?»?The Week In Sports Betting News: VA Sportsbooks Continue Piecemeal Rollout.
Happy Monday , everyone. There was plenty of interesting sports betting news last week despite GameStop and retail stock market investors dominating headlines.
The latest LSR Podcast discussed the two recent US sports betting launches in Michigan and Virginia . The team also discussed the recent trend of buying daily fantasy sports companies.
Make sure you??™re following @LSPReport on Twitter as well for breaking news updates.
Top sports betting story: Virginia sports betting continues slow rollout.
Sports betting in Virginia launched Jan. 21, but there still are just four operators live.
BetMGM and BetRivers joined FanDuel Sportsbook and DraftKings Sportsbook in the market last week. BetMGM received an untethered mobile license while BetRivers launched under Rush Street ??™s eventual casino license.
It would appear William Hill is next in line, with Caesars Virginia receiving its permit Wednesday. After that, who knows when we??™ll get the next bit of sports betting news from the state: The Virginia Lottery is keeping the process very secretive with licensee information only available as its website updates.
Tennessee gets two more sportsbooks as well.
It??™s go time for William Hill and WynnBET in the hot Tennessee sports betting market ??“ but not until after the Super Bowl .
Both operators received approval at Friday??™s Tennessee Education Lottery special meeting but have more to do before they can launch. Tennessee is also still waiting for Churchill Downs ??? TwinSpire to join the market.
The four launched sportsbooks ??“ Action 24/7 , BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel ??“ are likely thrilled to be the only operators so far. Tennessee??™s online-only market set a launch record with $131.4 million in handle in November followed by $180.9 million in December .
Those two months combined for $27.1 million in operator revenue.
Northeast states staying busy on sports betting.
Maybe there??™s something more to the water in the Northeast than just making perfect bagels and rolls.
Connecticut and Massachusetts are both trying to legalize sports betting while New York is taking a step forward and back simultaneously.
Sports betting in Connecticut is a bit tricky because of the gaming exclusivity granted long ago to the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes. All sides called for compromise at a hearing last Tuesday, but no one seems ready to make a sacrifice first.
Massachusetts sports betting is again supported by Sen. Brendan Crighton , who reconfigured his 2020 bill with higher upfront fees that would generate tens of millions for the state.
And then there??™s New York. Sports betting in New York is already legal, but only through retail casinos. For questionable reasons, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his team think the best option is to limit the market to potentially just one mobile operator.
Nevada sports betting handle falls in 2020.
Fewer people traveling and an upended sports calendar because of the coronavirus handed Nevada ???s sportsbooks a 20% dip in annual revenue and 19% decrease for handle.
Revenue for the full year was $262.8 million , about $7 million behind the leader, Pennsylvania . Handle was $4.3 billion.
Part of the decline can be blamed on Nevada??™s market since it requires in-person registration for mobile wagering accounts.
Investor Ader talks gaming SPACS.
Jason Ader called FanDuel and PokerStars parent company Flutter the potential Tesla of the gaming industry, and detailed some of his potential SPAC targets in an LSR Q+A .
Ader, who had two SPACs more than a decade ago and recently raised $275 million through Capital 26 , is currently considering four targets.
Ader also touched on why he thinks MGM Resorts will eventually buy its BetMGM partner, Entain , and likened some current SPAC management teams to old Fords instead of Ferraris or Rolls Royces .
Elsewhere, LSR??™s Brad Allen also dove into how mergers and acquisitions could change the shape of US sports betting this year.
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We provide daily sports betting news for the United States market. We cover the news relevant to the legality of betting in the United States. We focus on online sports betting , but also cover daily fantasy sports, online casino, online poker, online lottery and horse racing. We provide progress updates on legislation in each state, industry partnership, interviews and more.
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Big game, big worries? Gambling addiction grows with Illinois??™ booming sports betting industry ??” ???It??™s in your face all the time??™
The number of Illinoisans seeking help for problem gambling has almost doubled since legislators approved a massive gambling expansion in 2019. Experts expect that number to keep growing.
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A man who requested that he only be identified as Anthony stands by a window in a high-rise condo near Soldier Field on Friday. The Tinley Park man is a recovering sports gambling addict. Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times.
Thousands of football fans will be placing their first legal Super Bowl bets in Illinois this weekend, and for most, a little action will make the big game just a bit more entertaining.
But, for some, it might open the door to regular betting, adding a quick dopamine hit to the regular season viewing experience. Maybe they??™ll have to start budgeting for a new habit. Maybe they??™ll have to start borrowing for it.
And, for a select few, it will get worse.
