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UK betting firms gamble on US after sports betting wager ruling
bet9ja.com
5 June 2018
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By Natalie Sherman
Business press reporter, New York
It's high stakes for UK companies as sports betting wagering starts to spread out in America.
From Tuesday, new rules on entered result in Delaware, a tiny east coast state about 2 hours from Washington.
Neighbouring New Jersey could start accepting sports betting bets as early as Friday.
The modifications are the very first in what might end up being a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the method for states to permit sports betting.
The market sees a "once in a generation" opportunity to establish a new market in sports betting-mad America, stated Dublin-based monetary analyst David Jennings, who heads leisure research at Davy.
For UK firms, which are coming to grips with debt consolidation, increased online competitors and harder rules from UK regulators, the timing is especially suitable.
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But the industry says depending on the US remains a risky bet, as UK business face complex state-by-state policy and competition from entrenched regional interests.
"It's something that we're truly concentrating on, however similarly we do not want to overhype it," stated James Midmer, spokesperson at Paddy Power Betfair, which recently acquired the US dream sports betting website FanDuel.
'Take time'
The US accounted for about 23% of the world's $244bn (₤ 182bn) in video gaming revenue in 2015, according to a report by Technavio, external published in January.
Firms are hoping to take advantage of more of that activity after last month's decision, which overruled a 1992 federal law that barred states outside of Nevada and a couple of others from authorising sports betting.
The ruling found the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not really legalise sports betting, leaving that concern to regional legislators.
That is expected to result in substantial variation in how companies get accredited, where sports betting can take place, and which occasions are open to speculation - with huge implications for the size of the marketplace.
Potential revenue varieties from $4.2 bn to practically $20bn annually depending on factors like how many states transfer to legalise, Oxford Economics approximated in a 2017 research study for the American Gaming Association.
"There was a great deal of 'this is going to be substantial'", said Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for consultants KPMG.
Now, he said: "I believe the majority of people ... are taking a look at this as, 'it's an opportunity but it's not going to be $20bn and it's going to be state by state and it's going to take time'."
'Remains to be seen"
Chris Grove, managing director at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, predicts that 32 states will legalise sports betting in some form by 2023, producing a market with about $6bn in yearly profits.
But bookies deal with a far different landscape in America than they perform in the UK, where sports betting shops are a regular sight.
US laws limited gaming mostly to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip till reasonably just recently.
In the popular imagination, sports betting has actually long been linked to a 1919 baseball World Series match-fixing scandal.
States have likewise been sluggish to legalise numerous kinds of online gaming, in spite of a 2011 Justice Department viewpoint that appeared to remove challenges.
While sports betting is typically viewed in its own category, "it plainly remains to be seen whether it gets the kind of momentum people believe it will," said Keith Miller, law professor at Drake University and co-author of a book about sports betting policy.
David Carruthers is the former chief executive of BetonSports, who was detained in the US in 2006 for running an offshore online sportsbook and served jail time.
Now an expert, he states UK companies need to approach the marketplace thoroughly, choosing partners with care and avoiding missteps that could lead to regulator reaction.
"This is a chance for the American sports betting bettor ... I'm unsure whether it is a chance for organization," he says. "It truly is dependent on the result of [state] legislation and how business operators pursue the chance."
'It will be partnerships'
As legalisation begins, sports betting wagering firms are lobbying to fend off high tax rates, as well as requests by US sports betting leagues, which wish to collect a portion of income as an "integrity charge".
International business face the included difficulty of a powerful existing video gaming market, with gambling establishment operators, state-run lotteries and Native American tribes that are looking for to protect their grass.
Analysts state UK firms will require to strike partnerships, offering their proficiency and technology in order to make inroads.
They point to SBTech's current announcement that it is providing technology for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the kind of deals likely to materialise.
"It will be a win-win for everybody, however it will be collaborations and it will be driven by technology," Mr Hawkley stated.
'It will simply depend'
Joe Asher, president at William Hill US, is clear-eyed about the realities.
The company has been buying the US market considering that 2011, when it bought three US companies to establish a presence in Nevada.
William Hill now uses about 450 people in the US and has revealed collaborations with gambling establishments in Iowa and New Jersey.
It works as risk manager for the Delaware Lottery and has invested millions together with a local developer in a New Jersey horse racing track.
Mr Asher said William Hill has actually ended up being a home name in Nevada however that's not necessarily the objective all over.
"We certainly plan to have a really substantial brand presence in New Jersey," he said. "In other states, it will just depend upon regulation and potentially who our local partner is."
"The US is going to be the most significant sports betting market worldwide," he added. "Obviously that's not going to happen on day one."
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UK Betting Firms Gamble on United States After Sports Wager Ruling
traceygage6416 edited this page 2025-01-01 01:02:08 +00:00