Compliance Updates
At $300 Million, This is Expected to be California’s Most Expensive Ballot Fight Ever. And it Just Got More Intense
In a sign of the bruising, expensive fight to come, two Native American tribes are coming out in support of a newly qualified ballot measure to allow online sports gambling — instead of a separate gaming measure backed by dozens of other tribes.
On Wednesday, two tribes — the Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians and the Big Valley Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians — will announce their support for the online gaming measure that proponents call the Californians for Solutions to Homelessness and Mental Health Support Act.
Backed by commercial operators including FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM, the measure would legalize online sports betting in California, with 85% of the revenue going toward housing for the homeless and mental health services. The rest would go to the Indian tribes that will be partnering with major gaming operators in running the operation.
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Shirley Weber announced that the measure had gathered enough valid petition signatures to be eligible for the ballot in November. A report from the state’s nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office said new tax revenue from the proposal “could reach the mid-hundreds of millions of dollars annually.”
“We’re supporting the Solutions Act because it gives us an opportunity to protect our sovereignty and also create opportunities for economic wealth for the next seven generations for our tribe,” Jose “Moke” Simon, chair of the Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians, said.
“It also helps the state of California deal with some of the biggest problems that it has here, that is affecting every community, which is homelessness and mental health issues,” said Simon, who stars in a new online ad for the proposal.
It is a sign that what’s expected to be California’s most expensive ballot measure battle ever is heating up. Analysts have predicted that more than $300 million could be spent between the warring parties. That’s far more than the $224 million spent by both sides over 2020’s Proposition 22, which asked voters to decide whether app-based transportation and delivery drivers should be classified as independent contractors.
Both sides believe that the jackpot that awaits is worth it: California’s estimated sports gaming market is estimated to be around $3 billion. At least.
A proposal supporters call the Tribal Sports Wagering Act, which is backed by dozens of Native American tribes, already qualified to go before voters in November. It would allow only in-person sports betting to occur only at tribal casinos and qualified horse racetracks. Proponents say they have secured the endorsement of roughly one-third of California’s 109 Native tribes.
Kathy Fairbanks, a spokesperson for the Tribal Act, said that measure represents a more responsible approach.
“It’s allows sports betting to patrons over 21 and older. You have to be there in person, show your ID, people can look you in the eye and make sure that you match the ID in front of you,” Fairbanks said.
The decision for voters, said industry analyst Brandt Iden, is “retail-only sports betting versus mobile.”
“That’s what this is going to come down to do for consumers,” said Iden, a former Republican Michigan state representative who is now head of government affairs at Sportradar, a sports technology company that provides data and content to the betting industry. “Do I need to walk into a sports book to place a wager, or can I do it from a mobile device anywhere in the state?”
Proponents of the online-only measure touted Wednesday’s endorsement from two smaller tribes as a sign that all of California’s Native tribes aren’t fully on board with the in-person-only measure.
Simon, from the Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians, which operates the Twin Pine Casino and Hotel in Middletown (Lake County), said the online proposal helps smaller tribes that are far from major population centers. If sports betting were confined to only in-person betting at tribal casinos and racetracks, casinos like the one his tribe operates wouldn’t see much uptick in foot traffic.
“We are looking to obviously move into e-commerce, and this gives us an opportunity to do that,” said Simon, who is also a Lake County supervisor.
But Fairbanks, who represents the in-person proposal, discounted the impact of a few tribes supporting the online proposal, noting that more than 60 tribes oppose it.
“The vast, vast majority are opposed to the (online) measure, and we will make sure that voters are aware of that,” Fairbanks said.
Iden, of Sportradar, said it “isn’t surprising” that some smaller tribes are partnering with the commercial operators. He has seen that happen in other states, including Michigan, where he served. The California online gaming proposal requires a commercial operator to be paired with a Native tribe to be able to enter the market.
Iden said that sort of partnership model has been used in other states “where commercial operators enter the market through a tribal brick-and-mortar operation. Traditionally, smaller tribes really benefit from that because of the money that’s involved.”
The larger question will be whether Californians — particularly the younger generation of digital natives who grew up doing many of life’s activities online — will support a measure that would force them to travel to a casino or racetrack to legally bet on a sporting event.
“That is a huge challenge because everything is really online these days,” said Geoff Zochodne, who covers the gaming industry for Covers, an online site. “That’s where the customer is increasingly located for all businesses.”
Fairbanks didn’t dismiss the tribes pursuing online gaming in the future but said that the current online measure isn’t the way to go “at this point in time.”
“Maybe technology will change. But right now, there’s no 100% foolproof way to ensure that kids under 21 aren’t gambling,” she said.
Iden said the real challenge will be for voters, who will see a blizzard of competing ads. Some ads opposing the online-only proposal have been running for weeks online and on TV — even before the measure officially qualified for the ballot.
“The real question becomes how much confusion is created by these two initiatives,” Iden said. “If you’ve got lengthy ballot proposals that you have to sit there and read, you sort of question whether or not people just get confused and they vote no on both.”
Booming Games has successfully obtained the required certification to operate in Brazil, fully complying with the regulations set by Brazil’s gambling regulator, the Secretariat of Evaluation, Planning, Energy, and Lottery (SECAP).
