SportsHandle: That was the week that was in US sports betting

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SportsHandle and friends deliver another round-up of the week’s big developments in US sports betting.

Operators join forces in a ‘super bid’ in New York and Matt Rybaltowski takes a deep dive into who’s partnering with who and what that might look like. 

For weeks, speculation mounted that a slew of prominent sportsbooks could band together to form a so-called “super bid” in a determined attempt to land New York state’s lucrative contract for mobile sports betting.

On Monday night, when the New York Gaming Commission revealed a list of mobile sports wagering applicants for the hotly contested bidding process, the conjecture became reality. In total, the commission received six applications with 14 overall sports betting-related companies interested in gaining licensure. The list is highlighted by a super bid featuring industry heavyweights FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM. A fourth company, Bally Bet, is also listed in the bid as a partner.

Full story here.

The Arizona Department of Gaming got 15 applications from tribes for sports betting, but has only 10 licenses to issue. 

On Wednesday, the Arizona Department of Gaming announced that it received 25 event wagering operator license applications, but that it has only 20 it can issue. Under the state’s new gaming law, the ADG can issue 10 licenses to professional sports franchises and another 10 to tribes. The ADG said it received 10 applications from pro sports teams/franchises and 15 from tribes, but it did not release who applied.

The application window closed Monday and, according to the ADG calendar, the agency will announce by Aug. 16 which applicants are qualified for licenses. From there, the ADG then has 10 days to determine which entities will be licensed and which will not.

Full story here.

The Florida-Seminole pact is officially operational and the tribe is aiming to launch in the fall despite pending lawsuits and a commercial referendum push. 

The Seminole Indian Tribe’s gaming compact with the state of Florida became operational Wednesday when the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs published it in the Federal Register. The bureau on Aug. 6 allowed the compact to be “deemed approved” by not taking action during a 45-day review period. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the BIA Bryan Newland wrote a 12-page letter last week explaining the bureau’s decision.

Full story here.

What’s an NFT? Jeff Edelstein explains and shares why DraftKings’ first foray into NFTs was a raging success. 

This cynical, curmudgeonly Generation X guy who kind of understands NFTs and has a very rough idea of just what the heck the “blockchain” is and who has never once uttered or typed the word “hodl” was ready to write a scathing takedown of the DraftKings Marketplace, which debuted Wednesday afternoon. I was ready to note the delays, the bugs, and the nonsense of it all.

Except uh … nope. DraftKings hit this one out of the park. No other way to say it. It was fast, super easy, and American cash money changed hands quicker than you can read this sentence. And to top it all off, the excitement in the marketplace only grew as the afternoon wore on.

Full story here.

A good nickname is of paramount importance to the best bettors. Here are 10 of the best.

If you’re going to be a serious casino gambler or sports bettor, it pays to have a colorful nickname. Back when America’s true national pastime was in its nascency, this advice was taken a bit too literally, as gamblers’ nicknames were too often rooted in ethnicity, to borderline — or over-the-line — offensive ends.

Thankfully, there are plenty of playful — if not entirely politically correct — gambling nicknames worth celebrating. US Bets consulted several sources, online and off, to come up with the following, very subjective list of the 10 greatest gambling nicknames of all time (presented in descending order, for maximum suspense), many of which come from the wild world of poker:

Full story here.

Philadelphia casinos will again implement a mask mandate.

After a two-month reprieve, visitors to Philadelphia’s two casinos are required to wear masks once more.

The city imposed a new mask mandate on indoor businesses that took effect Thursday morning, a day after officials announced it was again necessary due to another sharp rise in COVID-19 cases — largely attributable to the delta variant of the illness. A prior mask mandate was lifted June 11.

The order applies to Rivers Casino Philadelphia and Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia, among other businesses. Guests will be required to wear masks except when eating or drinking.

Full story here.

Tennessee sportsbooks that don’t adhere to the 10% hold could be fined up to $100,000/year.

Sports betting regulators in Tennessee held a meeting over Zoom on Monday afternoon to continue moving the ball down the field to basically re-adopt regulations for the industry after a recent law change shifted oversight duties away from the state lottery.

Almost certainly the highlight of the meeting for the average sports bettor was with regard to the 10% required hold that sportsbooks must implement.

Full story here. 

Live in Colorado, it’s Barstool Sportsbook!

Barstool Sportsbook went live with a Colorado mobile sports betting app Monday, making its online Rocky Mountain debut several days before the Denver Broncos’ 2021 NFL preseason opener against the Minnesota Vikings.

The mobile launch follows the rollout of Barstool’s retail sportsbook inside Ameristar Casino Resort Spa Black Hawk last November. Barstool teased the announcement over the weekend with a post on its Twitter account, signaling Monday’s launch of the mobile sportsbook in the Centennial State.

Full story here.