Month: April 2022

Crowder, the first professional athlete to enter into an endorsement deal with GRRC, will work with the gaming enterprise on a range of marketing and promotional projects.

The first of these will include Crowder hosting a Summer Oasis Pool Party at Gila River Resorts & Casinos – Wild Horse Pass facility in Chandler, Arizona. 

Owned and operated by the Gila River Indian Community, GRRC operates the Wild Horse Pass, Lone Butte, and Vee Quiva casinos, while a fourth venue, Santan Mountain, is due to open later this year.

“I have a vision of growing with Gila River as we have a lot of things in common,” Crowder said. “Being an athlete at the highest level with one of the best teams in the NBA, it is important to grow my local relationships with people whom I am comfortable with and believe in.”

GRRC president and chief marketing officer Dominic Orozco added: “Jae Crowder is a bossman, and we are honoured to have him as our first-ever brand icon.

“Gila River is celebrating its new resorts designation in a big way with Jae. His talent, drive, and vision with his business manager, Josh Mason, is unmatched. We are excited to welcome Jae as our new teammate to the Gila River family.”

Total market revenue was 14.8% higher than $403.1m in March last year and also 15.1% up from $375.7m in February of this year.

According to figures published by the Pennsylvania Gambling Control Board (PGCB), almost all areas of the market experienced year-on-year growth, though the igaming sector enjoyed a particularly successful month with revenue rising 20.9% to a record $118.1m.

Online slots revenue amounted to $79.2m for the month, while online table games revenue reached $35.7m and internet poker revenue $3.2m.

Hollywood Casino at Penn National led the way in igaming with $45.1m in revenue, ahead of Rivers Casino Philadelphia on $30.2m and Valley Forge Casino Resort with $23.9m.

Turning to sports betting, revenue for the month was 3.6% higher at $30.4m. This came after Pennsylvania suffered its first monthly sports betting loss of $442,847 in February this year.

Online sports wagering revenue amounted to $25.4m and retail revenue $5.0m, while the state’s handle for March was up 27.6% year-on-year to $715.0m.

Valley Forge, with partner FanDuel, remained the most successful sports betting operation, posting $15.4m in revenue. Hollywood Casino at the Meadows’ Barstool Sportsbook was a distant second with $4.4m in revenue for the month, then Rivers Casino Pittsburgh and BetRivers with $1.9m.

In terms of land-based casino activity, retail slots were again the primary source of revenue for the state, generating $214.7m in revenue during March, up 7.7% on last year. However, it was retail table games that experienced the highest percentage of growth, with revenue here rising 32.1% to a record $94.3m.

The PGCB also revealed video lottery terminal revenue was 5.2% higher at $3.8m, though fantasy sports revenue declined 22.7% to $1.4m, making it the only area of the market not to experience growth in March.

Mittman is an experienced media executive, having led sports website Bleacher report from 2017 to 2020. Prior to this, he served as chief revenue officer and publisher at Condé Nast brands GQ and Wired.

In his new role, Mittman will be tasked with leading the rollout of 888’s Sports Illustrated sportsbook, created through a partnership with Sports Illustrated owner Authentic Brands Group (ABG). Currently, the brand is live in Colorado.

He will also be responsible for the operator’s other US-facing B2B partnerships, including the market’s only interstate online poker network World Series of Poker (WSOP). The WSOP network is live in Nevada, Delaware and New Jersey, with Michigan soon to be added.

“I am thrilled to be joining one of the online betting industry’s most respected and successful businesses,” Mittman said. “888 has an outstanding reputation for innovation, product leadership, and customer-centricity. I have been hugely impressed by the people I’ve met within the business, particularly their passion for product and the customer experience, and I share their excitement about the significant opportunities ahead.

“The partnership with ABG and Sports Illustrated gives us a unique opportunity to deliver world-class betting and gaming products as part of a fully integrated experience with a leading sports media brand.”

888 chief executive Itai Pazner said that the business intends to expand the SI brand into a number of additional states.

“We are delighted to announce the appointment of Howard as our new president of 888 US,” he said. “This key appointment comes at a hugely exciting point in our long-term growth strategy in the US online betting market as we look forward to launching SI Sportsbook in multiple states in the coming months and years.

“We have established a platform for strong growth in the US through our world-class technology and operational expertise, with the Sports Illustrated brand, and the appointment of Howard, which will enable us to maximise the potential of this unique combination to further grow a profitable business in the US.”

