It’s information overload everywhere, and there’s not time enough to sleep and eat and stay fully apprised of what’s happening on this crazy blue dot of ours (two out of three ain’t bad). Here’s the weekend (or fashionably late) Sports Handle item, “Get a Grip,” recapping the week’s top U.S. sports betting stories, highlighting some fresh news, and rounding up key stories. Also check out this week’s Wide World of Gambling at US Bets.
Hello, folks. Time to close the chapter on this week — an exhausting, topsy-turvy, energy-sapping roller coaster, and yes I’m talking about Election Day (Election Week) and the corresponding political betting market see-sawing in Europe, Australia, and elsewhere outside the United States itself (What might it look like if some U.S. jurisdictions do allow it?)
Saw some Trump -550 as I went to bed. Wake up to Biden -170. This is like a Falcons game.
— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) November 4, 2020
There’s no way we’re going to get better estimates of who people will vote for than through polling. Anecdotes and diner journalism can’t tell 60/40 from 40/60. So how do we do better at aggregating and adjusting polls? DEREGULATE BETTING MARKETS NOW
— Adam Ozimek (@ModeledBehavior) November 5, 2020
Since many people are asking, no we can't stop counting fantasy points after you take a lead during Thursday Night Football.
— Yahoo Fantasy Sports (@YahooFantasy) November 6, 2020
For a more comprehensive roundup touching on some other topics, check out ‘Wild World of Gambling’ at US Bets.
(Mail-in) ballot box six-pack
Voters in six states on Tuesday approved a diverse bag of sports betting and gaming initiatives. Maryland’s vote approving the statewide mobile sports betting will likely create an online market most akin to those in New Jersey, Indiana, Colorado, and perhaps Pennsylvania where options are more limited.
Regarding the timeline in Maryland, as nearby Virginia prepares to approve operators to go live in early 2021, here’s what Marylanders can expect. Jill recaps the results in an article summarizing each of the new measures:
When will sports betting be live in Maryland? It’s an open question, as it is in most states. Lawmakers there must still reach agreement on where sports betting can be offered, what the tax rate will be, and other issues. Legislators were close to a consensus before the COVID-19 pandemic broke in March, and they will revisit the issue when the 2021 General Assembly session opens Jan. 13. While Maryland does already have a mature gaming infrastructure, it could still take a year to get to live sports betting when you consider the legislative piece, regulation development, and the application process.
For more in-depth articles state voter decisions:
- Maryland;
- South Dakota: What’s next after sports betting approved at Deadwood casinos;
- Nebraska: Threefold expansion including approval of “games of chance;”
- Louisiana: Brick-and-mortar sportsbooks approved in most parishes;
- Virginia: Casinos approved in four cities;
- Colorado: Residents of three gaming towns may increase bet limits.
Big fish out of water, funds in the net
Check out Matt Rybaltowski’s reporting — and more to come — on a dispute between DraftKings and a Florida-based big-time bettor who is furious after his funds were frozen by the sportsbook after some big bets and sizeable wins. A DraftKings spokesperson told Sports Handle: “While this matter is under investigation by the appropriate regulatory authorities, DraftKings has no comment on that investigation.”
The bettor’s $3 million parlay on a mixture of NFL and college football futures was advertised throughout sports betting and mainstream media, when the bet was placed in early October. He believes that other DraftKings’ bettors, with smaller accounts but plenty at stake, may be getting shafted, too.
Election coverage has dominated the news cycle over the last 72 hrs but yesterday @sports_handle published a fairly extensive story on allegations of proxy betting at DraftKings Interested to see how prevalent proxy betting is among whales as we dig deeper https://t.co/OJpYTzuuX5
— Matt Rybaltowski (@MattRybaltowski) November 6, 2020
NJ was a compliance disaster when they first got sports betting. When they first got going they somehow did not get one single operator who knew what they were doing. I was placing a series of futures bets at a book a dime at the time, when i got to 9900 the manager asked me… https://t.co/ppnp6bsIfC
— Zack White (@Gambleballs) November 5, 2020
More of the important, interesting stories this week
THROWING DOWN: Wynn invests $80 million in revamped online betting/gaming venture [Bloomberg]
STOOLIES: Barstool opens company’s first retail sportsbook in Black Hawk, Colorado [CO Bets]
OH, CANADA: Fresh hope for single-event sports betting in Canada as Bill C-218 launches [SBC Americas]
PARTNER UP: Turner Sports and B/R properties hook up with DraftKings and FanDuel for sports betting integrations, content on various platforms [SportTechie]
EXCISE THE EXCISE: Gaming’s ballot-box success could help its cause on Capitol Hill [CDC Gaming]
BATTLEGROUND: A look at pollsters versus bettors in the 2020 elections [Vox]
THE MASTERS: DraftKings links up with golfer Bryson DeChambeau, who will sport a DK hat at Augusta [US Bets]
FAVORED NEW WORLD: Titans favored over Bears according to odds at actual legal Tennessee sportsbooks [TN Bets]
LEGALIZE IT: Gambling on NASCAR races may bring liquor-license suspension or fine to Charlotte-area Moose Lodge [Charlotte Observer]
