LegalSportsBetting Brief: Turner Sports, PA-NJ Handle 10/20/2020

Rules for online sports betting in Michigan have been sent to the final committee for approval.
DraftKings and FanDuel both signed with Turner Sports where FanDuel will have access to NBA broadcasts but DraftKings will have rights to everything else.
New Jersey sports betting handle and Pennsylvania’s sports betting handle reached record highs in September as gaming commission reports show.
The launch of Oregon sports betting and New Mexico sports betting both had their anniversaries this past week with Oregon seeing greater success due to their state’s mobile betting app.

NEW YORK – A lot has been happening in the legal sports betting world this week.

The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) is waiting to issue licenses to online sportsbooks pending the go-ahead of the final draft of rules and regulations by the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR).

DraftKings and FanDuel made a deal with Turner Sports. New Mexico and Oregon celebrated sportsbook anniversaries.

But most notable, Pennsylvania and New Jersey hit record handles for the month of September 2020.

Michigan Finalizes Draft For Online Sportsbook Rules And Regulations

The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) is awaiting the approval of the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) to greenlight the finalized draft of rules and regulations for online sportsbooks in the state.

JCAR has 15 legislative days to decide on the issue, having a final decision set to be announced in the month of December.

One Tribal land-based location as well as one commercial location must launch mobile sports betting platforms at the same time to give each side an equal playing field. A rollout of mobile sportsbooks in Michigan is expected to take place in January 2021, prior to Super Bowl 55.

BetMGM, Barstool Sportsbook, DraftKings, FanDuel, PointsBet, and William Hill are all rumored to be introducing their platforms to Michiganders 21 and over to use and wager on both collegiate and professional sporting events.

DraftKings and FanDuel Seal A Partnership With Turner Sports

DraftKings and FanDuel have partnered with Turner Sports (owned by AT&T) to provide their sports betting information on TNT, TBS, and Bleacher Report. If the sportsbook platforms gain bettors from these new viewership outlets, referral fees will be given to Turner Sports according to the signed documents.

All NBA sporting events will belong exclusively to FanDuel with this contract. Golf, the MLB, college sports, and various other matches will use DraftKings odds as the company will have the right to these sports through the deal.

Happy Anniversary To New Mexico And Oregon Sports Betting

Both Oregon and New Mexico celebrated sports betting anniversaries on October 16. The Sportsbook at The Star at Santa Ana Star Casino Hotel reached its two-year mark of being in business. However, the retail sportsbook closed in mid-March of 2020 because of the Coronavirus Pandemic and didn’t reopen until early October 2020.

Being closed for seven of the twelve months that marked their second year could not have attributed too much by way of sports betting profits.

As for the Oregon Lottery’s Scoreboard sports wagering platform, it celebrated its one-year anniversary. They closed their year with a GGR of $13,077,438 and a turnover of $182,029,448.

“Scoreboard is doing actually quite well; we are in a much better spot than we were this time last year. We’ve learned a lot in our first year and with sports coming back and folks having something to actually wager on, we’ve seen it this first quarter actually turn a profit which is a great place to be in,” said Matt Shelby, Manager of Community & Corporate Engagement for the Oregon Lottery, to LegalSportsBetting.

Pennsylvania And New Jersey Raise The Bar Again For Sports Betting Handle, Revenue

New Jersey and Pennsylvania both had banner months in September for record sports betting handles and revenue. New Jersey actually set a national record for the amount of handle that was taken in over the course of one month.

The Garden State raked in $748 million in handle for September 2020 and $45.1 million in revenue, making it their third-highest month for revenue since the opening of the market in 2018. Over 90% of the business came from mobile and online sports betting platforms.

In August 2020, the Garden State had a handle of nearly $668 million with $39.5 million seen in revenue. These figures are combined from retail and mobile sportsbooks.

The revenue gained goes toward various government relief programs in the Garden State. New Jersey is expected to hit similar numbers for the month of October if not exceed them as the NFL schedule heats up and the World Series for the MLB begins.

Pennsylvania also had a stellar September for sports wagering action. Pennsylvanians gambled $462.8 million on sporting events in September 2020 and brought in $18.3 million in revenue. In August 2020 their handle was $365 million with a revenue of $27.6 million.

While Pennsylvania sportsbooks saw more participation by gamblers, they had less revenue because more winning by sports bettors was occurring. All sports wagering revenue is helping to aid the Commonwealth with budget issues that have arisen because of the Coronavirus Pandemic.

A new record is slated to take place for Pennsylvania handle in October with more NFL games on the board and the MLB starting their World Series.

What To Look For In The Week Ahead

The Rhode Island Lottery Commission is set to release its September revenue report to the public at the end of the month. The state reported $23,116,965 wagered on sports for August 2020. That was a 117.9% increase from July.

July is when sports officially started to come back after the COVID-19 outbreak. Revenue for August as $1,423,391 that will aid in economic state funding.

The MLB’s World Series will begin on October 20 with the Tampa Bay Rays taking on the Los Angeles Dodgers. Baseball fans across the nation are projected to bring in millions of dollars in revenue for the biggest series in American baseball.

States like New Jersey may see a handle of close to one billion dollars for October 2020 when the final tally of wagers placed on the World Series is calculated. Various sportsbooks have Los Angeles as the favorite by very little to win the series as both teams head out onto the field.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has once again extended sports betting mobile registration. Internet and mobile sportsbooks have become a great source of revenue amid the COVID-19 budget issues Illinois has incurred with the shutdowns.

State law requires sports bettors to register for mobile sportsbooks at a land-based location first but the Governor lifted this ban over the Summer and has now extended it into November 2020. In August, over $140 million was gambled on sports matches through internet platforms in Illinois with the number expected to grow further as the NFL season is in full swing.

Advertising Disclosure

In order to provide you with the best independent sports betting news and content LegalSportsBetting.com may receive a commission from partners when you make a purchase through a link on our site.

Christina Monroe

Christina has been writing for as long as she can remember and does dedicated research on the newly regulated sports betting market. She comes from a family of sports lovers that engage in friendly bets from time to time. During the winter months, you can find Christina baking cookies and beating the entire staff at Mario Kart…the N64 version of course.