Pazner described Mittman as having an “exceptional track record” from his time at Condé Nast and Bleacher Report, making him the “exceptional candidate” to lead the US business. During his time at Bleacher Report, he oversaw the launch of B/R Betting, the business’ sports betting practice, as well as the launch of a content studio in Las Vegas.

Daniel W. Dienst, executive vice chairman of ABG, added that the move would help ensure the best results for the Sports Illustrated brand.

“We applaud 888’s decision to appoint Mr, Mittman as president 888 US of its growing US platform and the operators of SI Sportsbook,” he said. “With the breadth of his media industry experience and 888’s technical capabilities, we are excited to further capitalize on the opportunity to build a differentiated wagering experience for the loyal and avid fans of sports – and in particular, Sports Illustrated – who since 1954 continue to trust and rely on its peerless journalism and visit the platform in record numbers monthly.”

While the terms of the investment have not been disclosed, US Integrity said the operator’s backing would allow it to continue developing its regulatory technology platform. 

This tracks betting activity, allowing the supplier to flag suspicious activity and for teams, leagues bookmakers and regulators to investigate and intervene where necessary. 

“US Integrity’s mission is to help grow the legal, regulated sports betting market by providing solutions that ensure sports betting integrity in every play, every game, and every sport,” its chief executive, Matthew Holt, said. 

“The strategic investment from Sands will help us expand our capabilities and develop new innovative products and services to bring transparency and peace of mind to our growing list of clients.”

The supplier already works with a number of leagues, including the National Basketball Association, the college competition organisers the West Coast Conference and Big Sky Conference. It has also partnered with operators including PlayUp, Michigan’s FireKeepers Casino and Betfred. 

Its new investor Las Vegas Sands has taken a more circuitous route into gaming expansion, acting as an investor through a fund focused on B2B opportunities that launched in July last year.

The business’ only properties are now located in Macau, following the $6.25bn (£4.81bn/€5.78bn) sale of the Venetian Resort in Las Vegas – comprising The Venetian, Palazzo and Venetian Expo properties – VICI Properties and funds controlled by Apollo Global Management. 

The regulator determined that the venue had fulfilled all the requirements set out in Singapore’s Casino Control Act, and so granted the operator a three-year extension to its licence from 26 April 2022.

Marina Bay Sands is one of two casinos in Singapore. The other, Genting’s Resorts World Sentosa, received a licence extension of its own – also until 2025 – in February.

The renewal comes as Singapore is set to implement a number of changes to its gaming market. Last month, the country’s parliament passed two bills to overhaul its gambling regulations.

The first of these bills will rename the Casino Regulatory Authority to the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Singapore, giving it a remit over all areas of gambling in the country rather than just casinos.

The new body consists of 17 members under one fixed segment, all of whom would are appointed by Singapore’s Minister of Home Affairs. Each can hold their position for up to three years.

The second bill, the Gambling Control Act, creates new definitions for unlawful gambling. Partaking in or offering illegal gambling services, including proxy betting, would be punishable with a fine of SGD$500,000 and a prison term of up to seven years, while repeat offenders could receive a fine of SGD$700,000 and a prison term of up to 10 years.

These bills must now be scrutinised by the Presidential Council for Minority Right (PCMR).

Meanwhile, in January, Singapore’s government passed the Gambling Duties Act 2022, which raised the base tax rate on casino revenue from 15% to 18%. This rate would apply up to a revenue threshold of SGD3.1bn (£1.7bn/€2.0bn/$2.3bn), with any revenue exceeding that being taxed at 22%.

March’s total also represented a 2.6% improvement on February 2022’s figures. The vast majority of the month’s revenue came from land-based gaming.

Casinos contributed $216.6m, which was up by 17.2% from March of last year. Of this revenue, $156.7m came from slots, a 16.7% year-on-year rise, with table games revenue up 18.4% to $59.9m.

The Borgata led the way in casino revenue, bringing in $55.0m, which was 18.1% more than in 2021. Hard Rock Casino followed with $39.3m, a 28.0% increase, and Ocean Casino brought in $25.4m.

Online gaming revenue, meanwhile, was up by 23.7% year-on-year to $140.7m, but this total was sharply down from a record $212.4m in February.

The Borgata – with a BetMGM online product – was also the leading online operator, bringing in $41.4m. In second place was Golden Nugget Online Gaming – which is soon to be acquired by DraftKings – with $38.3m.

This include $2.5m from peer-to-peer games such as poker, which was down by 6.3%, while revenue from other games grew by 24.5% to $138.1m.

Sports wagering revenue came to $66.4m, up 9.3% year-on-year. This came on handle of $1.12bn, up 30.3% from March 2021, as the market bounced back after handle dipped below $1bn in February.

