Sports Betting Week in Review (11/23-11/27)
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Thanksgiving brings us the best sports events with the Thanksgiving NFL games to Feast Week in College Basketball, and of course Rivalry Week in College Football. Although 2020 has been different, this is one of the best weeks for sports every year. A lot was going on in the sports betting industry as well, so let’s get into it.
Monday: Las Vegas Tightens Up Casino Restrictions Due to COVID-19
Coronavirus cases are spiking across the U.S., but the southwestern part of the country is getting hit particularly hard. This has caused Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak to reduce casinos’ capacity to slow the spread of COVID-19. Casinos are now reduced to 25% capacity again, where the number has been for most of 2020. Las Vegas has been hurt badly from the restrictions, along with little travel to Sin City. Las Vegas has seen 3.5 million fewer people travel to the area this year due to COVID-19. Now, casinos will need to adjust again to limited capacity at the facilities.
Tuesday: BetMGM Partners with the Pittsburgh Steelers
Another sports betting partnership has been created, and this time, it is BetMGM partnering with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The deal comes just weeks before BetMGM is expected to launch operations in Pennsylvania for the first time. The partnership will feature signage and special promotional offers for Steelers fans. BetMGM will also advertise on all Steelers media platforms and be the main sponsor for the Steelers team Sunday morning football show. There are now 10 NFL teams that have formed sports betting partnerships in 2020. The Denver Broncos were the first team to create a partnership, and the domino effect took over from there. It won’t be long until every NFL team has a betting partnership.
Wednesday: Nevada Releases it’s Sports Betting Numbers
The Nevada sports betting handle surpassed $659 million for October breaking the single-month record the state set in November 2019. It is up from $575 million in September, which is a 14% increase. However, New Jersey surpassed Nevada for the largest sports betting handle in the U.S. after the Garden State hit $803 million in October. A big reason for this is online sports betting. New Jersey sees over 90% of the bets come in on mobile devices than Nevada, seeing just over 50%. With limited capacity at sportsbooks and casinos, it is easier to make bets from your couch at home instead of in-person.
Thursday: Michigan Mobile Betting Gets Pushed Back to 2021
Michigan cannot catch a break with the new sports betting industry. The state legalized online sports betting and casino gaming in December 2019 to launch by the summer. The state began in-person betting five days before casinos were ordered to close due to COVID-19, which also pushed back online betting. The goal was to get the industry up and running by the end of 2020, but it is not looking more likely that the state will not have it going until 2021. Michigan lawmakers are still working out the industry’s final details to make sure everything is good to go for an official launch.
Friday: Canada is One Step Closer to Single Game Betting
As the U.S. took a pause during Thanksgiving, Canada worked its way one step closer to legalizing single-game sports betting in the country. The Liberal Party sent in a bill to Parlaiment to allow for single-game betting which is not allowed in Canada. Parlay betting is legal, however, but the country is looking to expand the sports betting industry. Canada is feeling the heat with offshore betting along with Michigan, New York, and New Hampshire all having legal sports betting, which could bring Canadians to the U.S.
