SportsHandle and friends deliver another round-up of the week’s big developments in US sports betting.
FanDuel Goes Live With Sports Betting In Virginia, Partnered With Washington Football Team
FanDuel Sportsbook went live at 2:30 p.m. in Virginia today, kicking off the legal sports betting era in the state. FanDuel is the only operator that has been approved for sports betting launch by the Virginia Lottery to date, and the launch is the first for a newly legal sports betting state in 2021.
A Virginia Lottery spokesperson confirmed to Sports Handle via email that FanDuel is the only operator approved so far, and said, “Decisions on additional permit awards are imminent, and we anticipate more than one sportsbook will be in position to begin accepting legal wagers from Virginians in time for the Super Bowl on Feb. 7.”
Full story here.
New Federal Court Ruling On Wire Act Is Big Win For Lotteries, Online Poker Compacts
Two years of confusion created by a Department of Justice memo were erased on Wednesday when, in a 49-page ruling, a U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals panel found that The Wire Act of 1961 only applies to interstate sports betting.
The New Hampshire Lottery had filed a lawsuit after a November 2018 DOJ Opinion held that The Wire Act was not so limited in scope.
That led to uncertainty about the validity of multi-state lotteries and online poker compacts that clearly crossed state lines — but also state lotteries, because a simple purchase of a lottery ticket might technically involve for a moment technology that operates in another state.
Full story here.
Go-Live For Michigan Sports Betting, iGaming Operators Is Friday
Update, Jan. 20, 2021: The Michigan Gaming Control Board on Wednesday announced that it has also approved PointsBet and the Lac Vieux Desert tribe to go live on Friday, bringing the total number of operators who could live on Friday to 10.
Two years and a month after then-Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder vetoed an iGaming and sports betting bill, operators are on the verge of going live with online sports betting and iGaming. The Michigan Gaming Control Board on Tuesday announced that it has approved nine operators to go live on Friday.
And Brandt Iden, the former Michigan representative who shepherded sports betting from concept to reality, can hardly wait.
Full story here.
Colorado Regulators Anticipate Record Sports Betting Activity In January Driven By NFL Playoffs
A new year brings a bevy of new challenges for Colorado sports betting operators, as the football season draws to a close in the coming weeks.
Football has been the cash cow for books in recent months, with nearly half of all tickets containing wagers on the sport in November. Interest in college football and NFL wagering over the fall pushed the nascent Colorado market to new heights, with record handle expected for December after a robust start to the football season two months earlier.
But with less than three weeks until the Super Bowl and the Denver Broncos’ season already complete, Colorado Division of Gaming Director Dan Hartman remains unconcerned about the possibility of a considerable downturn.
Full story here.
New York Gov. Cuomo Doubles Down On Mobile Sports Betting, Projects $500 Million In Revenue In Fiscal Year Budget
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo outlined the state’s framework for mobile sports betting Tuesday in New York’s fiscal year executive budget proposal, potentially setting the stage for a contentious negotiating period with legislative leaders in the weeks ahead.
During Tuesday’s State of the Budget address, Cuomo emphasized that mobile sports betting could raise $500 million in annual revenue under a state-run system, which draws comparison to the model New York uses for operating the state lottery. Cuomo, a Democrat, previously expressed resistance to legalizing the activity, dating back to the repeal of PASPA in May 2018. But the three-term governor shifted his policy on online sports betting in recent weeks amid the state’s ballooning budget deficit, as the New York economy continues to feel the devastating effects of COVID-19.
Full story here.
President Biden’s Inauguration Day Is Collection Day For One Member Of The Gambling Media
Last Sunday’s playoff game between the Chiefs and Browns was a touch more competitive than some fans expected and provided nervous moments for fans on both sides down the stretch. In the end, the score was close and the upset was just one or two key plays away from materializing. But the Chiefs prevailed.
How sweet would it be if, a few days later, you could still find people willing to bet you real money on the game, taking the position that the Browns actually won?
That’s effectively the situation David Tuchman found himself in after the Nov. 3 presidential election.
Full story here.