Of this handle, $79.5m was placed at retail sportsbooks, while $1.04bn was staked online.

Meadowlands, partnered with FanDuel, strengthened its position as market leader, bringing in $36.9m in revenue.

Resorts Digital – which has sportsbook deals in place with DraftKings and Flutter’s Fox Bet – continued to bring in the second-most revenue, despite a 16.9% decline to $11.7m.

The Borgata, meanwhile, remained in third but closed the gap significantly with $10.6m in sportsbook revenue.

In the new role, Alcamo will focus on culture development, talent acquisition, diversity and inclusion, organizational effectiveness, employment branding, learning and development, compensation and employee benefits.

Prior to joining FanDuel, Alcamo (pictured below) was president of human resources for telecommunications business Spectrum Enterprise, while she had also held a number of human resources roles at American Express and worked as a consultant for Deloitte.

“I am incredibly excited to welcome Tricia to my leadership team as our new chief people officer,” Fanduel president and chief executive officer Amy Howe said. “Tricia has had a distinguished career building and running award winning human resources teams at media companies like our own and at globally trusted brands. 

“Her arrival reflects our investment in our people and our commitment to a culture that recognizes and attracts the most talented team while providing them the most empathetic and inclusive environment to succeed.”

Alcamo added that she felt like her role could play a key role in ensuring long-term growth for the business.

“As FanDuel continues to experience rapid growth in this exciting space, the people team plays a critical role in ensuring that the organization has the culture and capabilities that will enable sustained success well into the future,” she said.

“I’m honored to be working alongside Amy and the entire leadership group to drive innovative and strategic people practices that lead to winning business outcomes and an outstanding employee experience.”

The rules are due to come into effect on 12 September this year, with licenced operators to be given guidance in June to ensure they fully understand the changes and that they are in compliance with the new rules ahead of their implementation.

From September, operators will be required to monitor a specific range of indicators, as a minimum, to identify gambling harm or potential problem gambling among their customers. 

These indicators will include customer spend, patterns of spending, time spent gambling, customer-led contact, use of gambling management tools, account indicators and already-established gambling behaviour indicators.

Licensees must also flag indicators of harm and take action in a timely manner, as well as implement automated processes for strong indicators of harm.

Other new rules that will come into effect later this year include preventing marketing and the take-up of new bonuses for at-risk customers, as well as evaluating their interactions and ensure they interact with consumers at least at the level of problem gambling for their relevant activity

The Commission also said operators must provide evidence of their customer interaction evaluation to the regulator during routine casework, as well as ensure their compliance, and that of any relate third parties, with the new rules at all times.

“Time and time again our enforcement cases show that some operators are still not doing enough to prevent gambling harm,” Gambling Commission chief executive Andrew Rhodes said. “These new rules, developed following an extensive consultation, make our expectations even more explicit.

“We expect operators to identify and tackle gambling harms with fast, proportionate and effective action and we will not hesitate to take tough action on operators who fail to do so.”

Confirmation of the new roles follows a consultation that was launched to address failings the Commission continued to see among online gambling operators. The regulator said operators were capable of identifying customers who may be harmed by gambling but were not always doing so or acting quickly enough.

The consultation and subsequent call for evidence attracted approximately 13,000 responses, all of which the Commission said were carefully considered before the new rules were drafted.

The Commission said it would continue to make online gambling fairer and safer, with the next stage of the programme to include consulting further on identifying customers who are financially vulnerable and tackling significant unaffordable gambling.

Further work will focus on other areas such as unaffordable binge gambling and significant unaffordable losses over time, as identified in the consultation. 

“We will also take account of the government’s current Review of the Gambling Act 2005 and continue to support a broader programme of work to support identification of customers at risk of harm,” the consultation said.

“This includes support the piloting of a ‘single customer view’ to identify harm across gambling businesses, to be trialled and the impact evidenced by the industry drive the industry to collaborate on best practice to implement these new requirements and beyond.”

The consultation on the topic of interaction had initially also included a proposal for a mandatory affordability threshold, with a suggested figure of £100 per month. However, the Commission later removed this from its action points on the topic.

Revenue for the 12 months to 31 December 2021 amounted to €1.32bn (£1.10bn/$1.44bn), up 45.4% from €908.0m in the group’s previous financial year and in line with forecasts published in January.

Super Group said that it experienced year-on-year revenue growth across all areas of its business, with online casino remaining its primary source of revenue.

