Rush Street Interactive Partners with Connecticut Lottery Will Offer Sports Betting in State

On Thursday, the Connecticut Lottery announced its partnership with Rush Street Interactive (RSI), making the brand the third and final sports betting provider in the state of Connecticut. RSI joins DraftKings Sportsbook and FanDuel Sportsbook in the Connecticut sports betting market. RSI is reportedly guaranteeing a minimum of $170 million to the Connecticut Lottery over the next 10 years in exchange for the betting license – that’s more than double the minimum of $95 million.

About Rush Street Interactive

Rush Street Interactive (RSI) was founded by industry gaming veterans in 2012. It launched its first “Social Gaming” site in July 2015 with SugarHouse Casino4Fun. RSI is now live in 10 states including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, Colorado, Michigan, Iowa, Virginia, and West Virginia. RSI is also the first US gaming company to launch a regulated online sportsbook in Latin America as they are now live in Colombia. RSI operates both PlaySugarHouse and BetRivers.

Richard Schwartz, president of RSI, stated that the company’s “focus is to be ready whenever the Connecticut opportunity presents itself. We have a track record of being first to launch in a wide range of markets. We were first to launch in Illinois, Indiana, Colorado, first day in Michigan. And so our goal is to be prepared to launch as soon as its viable in Connecticut.”

Partnership Details

The Connecticut Lottery selected RSI from a handful of operators who had applied for the third and final betting license. State law prohibited the lottery from considering sportsbooks affiliated with brick-and-mortar casinos like Caesars, BetMGM, and WynnBet. DraftKings and FanDuel will be the other two licensed sportsbooks in the state as DraftKings partners with the Mashantucket Pequot and FanDuel partners with the Mohegan.

RSI and the lottery have negotiated deals with 10 retail sports betting locations and will be able to open as many as 15 retail sportsbooks in the state. There must be at least one book required in each of Hartford and Bridgeport. Many of these retail sportsbooks are in partnership with Sportech, an off-track betting operator that will accelerate the brick-and-mortar launch process.

Unlike DraftKings and Fanduel, RSI cannot open an online casino. However, RSI can operate Daily Fantasy Sports along with the other two platforms; no other operator can legally operate DFS in the state. It’s unclear to this point whether RSI plans to launch under the SugarHouse or BetRivers brand in Connecticut.

Next Steps

Connecticut Lottery officials have targeted an official launch in early fall, ideally before the start of the NFL season on September 9. RSI must still pass through state regulations, licensing, and other tests, a process that could take several weeks. DraftKings and FanDuel have already passed through this process but are awaiting federal approval from the Department of Interior to go live.

The General Assembly’s Legislative Regulation Review Committee could approve the sports betting rules at their scheduled August 31 meeting, but as of Thursday, it wasn’t on the agenda. Lawmakers must finalize the sports betting rules before the official launch, and if it’s not addressed by the committee this month, sports wagering could be delayed until October.

Greg Smith, the president of the Connecticut Lottery Corporation, said “there are so many required steps that are progressing simultaneously” and “in terms of getting to a launch date for sports wagering in Connecticut, it’s actually not possible to say when that will be completed.” Retail sportsbooks are governed by federal regulations and can launch immediately following approval by the Department of Interior while online sportsbooks are subject to the approval of the rules by lawmakers in the state.

Rob Simmelkjaer, the chair of the board of the Connecticut Lottery Corporation, said “we are confident that we will be taking sports bets this NFL season, in the early part of it.” Sports fans, legislators, and operators will all be highly motivated to take advantage of the potential revenue that comes from sports betting during the NFL season.