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ARC AND 1/ST TO OFFER GREATER INTERNATIONAL RACING OPPORTUNITIES
Arena Racing Company (“ARC”), Britain’s largest racing group, and 1/ST, North America’s preeminent Thoroughbred racing and pari-mutuel wagering company, today announce a new partnership to open new opportunities across some of their feature races.
The winners of a selection of prestigious races at Doncaster Racecourse, home of the Betfred St Leger Stakes, the World’s Oldest Classic, will be offered free entry to races across 1/ST’s portfolio of elite tracks in the United States, including for the inaugural California Crown race day at Santa Anita Park on 28 September, and on the prestigious Pegasus World Cup program held at Gulfstream Park on 25 January 2025.
At the upcoming Betfred St Leger Festival, the winner of the Group 2 Betfred May Hill Stakes will receive an invitation, with no fees attached, to the $500,000 Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf Invitational (GII), run over 1m 1/16f at Gulfstream Park in January 2025. Equally, the winner of the Carlsberg Danish Pilsner Flying Childers Stakes will receive free entry to the $750,000 California Crown Eddie D. Turf Sprint (GII), run over 6½ furlongs at Santa Anita Park at the end of September.
For the first time, Season 12 of the All-Weather Championships will open Finals Day qualification to any horse running three times over the season on an artificial surface in the USA, in addition to runs in the UK, Ireland or France.
As such, the winner of the Carousel Club Handicap at Gulfstream Park on 25 January will receive free entry to the All-Weather Championships Mile Final at Newcastle Racecourse on Good Friday, with two other qualifying runs. Season 12 of the All-Weather Championships begins in October 2024 across the six all-weather racecourses in Britain culminating with £1,000,000 Finals Day at Newcastle on Good Friday, 18 April 2025.
In addition to the free entry to each of these races, ARC and 1/ST will support the connections of any qualifying horse with a subsidy towards their travel.
This agreement follows on from the recent announcement of a new strategic alliance between ARC, 1/ST, Tabcorp and Racecourse Media Group to create a network of rights holders that will distribute content across multiple international markets.
Director of Media and International at ARC, Brendan Parnell, said: “We are delighted to announce this partnership with 1/ST to offer the winners of two of the most high-profile races during the Betfred St Leger Festival the opportunity to take up some exciting opportunities in the USA.
“Likewise, in extending the qualification criteria for the All-Weather Championships, and the link with Gulfstream Park, we hope that we might look to add some further international interest in the £1,000,000 Good Friday fixture, alongside the long standing Irish and French participation.”
Aidan Butler, President of 1/ST, said: “We’re thrilled to expand our existing partnership with ARC. Working with Doncaster and its revered St Leger Festival is truly a privilege, while we’re also looking forward to sending over a horse for the All-Weather Championships next Spring at Newcastle. Collectively, we’re playing our part to bring US and UK racing closer together across elite races on all surfaces.
“By coupling timeless tradition to forward-thinking innovation, via newly-conceived concepts like the California Crown at Santa Anita Park on 28 September (California’s richest day of racing outside the Breeders’ Cup), we will only build on this association and progressive program in the years ahead. At 1/ST, our goal is always the betterment of top-class international fields, a cornerstone project in growing and sustaining the sport we love on both sides of the pond.”
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Detroit Casinos Report $102.9M in October Revenue
The three Detroit casinos reported $102.9 million in monthly aggregate revenue (AGR) for the month of October 2024, of which $103.7 million was generated from table games and slots, and negative ($826,796) from retail sports betting.
The October market shares were:
• MGM, 48%
• MotorCity, 30%
• Hollywood Casino at Greektown, 22%
Monthly Table Games, Slot Revenue, and Taxes
The casinos’ revenue for table games and slots for the month of October 2024 increased 26.9% when compared to the same month last year. This remarked increase is due in part to when casino employees went on strike on Oct. 17, 2023, which caused AGR totals to be lower than normal. October’s monthly revenue was 2.4% higher when compared to the previous month, September 2024. From Jan. 1 through Oct. 31, the Detroit casinos’ table games and slots revenue increased by 3.0% compared to the same period last year.
The casinos’ monthly gaming revenue results all increased compared to October 2023:
• MGM, up 32.4% to $49.4 million
• MotorCity, up 26.7% to $31.7 million
• Hollywood Casino at Greektown, up 16.5% to $22.6 million
In October 2024, the three Detroit casinos paid $8.4 million in gaming taxes to the State of Michigan. They paid $6.6 million for the same month last year. The casinos also reported submitting $12.8 million in wagering taxes and development agreement payments to the City of Detroit in October.
Monthly Retail Sports Betting Revenue and Taxes
The three Detroit casinos reported $22.19 million in total retail sports betting handle, and total gross receipts totaled negative ($822,552) for the month of October. Retail sports betting qualified adjusted gross receipts (QAGR) were down by $2.0 million in October when compared to October 2023, and down by $1.6 million when compared to September 2024.