It??™s already gotten worse for hundreds of people statewide since Illinois legislators approved a massive gaming expansion a year and a half ago, introducing legal sports wagering to a state that??™s already packed with more places to gamble than Las Vegas.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made matters even worse, according to Luke, a Chicago-area problem gambler who was able to get out of the game nine years ago. Economic uncertainty and the general malaise of the quarantine lifestyle make gambling all the more enticing.
???It used to be that there was a stigma, and gambling was taboo. It was seedy,??? said Luke, who asked that his full name not be used. ???Now, you can do it on your phone. The companies that are doing it are publicly traded Fortune 500 companies.???
A man who asked that he only be identified as Anthony reads news about the Super Bowl on his phone Friday. Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times.
Calls to the state??™s gambling disorder hotline more than doubled from 2019 to 2020, when 13,258 people reached out either there or online for information on a problem that experts say is out of sight but front of mind for a growing number of bettors and their families. The Illinois Department of Human Services, which aims to connect problem gamblers with counseling resources, calls that a ???dramatic increase.???
In 2019, about 580 people received treatment for gambling disorders through state-sponsored programs across Illinois. That figure jumped past 1,000 in 2020, and experts say it doesn??™t even cut the deck as only an estimated 3% of problem gamblers acknowledge they have a problem, and even fewer seek treatment.
Counseling gets boost with Illinois gambling expansion ??” but more addiction is sure to follow.
State??™s all-in gambling expansion offers new temptation for those struggling to stay out.
Hundreds more took the more drastic step of banning themselves from casinos and the smartphone betting apps that have them hooked. About 13,500 people were enrolled in the self-exclusion program maintained by regulators at the Illinois Gaming Board in mid-2019, but that number has since shot past 14,000.
Many of those gamblers cite their temptations as coming from the state??™s 10 casinos, three horse racing tracks and 7,233 bars, restaurants, gas stations and VFW halls that also house slot machines.
But since mobile sports betting launched last summer, Illinoisans can now gamble 24/7 from the comfort of home ??” and they??™ve already lost more than $101 million doing so, according to Gaming Board revenue figures.
Blackhawks analyst Eddie Olczyk placed Illinois first legal sports bet in March 2019. Gamblers across the state have wagered more than $1.4 billion since then ??” and lost $101 million. Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times.
As the billion-dollar industry keeps growing, addiction counselors say they??™re hearing more and more from young people glued to the sports betting apps whose ads saturate Illinois airwaves and billboards.
???It??™s in your face all the time,??? said Dr. Teresa Garate of the Gateway Foundation, a network of 16 addiction treatment centers statewide. ???It??™s becoming a part of everyday life. Everyone accepts it, but it??™s a serious trigger for some.???
That??™s the case for Anthony, a 36-year-old recovering problem gambler from southwest suburban Tinley Park, who said he often finds himself changing the station as sports talk radio hosts dissect the latest betting lines.
???It??™ll just be too much, it??™s too close,??? Anthony said. ???Even though I don??™t think it??™ll lead me down there, I know better than to let my mind start thinking like that.???
Anthony reads his favorite passages from ???A Day at a Time??™ a book by Gamblers Anonymous. Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times.
Elizabeth Thielen, a senior director at Nicasa Behavioral Health Services, said she??™s seen yearly increases of people seeking help for gambling disorders across Chicago??™s north suburbs, but a ???real burst??? of clients has sought them out in the past nine months.
???The ages we??™re seeing are trending younger, and I think that??™s directly related to sports betting,??? Thielen said. ???At the same time, I feel hopeful because you have young people showing a surprising level of insight to find help.???
Way Back Inn executive director Anita Pindiur is pictured outside the Maywood facility in 2019. Sun-Times file.
While there??™s been an influx of new problem gamblers, the potential for relapse is an equal concern for Dr. Anita Pindiur, executive director of the Way Back Inn, a Maywood treatment center. About 10 former patients have already returned to the Way Back Inn for counseling this football season alone.
???Sometimes, we forget how quickly it can happen,??? Pindiur said. ???These things are advertised in a way that they??™re fun and entertaining, and they should be. But often there is no set of limits or recognition of the limits until we get our credit-card bill, or somebody points it out.???
Illinois sports betting market could rival Nevada??™s, analysts say.
Sports bettors have already wagered $1.4 billion since legal industry launched in Illinois.
COVID-19 puts new Illinois casino licenses on hold.
Besides financial ruin, experts say people who suffer from gambling addiction are more likely to suffer from substance abuse issues, turn to crime or even attempt suicide.
