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Sports-Betting Boost Expected With Texas, Oklahoma In SEC

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Sports-Betting Boost Expected With Texas, Oklahoma In SEC

 

With the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners now in the Southeastern Conference, legal sports betting soon could jump by double digits in the region, says one bookmaker.
Starting this season, Texas and Oklahoma are in position to challenge for the SEC football championship — and championships across all SEC sports — in a collegiate conference loaded with rich traditions and annual national title contenders.
The Longhorns and Sooners joined the SEC in July. Both moved over from the Big 12.
This new conference (alignment) leads to better games for the book and better opportunities for the player,” Casey Lewless, manager of two Louisiana sportsbooks, told Gambling.com.
Legal sportsbooks in Louisiana are popular with bettors from neighboring Texas and nearby Oklahoma. Sports wagering is illegal in Texas and Oklahoma.
Because of this, the Margaritaville Resort Casino in Bossier City, Louisiana, expects to see a bump of about 30% in college wagering, Lewless said. That sportsbook already was anticipating more action because of its recent expansion.
The Margaritaville sportsbook is one of two in Northwest Louisiana that Lewless manages for Penn Entertainment. The other is at the nearby Boomtown Casino Hotel.
Lewless pointed to Texas’ rivalry years ago with the Arkansas Razorbacks in the former Southwest Conference as a matchup that will stir interest now that both are in the SEC. Sports betting is legal in Arkansas.
Also, every clash between the two Texas SEC schools — the Longhorns and Texas A&M Aggies — will stir emotions and boost sports betting in close-by states like Louisiana where wagering is legal, Lewless said.
Sports Betting Illegal In Half Of SEC States
The addition of Oklahoma into the SEC means six of the 12 states with schools in the conference do not have legal sports betting. Texas already had a school in the SEC — Texas A&M.
Those six SEC states make up the largest geographic region in the U.S. without legal sports betting. Combined, the six states have a population of more than 62 million, representing about 19% of the U.S. population.
Nationwide, sports betting is legal in 38 states and Washington, D.C.
The SEC states without legal sports betting are:
  • Texas (Texas Longhorns, Texas A&M Aggies)
  • Oklahoma (Oklahoma Sooners)
  • Missouri (Missouri Tigers)
  • Alabama (Alabama Crimson Tide, Auburn Tigers)
  • Georgia (Georgia Bulldogs)
  • South Carolina (South Carolina Gamecocks)
  • The other six SEC states have either in-person or mobile sports betting — or both. Tennessee is a mobile-only state, while Mississippi has in-person sports betting at casinos but not off-site mobile wagering.
The SEC states with legal sports betting are:
  • Arkansas (Arkansas Razorbacks)
  • Louisiana (LSU Tigers)
  • Kentucky (Kentucky Wildcats)
  • Tennessee (Tennessee Volunteers, Vanderbilt Commodores)
  • Mississippi (Ole Miss Rebels, Mississippi State Bulldogs)
  • Florida (Florida Gators)
College Football Kicks Off In August
The overall college football schedule kicks off Aug. 24, including a matchup overseas between Florida State and Georgia Tech in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic in Dublin, Ireland.
In the SEC, the Oklahoma Sooners, led by head coach Brent Venables, begin their season on Aug. 30 against Temple at OU’s Gaylord Family Memorial Stadium.
The SEC schedule gets fully underway over the Labor Day weekend, highlighted by an Aug. 31 contest between Clemson and Georgia in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
On that same day, the Steve Sarkisian-coached Texas Longhorns host Colorado State in Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin.
The next day’s schedule, on Sept. 1, features another SEC school, LSU, in a matchup against Southern California in the Vegas Kickoff Classic at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
SEC Divisions Abandoned
The addition of Texas and Oklahoma brings the number of teams in the SEC to 16. This season, the conference football championship will be decided between the top two teams. The 2024 SEC title game is set for Dec. 7 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
In previous years, the conference was split into two divisions, with the East and West winners battling it out for for the SEC title.
The 2024 arrangement with no divisions is a departure in the conference structure dating back more than three decades.

Compliance Updates

PA Gaming Control Board Renews License for Wind Creek Bethlehem Casino

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The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (Board) unanimously voted to renew the Category 2 stand-alone casino license of Wind Creek Bethlehem LLC, operator of Wind Creek Bethlehem casino in Northampton County.

In making the decision, the Board determined that Wind Creek Bethlehem LLC had fulfilled the obligations under its previously approved casino operator’s license and therefore qualified to have its license renewed for an additional five-year period.