Online casino revenue was up 25.7% to €858.7m, with the majority of this coming from the Spin multi-brand online casino. Spin generated €629.9m in online casino revenue, while the remaining €228.8m came from Betway.

Sports betting revenue also jumped 139.9% to €387.2m, with Betway contributing €385.4m and Spin €1.8m. 

Brand and licensing revenue, all of which came from Betway, increased by 16.4% to €71.1m, while Super Group also noted €3.7m in other revenue for the year.

In terms of geographical performance, North America was Super Group’s core market in 2021, generating €593.7m in revenue, which represented 45% of all revenue for the year.

Asia and Pacific followed with €329.8m, or 25% of all revenue, then Africa and the Middle East on €217.4m (17%), Europe with €149.1m (11%) and South and Latin America on €30.8m (2%).

Last year proved to be an historic year for super Group when in April it entered a definitive agreement to merge with special purpose acquisition business Sports Entertainment Acquisition Corp. (SEAC) and expand its offering into the US market.

The merger completed shortly after the year-end in January after final approval from SEAC shareholders. Following completion, ordinary shares and public warrants in the combined business began trading under the ticker symbols ‘SGHC’ and ‘SGHC WS’, respectively. 

Other highlights from 2021 included Super Group extending the Betway and Spin brands into nine new regulated markets such as France and Tanzania for Betway and Mexico for Spin. Three further markets have also been added so far in 2022, including Bulgaria.

Super Group also signed over 30 sponsorship agreements in 2021, with an additional nine agreements signed in 2022.

In addition, Super Group executed a binding, conditional agreement to acquire US-based Digital Gaming Corporation, As of April 13 this year, DGC is live in six US states with the Betway brand and has secured market access in up to 12 states. 

Subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, the acquisition is expected to close in the second half of this year.

“We listed on the New York Stock Exchange at the start of 2022, a major landmark for Super Group after two decades of leadership in more than 20 markets around the world,” Super Group chief executive Neal Menashe said.

“We expanded on our partnerships throughout the year and our portfolio now stands in excess of 70 active deals in 17 different countries.”

Looking at costs, direct and marketing expenses were 46.3% higher at €896.5m, while general and administrative spend also increased by 30.9% year-on-year to €149.9m and depreciation and amortisation costs climbed 50.9% to €83.6m.

This meant that operating profit was 58.5% higher at €198.8m, while when excluding certain costs, adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was up 60.1% to €289.5m for the year. 

Super Group noted €6.4m in finance expenses, but this was easily offset by €1.3m in finance income, €15.8m in gain on derivative contracts and a €16.3m gain on bargain purchase.

As a result, pre-tax profit hiked 51.0% from €149.6m to €225.9m, while after paying €10.0m in income tax and accounting for €816,000 in negative foreign currency translation, this left a net profit of €235.1m, up 58.0% year-on-year.

“We are delighted to report strong growth and profitability in 2021, demonstrating the successful execution of our global growth strategy,” Menashe said. “We are, as ever, grateful to our dedicated global team that have delivered this outstanding financial performance.

“With an eye on our growth and profitability profile, we couldn’t be more excited to execute on our plans in 2022 and beyond.”

In her new role, Drozd will support Elys with its ongoing expansion strategy in the North American market, including the roll-out of new technologies. 

Drozd has worked in the gambling industry for almost 25 years and will bring with her knowledge of sports wagering product design and implementation, as well as multi-state sports gaming compliance and regulations, audit processes, system operation, and program management.

She joins Elys from Wynn Las Vegas, where she spent three years as executive director.

Prior to this, she was director of product delivery for CSM at William Hill for almost 10 years, and also spent over 13 years as assistant general manager at American Wagering.

“I am excited to join the Elys team and look forward to contributing to the company’s innovative gaming platforms, expanding our North American footprint, and advancing our operational excellence,” Drozd said.

Elys executive chairman Michele Ciavarella added: “Working through our USBookmaking subsidiary in Las Vegas, Sandy joins our world-class Odissea technology team based in Innsbruck and Tuscany.

“Sandy brings over 25 years of experience in the sports gaming industry in complex US regulatory submissions and provides a critical function for our rapid multi-state expansion plan. 

“I am also absolutely confident that her strong people skills could produce highly effective, self-organising development and delivery teams for our aspirations of becoming the leading B2B sports betting technology provider in North America.”

The appointment comes after Elys last month forecast a 22% year-on-year rise in revenue for its 2021 financial year.

Subject to final audit verification, Elys said full-year revenue is on track to reach $45.5m (£34.6m/€41.7m) for the 12 months to 31 December 2021, up from $37.3m in the previous financial year.