Russell Wilson isn’t the only big name making an NFL debut in Colorado this football season. European betting heavyweight bet365 is now live in the state. It is the second US market for the operator, following New Jersey, where it launched in 2019. The brand is also now a regulated operator in Ontario after years of functioning in the gray market.
Bet365 working with Century Casinos in CO
This is the third online sports betting brand for Century Casinos, which also works with Tipico Sportsbook and Circa Sportsbook. Both of those operators launched in advance of the 2021-22 NFL season.
“We’re delighted to announce that the world’s favorite online sports betting brand will now be available to sports fans in Colorado. The season-opening NFL weekend will provide new and eligible customers with the opportunity to experience Bet365’s market-leading in-play product as well as enjoying our unrivaled new customer offer,” a Bet365 spokesperson said.
The Bet365 Colorado app features cashouts, bet boosts, an in-game betting section, and plenty of promos and parlays centered around the upcoming football season.
Colorado is one of the ten biggest sports betting markets in the US. Live and regulated for two years, Colorado and New Jersey are very similar from a regulatory perspective in that both bodies are willing to allow bets on unconventional markets like the Oscars or the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.
Bet365 Ontario offering hope for the brand in North America
As a global operator, Bet365 is the “world’s favorite”, but it has yet to make much of a dent in North America, particularly in the US. The company tried and failed to secure a New York sports betting license. It also has a market access deal to Texas through the San Antonio Spurs, however, the Lone Star State continues to be relatively uninterested in gambling expansion.
It is difficult to gauge how much market share Bet365 has in the US. In New Jersey, revenue is reported by license and bet365 is on the Hard Rock Casino license alongside the Hard Rock and Unibet brands. In July, the three brands accounted for a combined 2.7% of the New Jersey online betting market. Colorado does not break down revenue by operator at all, so there will be no data there to see how the brand’s US expansion is faring.
Ontario is a different story. While the first revenue report from iGaming Ontario (iGO) did not break down revenue by vertical or by operator, there are reports that Bet365 is the market leader. The thought is the years of familiarity with that market as a gray market operator translated into a strong debut on the regulated side in the province. Given the anecdotal evidence customers are very familiar with the gray market, Bet365 should be in a great position going forward. What is less clear is if similar success is attainable in a more mature US market like Colorado.
