Los Angeles Chargers

40:00 — Oakland Raiders +5.5 at Arizona Cardinals

42:00 — Pittsburgh Steelers -5.5 at Jacksonville Jaguars

43:40 — Kansas City Chiefs +3.5 at Los Angeles Rams

52:15 — Final thoughts: Less is more this week! And Eric’s SuperContest picks.

Also check out this week’s ‘Pro Football Handle’ podcast!

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The post ‘Cover City’: NFL Week 11 Picks, Preview, Prop Bets With Christian Pina appeared first on SportsHandle.

New Jersey Sports Betting Handle Surges to $261M, Revenue ‘Just’ $11M As Bettors Exact Revenge

Posted on 15 November 2018 | by Brett Smiley

The good news for the New Jersey sportsbooks in the newly released revenue report for October is a large jump in handle from $186 million in September to $261 in October. The downside is that the bettors took a bigger bite of the books this month than usual, cutting revenue by more than half month-over-month from $24 million in September to “just” $11.7 million in October.

Overall that spells a 4.4 percent hold, down from 13 percent in Sept., which may be partly attributable to baseball (more on this below) and perhaps moreso a lot of “public” teams covering the spread in October NFL contests. The rise in betting handle is almost entirely attributable to the mobile/one sector, which grew from $105 million in September to $174 million in October. On-site sports betting inched up from $79 million in the prior month to $86 million.

Resorts Digital continues to lead the way by a lap on the revenue front, reporting $5.1 million in October, which is nearly half of the entire haul across all sportsbooks for the month. An arm of Resorts Casino, Resorts Digital figures represent DraftKings Sportsbook as well as BetStarsNJ.com. We can no longer parse out which side is driving what, but based on prior figures we can safely say that DraftKings is responsible for the lion’s as well as the cub’s share. Let’s dig in a litter deeper now.

October Brick-and-Mortar Sportsbook Revenue:

Bally’s: $303K
Borgata: $120K
Golden Nugget: $46K
Harrah’s: $104K
Meadowlands (FanDuel Sportsbook): $1.1 million
Monmouth Park: $606K
Ocean Resort: $438K
Resorts: $97K
Tropicana: $15K

A spokesperson for FanDuel Sportsboook said: “Demand for the FanDuel Sportsbook continues to outpace our expectations with online handle 2.5 times higher than September and continued double digit growth in retail handle. It was an exciting month for bettors who won at a high rate on football and benefitted from our industry-leading pricing and odds boosts.”

October Online Sportsbook Revenue:

Bally’s (combination of CaesarsCasino & 888sport): $108K
Borgata (PlayMGM): $67K
FanDuel Sportsbook (Meadowlands): $2.43 million
Golden Nugget (PlaySugarHouse): $151K
Monmouth Park (William Hill and PlaySugarHouse): $609K
Ocean Resort (William Hill): $385K
Resorts Digital (combination of DK Sportsbook and BetStarsNJ.com): $5.1 million

PA Sports Betting License Applications Keep Rolling In

Posted on 15 November 2018 | by Jill Dorson

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board received its sixth application for a sports betting license when the Valley Forge Casino Resort filed paperwork on Wednesday. Owned by Boyd Gaming, the sportsbook will be run by FanDuel, which also partnered with Boyd Gaming for “sports betting and online gaming opportunities across the United States,” in August. FanDuel also runs the sportsbooks at two Boyd Gaming facilities in Mississippi, the IP Casino Resort Spa in Biloxi, and Sam’s Town Hotel & Gambling Hall in Tunica.

The PGCB says there is no set timetable for approving the application. The board’s next regularly scheduled meeting is Nov. 28, which likely is too soon for the application to be considered. It’s more likely to be on the agenda for one of the December meeting dates.

Five casinos have already been approved for sports betting licenses in Pennsylvania, and in each of those cases, it took a minimum of 5 1/2 weeks between the date of application and board approval. None of the casinos have opened sportsbooks to date.