SportsHandle and friends deliver another round-up of the week’s big developments in US sports betting.
Betting Industry Unites Against Congressman Who Wants To Ban Their Ads
It’s not very often that sports betting stakeholders universally find themselves all-in on the same issue, but that’s the case a week after U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko of New York filed a bill he calls the Betting on Our Future Act.
The legislation would prohibit any sports betting advertising and marketing on television, radio, and the internet, and it has galvanized stakeholders focused on one thing: keeping the federal government out of their business.
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Kansas Sportsbooks Lose $14.5 Million On Super Bowl LVII Wagers
The sportsbooks usually taketh. They certainly did that in Pennsylvania for Super Bowl LVII. But the house in Kansas gaveth plenty.
The Kansas Lottery released figures Thursday from sports wagering on the NFL’s marquee event, the first time Sunflower State bettors could wager on the Super Bowl after the activity launched there last fall. It turns out there were plenty of Chiefs fans who were quite confident Patrick Mahomes and company would deliver just as he did in Kansas City’s 38-35 win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 12.
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Regulator Says Ixnay To Legally Betting In Ohio On XFL This Year
Ohioans looking to wager on sports Thursday have no shortage of options.
But one thing no one can do legally in the state — whether in person or with a mobile sportsbook — is bet on Thursday night’s XFL football game between the Seattle Sea Dragons and St. Louis Battlehawks. Nor, for that matter, can they wager on any other XFL game this year.
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World Cup 2026 Should Be A Betting Bonanza For America’s Sportsbooks, Except … It Won’t
Best-guess estimates say there was roughly $160 billion legally bet on the World Cup last year. This is courtesy of a Sportradar spokesperson, speaking to Forbes pre-tourney.
Americans were estimated to be “only” responsible for a little more than 1% of that.
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New York State Sen. Addabbo: Use ICasino Funds To Bail Out The MTA
When New York Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed in her preliminary executive budget that revenue from future downstate casinos go to fund mass transit in New York City, some observers wondered if that was such a good idea.
For one thing, Hochul didn’t project any earnings from the casinos to be available to the state until 2026, putting that program effectively on the slow train and leaving the cash-strapped MTA without access to those funds for three more years. It also made some people nervous about the impact on New York public education, which by current law receives 80% of the tax revenue generated by the state’s casinos.
Now, one New York legislator has a counterproposal: Use new revenue from legalizing iCasino in New York in part to help fund the MTA.
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Spike In Problem Gambling Calls Dominates Legislative Discussion
State legislators beginning review of the Ohio Casino Control Commission’s budget proposal focused Tuesday morning on a potential spike in problem gambling from sports betting rather than a possible increase in the sportsbooks’ tax rate.
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Caesars Guides Toward 2023 Profitability In Sports Betting Division
At this time last year, Caesars Entertainment CEO Tom Reeg sent a warning to the sports betting industry on the perils of a cutthroat ad-spending war that he viewed as spiraling out of control.
A frenetic period of irrational spending on advertisements and promotions could not be sustained, Reeg emphasized, pointing to the outsized losses incurred by the company’s digital segment. As a result, Caesars pivoted by cutting advertising costs considerably, while temporarily shelving a popular commercial series featuring football’s Manning brothers.
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