Complaint Filed Against D.C. Sports Betting

• Gambling company, Intralot, will be heading up D.C. sports betting.
• Intralot already has control over the District’s lottery system.
• The contract awarded to the company is worth over 200 million dollars.

WASHINGTON, DC – A complaint has been filed against Washington D.C. and their contract with Intralot over sports betting control.

A local mobile app developer, Dylan Carragher, has filed paperwork with the city. The paperwork comes as D.C. allowed a no-bid process for their sports wagering contract, simply giving it to the Greek betting company. The contract is worth $215 million dollars and Carragher believes that just giving it to Intralot was done so in an illegal manner.

“The city needs to follow its procurement laws, certainly, and the process should be competitive and open,” said Donald Temple, the lawyer representing Carragher. “That would allow not only our client but others who own sports bars and others like that, to compete in the marketplace for what is going to be a very lucrative business opportunity.”

Betting sports legally in establishments and the internet is set to begin in January 2020 and all will be controlled through the use of Intralot platforms. Carragher is not the only one to have an issue with what’s been going on in terms of how legal sports wagering has been progressing in the District.

Intralot’s Subcontractor

Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At Large) has also questioned the no-bid contract awarded to the gambling company. Silverman’s main concern is how Intralot has chosen to locally partner with Veteran’s Services Corporation for use as their subcontractors.

She believes they are not a real business and records from the District back up her beliefs because there are zero employees listed at the Veteran’s Services Corporation.

While she wrote a letter to the D.C. Department of Small and Local Business Development, she was displeased with their response.

“I will tell you that I found her answer to be wholly unsatisfactory,” Silverman said. “My concern is that Veterans Services Corporation might have misrepresented themselves as an independently owned small business.”

It is unlikely that the contract the District has with Intralot will be reversed. Should a lawsuit be filed, the company would be represented by the city in court. When it does happen, expect it to become a long and arduous process likely ending in favor of the District and Intralot.

As it stands, Carragher will not have a chance to make a bid with his sports betting technology and the no-bid contract will remain in effect when sports wagering begins in D.C. in 2020.

News tags: D.C. | D.C. Department of Small and Local Business Development | Donald Temple | Dylan Carragher | Elissa Silverman | Intralot | Veteran’s Services Corporation