???I was losing everything,??? said Patrick, a 35-year-old Niles man who??™s 13 months removed from his last bet. ???I??™d have a paycheck on a Friday afternoon and it would be gone by Friday night. My relationships with my family and whoever I was dating, it just got out of control. I was lying, I was stealing, I was doing all these crazy things.???
As sports betting has been brought out of the shadows into everyday life, counselors say their challenge now is removing the stigma around seeking treatment for addiction ??” and they say they??™re making progress through increased awareness. That??™s been boosted with the help of $7 million set aside in the state??™s gambling expansion law in grants for treatment centers, which have used a lot of that money to bolster advertising.
The Way Back Inn is one of only a handful of addiction treatment centers in Illinois that provide a gambling-specific program. Sun-Times file.
???One of the biggest barriers to treatment is stigma, especially for gambling,??? said Garate, from the Gateway Foundation. ???People don??™t see it as a real addiction. It is, and help is out there.???
Just how many people need help is unclear. Experts generally estimate that between 2% and 5% of the population deal with gambling disorder, which would project to about 635,000 people across Illinois, including about 136,000 in Chicago.
TO GET HELP.
For more information on problem gambling support, call 1-800-GAMBLER or text ???ILGAMB??? to 53342.
But there??™s been no comprehensive study of the problem in Illinois since 1999, well before video slots dotted the walls at thousands of establishments across the state and sportsbooks were accessible anywhere that had a cellphone signal.
???You have to believe those numbers are different now,??? Thielen said.
The state Department of Human Services is out to find out just how much they??™ve shifted with the onslaught of gambling options. The agency launched a $500,000 study last fall surveying treatment providers, problem gamblers and others to gauge the prevalence of addiction, especially among populations considered vulnerable or marginalized due to race, culture, economic or social disparity.
???We want to know what??™s the challenge, and what should we look for,??? said David Jones, who directs the department??™s Substance Use Prevention and Recovery Division. ???Then, you can start to bring more evidence-based solutions on a size consistent with the scale of the challenge.???
Online sports betting to launch in Michigan this month.
LANSING, Mich. ??” Online sports betting is set to launch throughout Michigan in mid-January.
So far, fifteen sportsbooks have been approved for launch. Two, Fanduel and DraftKings, are already offering pre-registration deals for Michiganders who sign up before actual betting can begin.
As he tells Fox 47, the launch of legal sports gambling means more opportunities to wager.
???For a Michigander that probably means you are going to have more access to legal sports betting with the launch of mobile sports betting,??? said John Holden, an assistant professor of business at Oklahoma State University who studies federal and state regulation of sports gambling.
Mobile sports gambling can be done right from a bettor??™s phone through sportsbook applications that follow location and age verification protocol as defined by the state??™s Gaming and Control Board.
Holden says casinos that introduce their own sportsbooks to the digital landscape could see more engagement as programs begin to launch.
???For the past few months, sports betting has been available in some casinos though, of course, access to those casinos has been limited over the past few months due to the COVID-19 pandemic,??? Holden explained.
State-governed casinos are being hit hard by COVID-19 closures and reduced capacity measures. Table game and slots revenue dropped by over sixty-one percent compared to November 2019.
???I think there??™s some pent-up demand," said Richard Kalm, executive director of the Michigan Gaming and Control Board. "The casinos were only open at fifteen percent capacity in October, and November was only half a month because, remember, we had to close because of COVID."
Michigan is the twentieth state to legalize online sports betting. Other states have seen online sports take over the gambling scene in 2020.
???What we have seen is that states that have both brick and mortar sports betting and mobile betting are seeing upwards of 80 percent, 85 percent, New Jersey at one point was at 93 percent of the revenue was coming from mobile betting,??? Holden said.
According to Kalm, the process is now in the hands of casinos and sportsbook applications to make sure they??™re able to launch. To be cleared, these entities must be compliant with safe gambling guidelines laid out by the state.
???At this point, we??™re waiting for the independent test labs that test the software and the types of games and also the geolocation to make sure that they have geolocation properly in place, their internal controls, and their age verification in place,??? Kalm said.
Kalm said he and the control board are keeping safe betting in mind throughout this process. But, as Holden warns, the risk may not be preventable.
???There??™s always risk associated with gambling. However, in a regulated environment like what??™s launching in Michigan soon, those risks can be controlled to some degree.???
FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek was the first tribal casino in Michigan to implement sports betting back in June. They are expected to embrace digital sports gambling but haven??™t released a launch timeline.
Soaring Eagle Casino near Mount Pleasant announced in November that they would be adding in-person sports betting, but have yet to comment on the possibility of going digital.
Online poker, slots and more casino classics also on their way to Michigan, Kalm said, possibly as soon as February.
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