The Tennessee Education Lottery Corp Sports Wagering Committee has granted its conditional approval for BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel to operate in the state.
Full approval is expected to be confirmed at the committee’s next meeting on October 5. Tennessee Action 24/7, a local operator, completed an application, but was not reviewed at this time. The conditional approval for the three operators was granted after the committee members approved their applications during a meeting yesterday.
“Vendors, suppliers and operators have to be approved before moving ahead. Until the operator’s supplier is approved, the operator can’t go live,” said lottery President and CEO Rebecca Hargrove during the committee meeting. “Some won’t be approved until our next meeting.”
During the committee’s last meeting on August 19, Hargrove earmarked a November 1 start date for sports betting in the state. However, there is a possibility that legalized sports betting could launch sooner, possibly one or two weeks earlier, if the four operators who have applied can launch on the same day.
Tennessee is shaping up to be an interesting prospect for the US sports betting sector, with no terrestrial casinos within state lines, meaning that sports wagering will have to be a mobile-only affair. Added to that, state regulators have imposed a minimum hold of 10% on operators, a decision that some observers suggest will lead to less competitive odds for bettors and more in the way of parlay type offerings.
Failure to meet that minimum hold will trigger a fee and possibly a suspension of the operating license. While the rule appears harsh, it is an improvement on the initial recommendation of a 15% minimum hold.
As for entry to the market, operators will need to pay $750,000 annually for a license. Once operative they will be subject to a tax rate of 20% and will be mandated to use official league data. There is, however, no limit on the number of operators who may apply for a license.
