Canada

PlayUSA.com: NCAA Tournament likely the first $1 billion event

Published

3 years ago

March 15, 2021

The 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament will almost certainly be the first sporting event in U.S. history to draw more than $1 billion in legal wagering and could approach $1.5 billion, according to projections from PlayUSA, the leading source for news, analysis, and research related to the market for regulated online gaming in the United States. But without data from last year following the cancellation of the 2020 NCAA Tournament, and a regulated sports betting landscape that has radically changed from 2019, predicting precisely just how much in wagering March Madness will generate is nearly impossible, PlayUSA cautions.

“The 2021 NCAA Tournament will be the most widely bet-on sporting event in U.S. history,” said Eric Ramsey, analyst for PlayUSA.com. “The popularity of the NCAA Tournament combined with such a high number of games typically makes March Madness the largest sports betting holiday each year in terms of handle, and there is no reason to suspect that won’t be the case this year. But the number of legal sports betting markets has more than tripled since 2019 and we are still in the midst of a pandemic that could slow retail sportsbooks. Those reasons alone make this year difficult to predict.”

The last time the NCAA Tournament was played in 2019, bettors in seven states could place a wager legally. Those seven states, which includes today’s three largest markets, New Jersey, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, as well as Delaware, Mississippi, Rhode Island, and West Virginia, managed to generate an estimated $440 million in bets, or about 40% of the nation’s overall handle in March, according to PlayUSA.

Now with 20 states and Washington D.C. offering some form of legal sports betting, the U.S. landscape has shifted dramatically. That includes most of the nation’s largest markets behind the Top 3, including Illinois, Indiana, Colorado, Tennessee, and Michigan. And Pennsylvania, now the nation’s third-largest market, launched online sports betting after the 2019 tournament.

Today, an adult population of about 86 million can now bet legally in their home states. In 2019, about 26 million adults enjoyed access to legal sportsbooks in their home states.

“The Super Bowl draws the most bets for a single game, but March Madness and its 60+ games should more than double what the Super Bowl draws,” said Dustin Gouker, lead analyst for PlayUSA.com. “But the dramatic expansion of legal markets, as well as the exponential growth within each market, means more people will have an opportunity to bet on the NCAA Tournament than ever before. And that will produce an eye-popping handle number that could reach $1.5 billion.”

2021 also brings multiple factors that will be unique to this year’s tournament. For one, pandemic-related restrictions are still in place in some legal jurisdictions, and most bettors may still be hesitant to make a bet indoors. That could have a significant effect on event-driven markets like Nevada, which relies on retail betting far more than in most of its largest rivals. New Jersey, for instance, accepts about 90% of its bets online, and PlayUSA projects that the Garden State could draw more than $300 million in NCAA Tournament bets this year, more than any other state.

In addition, for the first time in history every game of the NCAA Tournament will be played in a legal sports jurisdiction. With so many games being played locally, that jurisdiction, Indiana, has the potential to far outperform what would normally be expected of the nation’s fifth-largest U.S. sports betting market.

“With so many variables at play, this will be a fascinating NCAA Tournament to watch,” Ramsey said. “We know that the tournament will draw heavy action. But it won’t look like any NCAA Tournament that we have ever seen.”

For more information on NCAA Tournament betting, visit www.playusa.com/march-madness-betting/.

Canada

Play’n GO announces partnership with Canadian operator Loto-Québec

Published

17 hours ago

May 16, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

play’n-go-announces-partnership-with-canadian-operator-loto-quebec

Play’n GO, the world’s leading casino entertainment provider, has today announced a partnership with Canadian operator Loto-Québec, launching the Swedish gaming giant’s games into another Canadian province.

Already active in another Canadian province , this partnership sees Play’n GO’s content available in the province of Québec exclusively with Loto-Québec, a state-owned corporation, where online players now have access to titles such as Tome of Madness.

Magnus Olsson, Chief Commercial Officer, Play’n GO said: “At Play’n GO, we have always been clear in our vision to be active in every regulated market in the world, and this partnership with Loto-Québec is the next step on that journey.