Booming Games became one of the first providers to get approval and be compliant. This milestone enables them to offer its wide array of gaming content to licensed operators in Brazil, allowing Brazilian players to dive into fan favourites like Burning Classics, Gold Gold Gold, TNT Bonanza 2, Cash Pig, Buffalo Hold and Win Extreme, and Ronaldinho Spins, enhancing their gaming experience.
Expanding into Brazil’s iGaming market represents a pivotal achievement for Booming Games, reinforcing its presence across Latin America and strengthening its position as a leading gaming content provider on the continent. Booming Games remains dedicated to delivering high-quality entertainment globally, with this Brazilian expansion highlighting its commitment to serving diverse gaming audiences worldwide.
Frederik Niehusen, Chief Commercial Officer at Booming Games, commented: “We’re excited to have achieved full certification in Brazil, marking an important step in strengthening our presence in this rapidly expanding market. We’re eager to build on this success, driving growth and bringing exceptional gaming experiences to players throughout Brazil. 2025 promises to be an exciting year, and we look forward to sharing more updates soon.”
The Tennessee Sports Wagering Council through its executive director issued $50,000 in fines to Bovada.lv, an unlicensed and therefore illegal sportsbook operating in Tennessee.
Bovada failed to comply with cease and desist letters delivered to addresses in Curaçao, and Council investigators placed wagers through Bovada’s platform on three separate occasions, including as recently as October 16, 2024.
The Sports Gaming Act authorizes the Council to impose a $10,000 fine for the first offense of accepting wagers without a license, which rises to $15,000 for the second offense, and $25,000 for the third offense. Subsequent offenses may lead to the imposition of a $25,000 fine for each occurrence, an occurrence being a single wager accepted in Tennessee.
In the cease and desist letters, the Council ordered Bovada to allow all Tennessee users to withdraw any funds currently held by the unlicensed sportsbook.
“The Sports Wagering Council recommends that Tennessee users of Bovada withdraw their funds immediately. Our primary role is the protection of the public interest through a safe, regulated environment, and Tennessee sports bettors need to know that just because they can access a sports betting website or app inside Tennessee’s borders does not mean it is licensed to do business here,” Mary Beth Thomas, Executive Director of Tennessee Sports Wagering Council, said.
Legal sportsbook operators provide important bettor protections not found in the illegal market. If an individual wagers with unlicensed sportsbooks, their sensitive financial and personal information may not be protected and could even be shared with criminal enterprises. The bettor’s money could be withheld or disappear without a way to recover it.
The SWC is working closely with its network of law enforcement at the state and federal level to eradicate illegal sportsbooks such as Bovada and others.
Tennessee is the largest “online-only” sports betting market in the US, with more than $4.7 billion wagered in Tennessee last fiscal year through online sportsbooks licensed by the Council.
Award-winning iGaming supplier Delasport has just positioned itself as the most progressive supplier to date by meeting the new Brazilian regulation requirements for Sports Betting and Online Casino. The global technology developer has taken all required measures to comply in terms of certifications, Data vault integration, payment providers, KYC, AML, and much more.
Delasport’s team of over 400 experts worldwide are advancing to deliver its renowned products and services to the Brazilian market. They have partnered with GLI (Gaming Laboratories International) – the leading certification lab approved by the Brazilian Ministry of Finance.
So far, Delasport is fully certified against GLI-33 and GLI-19 – the standards that have inspired regulators in Latin America and likely in Brazil. Additionally, the team is in the process of submitting the platform for certification against Brazilian technical standards. Delasport is also advancing rapidly through data quality testing of its integration with the SIGAP Datavault system.
Key Advantages
Operators that plan on entering the newly regulated Brazilian market will have numerous advantages if they partner with Delasport. They will be able to provide their players with personalization features like My Sportsbook, My Event Builder, My Combo, and My Casino that skyrocket revenues and retention.
Furthermore, Delasport’s KYC and AML provider is a market leader that guarantees the highest level of compliance for all operators that choose to go on this route.
Also, Delasport has already partnered with numerous PIX payment system operators and provides a real-time AI-powered Responsible Gambling system which can easily adapt to local regulations.
Another key advantage is the strong relationship with third-party casino suppliers that will soon be able to provide their exciting portfolios to this thrilling jurisdiction.
Last, but not least, operators will feel Delasport’s support from the get-go all the way to establishing themselves as a market leader. Delasport is knowledgeable of the cultural and regional differences within Brazil and can address all localization needs before they arise.
“Delasport stands on a solid foundation of experience, supplying Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 operators in highly regulated markets globally”, the company’s CCO Filippo Ferri comments. ‘This makes Delasport fully equipped to assist operators navigating complex platforms or adapting to modern jurisdictional requirements, such as Brazil’s.’
The supplier’s VP of Business Development Rosaire Galea Cavallaro adds: ‘It’s a great privilege to enter such a vast and exciting market with the confidence that we’ve gained at Delasport throughout the years. We’re looking forward to seeing our product in action in a new territory, achieving and maintaining solid margins for our partners, keeping the record of having double digit margins in sports betting and helping them scale with ease in both verticals to generate maximum revenue for their brands.’
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