Riding the next wave
ONE FOR THE HISTORY BOOKS: THE US SPORTS BETTING JOURNEY CATHRYN LAI, SVP AND GENERAL MANAGER US AT SG DIGITAL, explains why US betting
legalisation is of great historical significance and how her company is combining ‘best of breed’ technology with experiences of the wider Scientific Games group
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ince the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) back in 2018, the US sports betting market has undergone a series of drastic changes, with the list of states looking to open their doors to a regulated market growing longer by the day. Two and a half years on and the potential for growth within the US seems to be unfathomable - with more operators and suppliers seeking to gain a front-row seat for what is tipped to soon become the largest domestic betting market in the world. Speaking as part of a ‘fireside chat’ with SBC’s Managing Director Andrew McCarron, Lai explained that the journey to establishing a regulated betting market is up there with some of the most exciting moments in history.
26 SBC LEADERS • FEBRUARY 2021
“It is such an exciting time to be a part of the US sports betting market, I feel like this journey is going to be very historical,” she said. “After PASPA was repealed, if you think about how many states have come online in the past two and a half years, it’s pretty phenomenal! “From our perspective, we’re watching all the states regulate - and we’ve got teams which are tracking all of the different rules. It’s all changing on a daily basis - the potential for where this market is heading is pretty significant.”
IT IS SUCH AN EXCITING TIME TO BE A PART OF THE US SPORTS BETTING MARKET, I FEEL LIKE THIS JOURNEY IS GOING TO BE VERY HISTORICAL
In the latter stages of 2020 alone, Lai explained that three individual states included ‘some kind of sports legislation’ on their ballots, something she believes is a sign of things to come as more states mull over whether or not to introduce a legalised betting framework. So which states does the SVP predict will go live next? Well, Michigan was high on the list as the Wolverine State was preparing to introduce both online betting and iGaming by the end of 2020. But for Lai, South Dakota, Maryland and Louisiana are also high on the list. “The most exciting thing is that by the end of the year, we know that Michigan is going to add digital sports to the market, and we’re so excited to be a part of that from day one,” she explained. “They’re also adding igaming too which is a bonus for us.” “If you think about it all from a landscape perspective, in November there were three states with some form of sports betting legislation on their ballots. So, I think the next wave of what people will be looking at is whether all three of those states will pass sports betting legislation. “South Dakota, Maryland and Louisiana - those are three markets which we feel pretty confident about opening up in 2021. What we can see though is that every year, the number of states opening up is going to be more and more. It’s a very exciting time, especially for us from a technology perspective.” From a social point of view, it can be expected that sports betting preferences will differ among players and operators across the country. But
