Although Disney isn’t a brand that’s normally associated with things like sports betting or iGaming, that could very well be changing soon. Once again, the family-friendly brand is looking into getting a piece of gaming pie — We’ve look into that, plus the latest casino industry news.
Disney Looking to Form Online Sports Betting Partnership
Where there is smoke, there is fire. Once again, it looks like Disney is putting out feelers about getting into sports betting.
The company has mostly been against any form of gambling for a long time now but recently has shown a willingness to get itself into the betting industry. CEO Bob Chapek said that the company is doing everything it can in order to find a suitable partner to reach into the online sports betting world. This isn’t the first time they have been wanting to move into this space as they allowed ESPN to create gambling content a few years ago.
It is expected that Disney would find a partner with ESPN or have ESPN release their own official sportsbook. The agreement could end up going in a ton of different directions. It all depends upon the company that decides to work with them.
One would imagine that Disney would look to group up with an operator that has a license in the majority of states in the country. New York and Florida are also both getting into the sports betting world as well, which could be another thing to factor into their decision. ESPN has a lot of options and they surely have a lot of money being offered to them. The question is how will they decide to dive into this?
Florida Sports Betting Model Gets Opposed By Federal Judge
The brand new 30-year gambling compact that Florida was able to make with the Seminole Tribe may be in trouble. A federal judge just came to the conclusion that the agreement did, in fact, violate federal law. The act that was apparently violated was the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act among a few other standards that were avoided.
The ruling isn’t going to just get settled overnight. The Seminole Tribe is already preparing to fight it and this suit could take months. This whole situation comes just a few weeks after the tribe launched their online sports betting app with the hope of bringing it to the players in Florida.
The tribe also happens to be in another legal battle with an anti-gambling group over their expansion. That has been going on for some time as well but it doesn’t look like an end is in sight for them at the moment. For now, Florida sports bettors will have to hang tight.
New Jersey Sets Monthly Gaming Records In October
While Florida can’t get out of its own way, the Garden State is thriving thanks to sports betting.
October was a phenomenal month in New Jersey in terms of iGaming. The state was able to set a new monthly record for total gambling revenue from their online casinos and sportsbooks. It was reported that they were able to reel in a total of $1.3 billion in bets from their books. The previous record was set in September when they brought in $1.01 billion. The Borgata was the most successful property, winning $61.7 million.
$1.2 billion of those wagers were placed either via a mobile app or online. However, this could be the last month they get close to these numbers for some time. New York is on the brink of launching its own sports betting market, which could take a bite away from New Jersey.
Still, —New Jersey’s gambling market is on fire right now and even with major change coming, they should be able to build off these highs.
