#1 Weekly Digest – Latest News in US Gambling World
In the world of gambling, there is never a dull moment. Casinos, both online and offline, seem to be coming up with something or the other to keep gamblers on their toes. Moreover, the government is also constantly working to come up with new and improved ways to make betting platforms safer for people. So, there is always something going on, and in this digest, we aim to update you regarding the latest news in the gambling industry. Without further ado, let’s see what this exciting landscape has in stores for its ardent followers.
Sports Betting to Launch in Three More States In The November Ballot
With people and administrators coming in support of sports betting, the industry seems to expand in an exponential manner. Virginia, Tennessee, and Michigan are the three US states prepping for their much-awaited launch. Michigan will go live in November followed by Tennessee in December, and Virginia in February.
Among the three, Michigan’s upcoming launch of iGaming and sports betting is the most anticipated by the betting industry. These three states represent around 8% of the US adult population; bringing a lot of revenue-generating opportunities.
Louisiana in 2018, passed daily fantasy sports regulation with 73% approval. The state appears to be in a similar position when it comes to approving sports betting. However, voters in Maryland seem to be divided on legalizing sports betting. Moreover, states that have received the approval will only have operating sports betting by the quarter of 2021.
Considering the kind of massive revenue that sports betting is generating across the country, many states are moving ahead to legalize the same. Massachusetts and Ohio are two other states that appear to be moving in a good direction. In fact, both states can legalize sports betting by the end of 2020.
South Dakota, Louisiana, and Maryland are the three states that might have sports betting referendums on the upcoming November ballot.
Playtika, The Popular Casino Developer, Is All Geared For Initial Public Offering
Playtika Holding Corp., one of the leading social casino games developers, has been filing the paperwork for initial public offers or IPO in the USA. And if the Securities and Exchange Commission approves the paperwork, the company’s shares might be available for the public by early 2021. As of now, information about this IPO is kept private. However, according to the claims of Reuters, the company could sell $1 billion shares at approximately $10 billion.
Considering that the online gambling industry in the USA and social casino being a related sector has been expanding tremendously, this move by the company is rather interesting. Additionally, stock markets of the country, especially NASDAQ, are witnessing stable growth after the crash of COVID-19.
Positioning Itself Into The US Boundaries
Though Playtika has its headquarters in Israel, the company is owned and operated by a Chinese investor group that includes Yunfeng Capital and Giant Network Group.
For the most part of its operations, the company was owned by Caesars Entertainment. The company acquired the control of Playtika back in the year 2011 when it was just a year old. GNG acquired the full rights of the company in the year 2016 when Caesers sold it for $4.4 billion. While not an owner, Playtika continues to maintain a strong relationship with it. Caesars Slots and WSOP poker app are still the most popular products of this social gaming company Irrespective of who owns the company, Playtika always maintained a western-facing operation with a majority of its offices located in Europe. The objective of this IPO is to leverage the favourable market conditions of the US.
Dealing With Social Casino Lawsuits
Playtika has been in the news a lot lately and not for all the good reasons. The company is among the many casino organizations that settled Washington lawsuits over the summer. This lawsuit was a result of accusations that the products of the casino were offering illegal gambling.
Moreover, Ronald Leighton, the judge who was working on the case, agreed with the claims that the play money chips include a ‘thing of value’ when the game cannot be played without them. For instance, apps such as Caesars Slot gave out free chips frequently, but later they tried to coax the gamblers to acquire more chips by paying money when they ran out of initial supply. Eventually, Playtika gave out $38 million as a settlement and agreed to make necessary changes.
Bettors All Prepped Up – College Football to Return in Colorado
With November approaching, the entire USA is gearing up for college football. Whether it is Sub Belt starting things off in September with its conferences or SEC exploring a bunch of things at the end of the month, we have seen the game seasons slowly coming back to our lives. And Colorado seems to be preparing for a season-long betting trend with only upward curves.
Mountain West Football and Pac-12 Ready to Make Their Return
It was surprising when Mountain West postponed its fall season two month back, and the Pac-12 followed suit. Both these conferences now will be among the last ones to get back to their games. The Mountain West, On Saturday, will make its debut of the year with five games.
Although initially the conference was supposed to play six contests, it cancelled the match between Colorado State and New Mexico. This is because the match was supposed to be held at Fort Collins, a place which is witnessing increased COVID outbreak. Post-Saturday games, the Pac-12 will be returning with six games.
College Football To Increase the Betting Prospects
With college football back in the swing, especially NFL, the state will certainly receive a lot of betting opportunities as well. A couple of months back, nobody was certain if the season would even be happening. But thankfully the game eventually returned. And unsurprisingly sports betting has also seen a steady return. In the case of Colorado sports betting, the same upward trends are expected to follow.
With more conference kick starts the season, there will be an evident uptick in the college football handle. FanDuel’s risk and trading lead for college football, Stephen Macken said that with Mountain West and Pac-12 starting their season, farms would have matches starting around 6 pm Mountain Time and that is perfect for the customers of Colorado and offer more options for the fans on the east coast.’
Considering that the first couple of games shed light into the world of college sports in September, the sports betting actions on the sportsbook has been well-regulated. However, since most of the matches were centred on the east of Colorado, the betting action did not move beyond the dinner time in the Rockies. But the comeback of Mountain West and the Pac-12 will ensure that the football action will go on till late at night, giving bettors more opportunities.
The world of sports betting keeps getting more interesting with every passing year. Whether it is stated legalizing the betting on sports or the addition of new technologies, the excitement of sports betting is never-ending. Sports are re-surfacing post the COVID-19 outbreak, and the US bettors are geared up to make the most out of every sport.
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