1 UK Betting Firms Gamble on United States After Sports Wager Ruling
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UK wagering companies gamble on US after sports betting wager judgment

5 June 2018

By Natalie Sherman

Business press reporter, New york city

It's high stakes for UK companies as sports betting wagering starts to spread in America.

From Tuesday, new rules on sports betting entered result in Delaware, a tiny east coast state about 2 hours from Washington.

Neighbouring New Jersey might begin accepting sports betting bets as early as Friday.

The modifications are the first in what could end up being a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the method for states to permit sports betting wagering.

The market sees a "when in a generation" opportunity to a brand-new market in sports betting-mad America, said Dublin-based monetary expert David Jennings, who heads leisure research study at Davy.

For UK firms, which are grappling with consolidation, increased online competition and tougher guidelines from UK regulators, the timing is particularly appropriate.

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But the industry says relying on the US remains a risky bet, as UK companies face complex state-by-state policy and competition from established regional interests.

"It's something that we're actually concentrating on, however similarly we do not want to overhype it," said James Midmer, spokesman at Paddy Power Betfair, which just recently purchased the US dream sports betting site FanDuel.

'Require time'

The US represented about 23% of the world's $244bn (₤ 182bn) in video gaming income in 2015, according to a report by Technavio, external published in January.

Firms are wishing to take advantage of more of that activity after last month's choice, which overruled a 1992 federal law that barred states outside of Nevada and a couple of others from authorising sports betting wagering.

The ruling discovered the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not really legalise sports betting, leaving that concern to local legislators.

That is anticipated to cause significant variation in how companies get licensed, where sports betting wagering can happen, and which occasions are open to speculation - with huge ramifications for the size of the marketplace.

Potential revenue varieties from $4.2 bn to nearly $20bn annually depending upon factors like the number of states move to legalise, Oxford Economics estimated in a 2017 study for the American Gaming Association.

"There was a great deal of 'this is going to be substantial'", stated Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for specialists KPMG.

Now, he stated: "I believe many people ... are looking at this as, 'it's an opportunity but it's not going to be $20bn and it's going to be state by state and it's going to take time'."

'Remains to be seen"
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Chris Grove, managing director at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, forecasts that 32 states will legalise sports betting in some form by 2023, creating a market with about $6bn in yearly revenue.

But bookmakers deal with a far various landscape in America than they carry out in the UK, where wagering stores are a regular sight.

US laws limited gaming mainly to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip until relatively recently.

In the popular imagination, sports betting has long been connected to a 1919 baseball World Series match-fixing scandal.

States have likewise been sluggish to legalise numerous types of online gambling, regardless of a 2011 Justice Department opinion that appeared to eliminate barriers.

While sports betting wagering is normally seen in its own category, "it clearly remains to be seen whether it gets the type of momentum people think it will," said Keith Miller, law professor at Drake University and co-author of a book about sports betting policy.

David Carruthers is the previous president of BetonSports, who was detained in the US in 2006 for running an offshore online sportsbook and served prison time.

Now a specialist, he says UK firms must approach the market carefully, selecting partners with caution and avoiding mistakes that could lead to regulator backlash.

"This is an opportunity for the American sports betting wagerer ... I'm unsure whether it is an opportunity for service," he states. "It actually depends on the outcome of [state] legislation and how the business operators pursue the opportunity."

'It will be partnerships'

As legalisation begins, sports betting firms are lobbying to ward off high tax rates, in addition to requests by US sports betting leagues, which wish to gather a percentage of profits as an "integrity charge".

International companies face the included difficulty of an effective existing video gaming market, with gambling establishment operators, state-run lotteries and Native American people that are looking for to safeguard their turf.

Analysts say UK companies will require to strike collaborations, using their expertise and technology in order to make inroads.

They point to SBTech's recent announcement that it is providing technology for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the kind of offers likely to materialise.

"It will be a win-win for everyone, however it will be collaborations and it will be driven by technology," Mr Hawkley said.

'It will simply depend'
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Joe Asher, chief executive at William Hill US, is clear-eyed about the truths.

The company has been buying the US market given that 2011, when it bought 3 US companies to establish an existence in Nevada.

William Hill now uses about 450 individuals in the US and has revealed collaborations with gambling establishments in Iowa and New Jersey.

It works as threat manager for the Delaware Lottery and has actually invested millions together with a local developer in a New Jersey horse racing track.

Mr Asher stated William Hill has actually ended up being a household name in Nevada however that's not always the goal all over.

"We definitely mean to have an extremely considerable brand name presence in New Jersey," he said. "In other states, it will simply depend upon guideline and potentially who our local partner is."

"The US is going to be the most significant sports betting wagering market worldwide," he added. "Obviously that's not going to occur on the first day."

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