Caesars Expands Its Sports Betting Plans, Including A Scientific Games Deal
Caesars Entertainment is the latest casino company to announce plans to open a sportsbook. It plans to begin accepting sports bets in New Jersey immediately and in Mississippi sometime in August.
Mississippi will launch sports betting in a matter of days. Mobile sports betting, however, will be confined to sports bettors on the property. As of now, Caesars Atlantic City does not have plans for a retail sportsbook.
Caesars plans to launch sports betting are:
- June 30 at Bally’s
- Aug. 1 at Harrah’s Atlantic City
- Mid-Aug. at Horseshoe Tunica
- Mid-Aug. at Harrah’s Gulf Coast
This brings the total New Jersey sportsbooks to six. In addition to the two Caesars’ properties, sports bettors can head to:
- Monmouth Park
- Borgata
- Ocean Resort Casino
- Meadowlands Rac
etrack
Caesars to quickly launch online sports betting with Scientific Games
Caesars plans to expand its land-based sports betting operation to offering online and mobile sports betting in New Jersey and on-site at its Mississippi properties as soon as possible.
In a press release on Monday, Mark Frissora, President and Chief Executive Officer of Caesars Entertainment said:
“The recent Supreme Court ruling allows us to expand our sports betting digital and mobile offerings into new markets. We recognize that our customers expect exciting new experiences, which is why we will continue to offer new products through our mobile and digital platforms and inside our properties.”
To power its sports betting expansion into New Jersey, Mississippi, and online, Caesars announced it is partnering with Scientific Games. The collaboration will allow Caesars to launch both its land-based and digital sports betting platforms quickly using Scientific Games’ OpenBet sportsbook technology.
Barry Cottle, President and Chief Executive Officer at Scientific Games, said:
“We’re thrilled to partner with Caesars to help them bring best-in-class sports wagering experiences to their players. With OpenBet, our powerful and robust sportsbook platform, Caesars will have a truly open platform and end-to-end product suite that delivers the very best and flexible solutions and has proven success managing the largest share of the world’s online bets, more than 2 billion online bets annually. Our SG Digital team is excited to help Caesars stay ahead of the game, as they work to expand their sports betting, digital and mobile offerings into newly regulated markets.”
The agreement with Caesars is the first significant partnership between an American casino and an American software provider. All the deals to date have involved European software providers. It is a pretty big deal for Scientific Games.
The state of US sports betting
Delaware was the first state to launch sports betting after the Supreme Court made it possible. All eyes, however, have been on New Jersey ever since sports betting became legal in the Garden State.
Afterall, it was New Jersey who championed the fight to legalize sports betting. It is also the state that other states are watching as they begin to tackle sports betting legislation and regulation.
At first, speculation was casinos and racetracks would be chomping at the bit to accept sports wagers. It’s been more like a saunter rather than a sprint, though.
Legislation across the US seems to be following suit. There was a lot of excitement immediately following the landmark ruling. Legislatures in states like New York and Michigan were trying to push sports betting bills through the process to no avail.
Other states that are close to launching sports betting include:
West Virginia – WV has had a sports betting law on the books since March 2018. Look for sports betting to debut in September.
Pennsylvania – Online gaming and sports betting are legal in the state thanks to a 2017 gaming expansion law. The state is the process of finalizing regulations and completing the application process.
New York – Sports betting is legal at its four commercial casinos. It’s unclear if sports betting will progress without Albany’s go ahead though.
For now, Ceasars will be the operator to beat. Launching at two properties in New Jersey and two more in Mississippi next month will put Ceasars out in front. It will be host to the most sportsbooks, and that will surely reflect in its revenue. Partnering with Scientific Games helped make that happen faster than otherwise would be possible.
Photo by Kobby Dagan / Shutterstock.com
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