October QAGR by casino was:
• MGM: negative ($474,293)
• MotorCity: negative ($528,408)
• Hollywood Casino at Greektown: $175,905
During October, the casinos paid $6,649 in gaming taxes to the state and reported submitting $8,127 in wagering taxes to the City of Detroit based on their retail sports betting revenue.
Fantasy Contests
For September 2024, fantasy contest operators reported total adjusted revenues of $1.1 million and paid taxes of $89,282.
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21VIRAL Integrates Air Dice Group Games
21VIRAL, the Latin American-focused games aggregator and solution provider, has onboarded Air Dice Group’s games portfolio.
21VIRAL, which is creating a streamlined integration, onboarding and transparent pricing in the iGaming casino and game aggregation supply vertical, announced the onboarding of Air Dice Group today.
The distribution deal allows 21VIRAL access to Air Dice’s complete portfolio of content. Air Dice specialises in strategy-influenced money games, which are in high demand across Latin America.
Christoph Härtel, CEO of 21VIRAL, said: “Our business is customer-first, and building out a great CRX experience is our goal. Having looked at the market incumbents, we decided to specialise in the Latin American market, given its current growth, which is double-digit, and is expected to maintain high levels of growth over the next 5 to 10 years.”
“We have already onboarded several industry-established operators and game providers in record time using AI to facilitate faster and more streamlined workflows. We are, therefore, delighted to work with Air Dice Group to ensure their massively popular games, such as Wild Cash, Coco Craze, and Book of Goddess, are available to our operator’s portfolio of games content.
However, one of the limiting factors, especially if you are an operator or game provider, is the technical integration expertise and market access within the supply chain. If a game provider wishes to have their games deployed on Operator A’s website, but they are yet to be available to that operator, 21VIRAL’s GameConnector will be the provider’s enabler with all the technical integration, heavy lifting, and onboarding. We will also offer reverse integration, which means that we integrate our GameConnector Platform into their systems – therefore, the operators have less effort.
Simply, it’s a win-win, as many game providers in other territories, such as continental Europe, lack the commercial and technical distribution to enter LatAm—we do all that from them—and the operator gets access to the unique game content in the supply chain that can enhance their players’ engagement and revenue opportunities.”
Rocio Moitino, Director for LatAm, Air Dice Group added: “Latin America has proven to be an expanding and high-growth market for our games content over the last few years, and it continues to increase. We are delighted to increase our market accessibility with 21VIRAL’s team, as they provide faster speed to market to enable operators to access and publish our unique games to their casino lobby in quicker timeframes.”
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Lorraine Bencivengo-Ziff, the “Goddess of Slots,” Takes Gaming World by Storm with Major Milestones and New Ventures
Lorraine Bencivengo-Ziff, known to her millions of fans as the “Goddess of Slots,” has had an exciting and eventful year marked by major achievements and new ventures that have elevated her as one of the gaming industry’s most influential personalities.
In August, Lorraine made waves at the Global Gaming Expo (G2E) in Las Vegas, the world’s largest gaming convention, where she was hired to showcase the latest slot machines from AGS. Known for her vibrant and engaging personality, Lorraine livestreamed from the convention floor, offering her fans exclusive access to the newest slot game releases. Her live sessions allowed viewers to experience firsthand the innovative features of AGS’s latest machines, creating an interactive and dynamic connection between Lorraine and her dedicated fanbase.
October saw Lorraine embarking on a thrilling adventure aboard Virgin Voyages’ Valiant Lady, where she joined renowned slot player Scott “Raja” Richter (also known as “The Big Jackpot”) for an unforgettable cruise. The high-limit room on the ship was officially unveiled during the event, which featured a lively slot competition and a group pull that resulted in a substantial jackpot win for participants. The cruise was such a success that Lorraine is already in talks with Virgin Voyages for a special “Goddess of Slots” cruise scheduled for 2025. This trip will include a meet-and-greet, exclusive prizes, a cocktail party, and numerous fun surprises.
In November, Lorraine competed in the prestigious Atlantis $1 Million Slot Tournament, known as the “My VIP World Tournament of Slots,” where she advanced to the semi-finals. Her presence at the event was a highlight, as she also participated in interviews and a meet-and-greet with her fans. Attendees were thrilled to receive autographed pictures and exclusive Goddess of Slots T-shirts, featuring the new, trademarked Goddess of Slots slot machine logo. Lorraine’s unique style of filming, often referred to as “gorilla filming,” allows her viewers to feel immersed in the action, and her engaging, handheld filming technique has made her a fan favorite. This style has earned her a special privilege—Lorraine is one of the very few social media influencers allowed to film at Atlantis, Paradise Islands, Bahamas.
Lorraine was recently cast in a TV series based upon a true story which will be shooting soon in California. On Monday, November 25, Lorraine will appear at the Hard Rock in Tampa—a casino she can often be found creating content—alongside Scott “Raja” Richter for a livestream as she helps demonstrate the newest Aristocrat game, The Phoenix Link, before it is unveiled to the public on November 26. And on December 5, Lorraine will be a guest on the “Live Well and Thrive” podcast with Mike Torchia and then fly to Las Vegas to appear at the at The El Cortez Hotel and Casino that same evening.
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