The decision to renew the license was based on a process utilized by the Board that enables both the operator and the public to provide information relevant to the renewal decision. A public input hearing was held in July 2024 in the casino’s host municipality, the City of Bethlehem, where personnel of Wind Creek Bethlehem submitted exhibits and presented testimony on various aspects of the facility’s operation since its last license renewal was granted. The public was also permitted to provide testimony about the casino and its impact in the community.

In reaching its decision, the Board also received information from local government officials, community groups and the PA State Police, along with the Gaming Control Board’s Office of Enforcement Counsel, Bureau of Investigations and Enforcement, Office of Compulsive and Problem Gaming, and Bureau of Casino Compliance.

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Additionally, a public hearing was held in Harrisburg to permit Board members to further question Wind Creek Bethlehem LLC representatives about any remaining issues prior to voting on the renewal.

Since its opening in May 2009 through September 2024, Wind Creek Bethlehem has generated over $7 billion in revenue from the play of retail slot machines and table games, sports wagering and iGaming, and has returned to the Commonwealth a total of $2.9 billion from tax revenue, assessments and fees. Wind Creek Bethlehem currently operates 2318 slot machines, 202 table games and a 20-table poker room while providing employment to 2242 persons directly or through third-party tenants in the events center, food and beverage outlets or retail stores. 94% of those employees are Pennsylvania residents.

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Compliance Updates

PrizePicks Awarded Fantasy Sports Licenses in Delaware and Missouri

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PrizePicks, the largest daily fantasy sports operator in North America, announced it has been awarded Daily Fantasy Sports Operator Licenses in Delaware and Missouri. The company will launch Arena, its innovative peer-to-peer fantasy sports contest, in both states.

“We are proud that Arena has been approved in every state where it has been submitted. We’ve seen strong player adoption to date and we look forward to replicating our success in these new markets with a fun gaming experience. We’d like to extend our gratitude to the Delaware Division of Gaming Enforcement, the Delaware Lottery, and the Missouri Gaming Commission for their thoughtful collaboration,” said PrizePicks CEO Mike Ybarra.

Arena offers a unique leaderboard style peer-to-peer gaming experience, allowing players to compete for prizes against one another. Participants are grouped based on their number of entries and experience level. Since launching in January, players on Arena have built over 20 million peer-to-peer lineups. With these new state launches, Arena will now be available in 15 states across the US.

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Latest News

BetRivers Introduces PropPacks, an Innovative Feature for the NBA Season

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For many sports lovers, one of the great joys has been opening a pack of player cards to see which professional athletes were inside.

This NBA season, the team at Rush Street Interactive Inc., which operates the BetRivers Sportsbook, plans to replicate that experience with the unveiling of PropPacks. The simplicity of the new digital game, combined with the chance for large payouts, will appeal to both seasoned bettors and those new to sports betting.

Customers who wager $10 or more on qualifying Same Game Parlays (SGPs) will randomly receive up to three PropPacks per game, at no extra charge, from one or both teams in the game. If the relevant NBA players score over the point totals on the card, then the bettors win! There are props for 20+, 30+, 40+, and 50+ with higher prizes for each threshold.

There are three tiers of player cards; bronze, silver, and gold. Bronze cards are the most common, with Gold being the rarest. Gold cards offer the highest potential prizes, with a potential maximum jackpot prize of $10,000 in Bonus Credits.

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“PropPacks, which is exclusively available on RSI’s platform to BetRivers Sportsbook players, will give NBA fans an additional thrill by offering extra bonus opportunities on their SGP bets. The player card game makes watching the action even more exciting by offering bettors at all levels, from those placing a bet for the first time to experienced sports wagerers, more ways to win from existing SGP bets at no additional cost to our bettors. PropPacks reinforces our dedication to put our players first by creating value for them while elevating the betting experience in fun and exciting ways,” said Richard Schwartz, CEO at RSI.

In addition to the PropPacks promotional game, RSI’s sportsbooks will have a full suite of promotional offers this basketball season, including NBA Parlay Insurance and a pre-season NBA Futures Bet & Get offer. Players can download the BetRivers app and click “Promotions” to view the full offering.

“PropPacks is a game changer and, as we head into the NBA season, we are very excited to offer a unique and innovative product that you can only find at the BetRivers Sportsbook. We are giving customers more chances to win bonuses and prizes, ultimately enriching the bettor experience and providing more value back to our loyal players,” Schwartz said.

BetRivers Squares is back for another season and will be offered on all NCAA College Basketball games. Qualifying Same Game Parlay bets of $10 or more on a game earns the customer a square, at no extra charge, with a $25 wager resulting in two squares and a bet of $50 or more worth three squares.

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