“Our past success in Canada gives us confidence that players in Québec will enjoy the best Play’n GO content, and we look forward to many years of success with Loto-Québec in the province.”

Stéphane Martel, Head of Product and Innovation at Loto-Québec added: “As the sole iGaming operator in Québec, we pride ourselves on offering titles that truly add value to our platform, lotoquebec.com. We are happy to bring Play’n GO games to our players.”

Canada

Court Decision Upholds iGaming Ontario’s Model

Published

2 days ago

May 15, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

court-decision-upholds-igaming-ontario’s-model

iGaming Ontario has welcomed the decision of the Ontario Superior Court, which found that iGaming Ontario’s model is consistent with the Criminal Code and that iGaming Ontario is conducting and managing igaming in the province.

“We have always been confident in our model and are pleased that the court has ruled in our favour, and that Ontarians can continue to play with confidence in our regulated igaming market,” said Martha Otton, Executive Director of iGaming Ontario.

“Ontario’s model meets the requirements and contributes to the public good by protecting players, their data and their funds, while helping to fund priority public services in Ontario, and bringing well-paid, high-tech jobs and economic development to Ontario,” Otton added.

In dismissing the application brought forward by the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke (MCK), the Superior Court found that iGaming Ontario is the “operating mind” behind Ontario’s competitive igaming market in accordance with the conduct and manage requirements of the Criminal Code.

iGaming Ontario will continue to conduct and manage igaming as it has since the launch of the regulated market on April 4, 2022.

Bragg Gaming Group

Bragg Gaming Appoints Renowned iGaming Executive Neill Whyte as Chief Commercial Officer

Published

7 days ago

May 10, 2024

GamingAmericas.com

bragg-gaming-appoints-renowned-igaming-executive-neill-whyte-as-chief-commercial-officer

Bragg Gaming Group, a global iGaming technology and content provider, announced that Neill Whyte has been appointed as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), effective 1st May 2024, establishing a new global commercial structure at the Company and bolstering its leadership team.

Whyte brings over 18 years of experience in the iGaming sector, most recently in the role of Chief Commercial Officer at Digital Gaming Corporation’s (DGC), B2B iGaming Division. After joining DGC in early 2020, he was responsible for the commercially successful launch and growth of its content distribution business in the US.

Prior to joining DGC, Whyte held multiple positions in the gaming industry including as Head of Business Development at Isle of Man-based iGaming specialist Apricot Investments, as Board Member at Swedish iGaming product and Lottery content distributor Genera Networks, and in various senior roles over eleven years at leading iGaming content supplier Microgaming, including as Head of Product Channels.

In his new role with Bragg, Whyte will be tasked with leading the Company’s global commercial teams to drive growth across all of the Company’s product verticals which include proprietary online casino content from its Atomic Slot Lab, Indigo Magic and Wild Streak Gaming studios, exclusive content from content partners, HUB a leading casino content aggregation platform, Fuze player engagement, as well as its award-winning player account management (PAM) platform and turnkey solutions.

Matevž Mazij, Chief Executive Officer at Bragg, said: “I am very pleased to be announcing today the appointment of Neill Whyte as Chief Commercial Officer at Bragg. His iGaming product and market knowledge, together with his record in driving growth from developing successful and mutually beneficial commercial partnerships are exceptional.

“As we leverage our broad content and product portfolio to grow in existing and new markets, including in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Europe, Neill’s unique combination of knowledge, skills and experience in this sector are a perfect fit for our ambitions at Bragg.”

Neill Whyte, Chief Commercial Officer at Bragg, said: “It’s an honor to join Matevž and the wider teams at Bragg already in place across North America, Europe and in India. I have been impressed with the depth and quality of the content, product and technology offerings at Bragg, and its ability to rapidly adapt, certify and deploy this content and technology in newly regulated markets is a distinct advantage.

“We also have a huge opportunity to grow our footprint with our existing customers in markets in which we are already established. Our content and product roadmaps are second to none, and I’m planning to get on the road in the coming weeks and months to meet the team and our customers and to start building for the next stage of mutual growth. I can’t wait to get going.”