LSB Feature: New Sports Betting Markets Ahead Of NFL Season

• Wyoming is expected to launch sports betting before the start of the 2021 NFL season on September 1.
• Arizona and South Dakota are both set to launch sports betting on September 9, a day before the first slate of games.
• Florida sports betting has no official date but is expected to launch during the NFL season as well.

PHOENIX – The NFL season is always the biggest time of the year for sports betting as markets tend to see the most action during this time.

This is why many new upcoming states with legal sports betting are launching around the start of the NFL season.

Arizona, Florida, South Dakota, and Wyoming will see new markets launching in time to cash in on NFL betting to start their market.

New Markets Incoming

The first market to launch will be Wyoming who aims to be live in time for the September 1, 2021, start of the NFL season.

The Wyoming market will see only online betting, similar to Tennessee’s market, and be accessible for bettors who are 18 years old or older.

The application process has been open since July 15 and commercial sportsbooks have already begun setting the groundwork to be live in Wyoming in time for the NFL season. Wyoming will have unlimited applications as well.

One thing that separates the Wyoming betting market from the rest is that this will be the first state to accept cryptocurrencies as a form of payment. Wyoming lawmakers passed HB 133 into law, regulating the market and allowing crypto to be accepted by local sportsbooks.

A little over a week after Wyoming’s launch, sports betting in Arizona will officially go live on September 9, a day before Week 1 begins.

Both mobile and retail sportsbooks will be available in Arizona. A total of 20 land-based sports betting operations will be live, 20 tribal casinos, and 10 professional gaming venues. Additionally, 60 mobile sportsbook applications will be available.

Arizona will see sports betting operations at the Phoenix Suns Footprint Center, at the Arizona Diamondbacks Chase Field, and at the TPC Scottsdale.

“This is a watershed moment for the Suns organization and our fans,” said Jason Rowley, Phoenix Suns President & CEO. “FanDuel is the perfect partner as our missions are fully aligned. Simply put, FanDuel is committed to making sports more exciting while the Suns are focused on delivering exciting sports and entertainment and engaging fans at the highest level possible.”

On the same day, South Dakota will be seeing a September 9 launch of its sports betting market.

Like Arizona, both mobile and retail sports betting will be going live in time for the NFL season. The retail operation will be at the Deadwood Casino while mobile betting will be available state-wide.

SB 44 passed and was signed into law by Governor Kristi Noem, officially legalizing regulated betting on March 10.

Even without an NFL team of its own, South Dakota residents are expected to heavily flock to the new sports betting operations once they go live to get in on NFL betting action.

Finally, Florida is expected to bring regulated betting during the NFL season. The Sunshine State does not have an official release date as of yet, however.

The official regulations confirm both online and retail sportsbooks will be available to go live in the Florida sports betting market.

As the final federal approvals have only recently been made, the Sunshine State still has a few details to iron out in terms of issuing betting applications and how many operations will gain access in the market. A release date possibly will not be announced until after the NFL season is already underway.

“After thorough review under IGRA, we have taken no action to approve or disapprove the Compact before August 5, 2021, the 45th day,” wrote Bryan Newland, principal deputy assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior for Indian Affairs. “As a result, the Compact is considered to have been approved by operation of law to the extent that it complies with IGRA and existing Federal law. The Compact will become effective upon the publication of noticed in the Federal Register.”

How Other Markets Faired During Last NFL Season

All of these markets should see major success within the first few months of going live with the influx of bettors wagering on the NFL season.

Illinois saw their sports betting handle book from $140,065,649 in activity in August 2020 to $305,222,938 in September 2020 due to the start of the NFL season.

Colorado spiked from $128,646,209 in August 2020 to $207,655,943 in September 2020. Sports betting revenue in Colorado also boomed during the NFL season. Initially only seeing $4,166,334 collected by sportsbooks in September 2020, October 2020 saw $17,402,409 in revenue.

Michigan as a market saw $130 million in sports betting revenue during the total 2020 – 2021 NFL season. And New Jersey, the number one sports betting market in the US, saw $996,300,794 wagered on sports in the single month of December, during the peak of NFL betting.

The NFL being the largest sports betting period in the country makes it the optimal time for sportsbooks to launch. The new markets will likely see plenty of success during their first few months in operations.

News tags: Arizona | Bryan Newland | Connecticut | FanDuel | Florida | Jason Rowley | Kristi Noem | LSB Features | Maryland | NFL | Phoenix | Phoenix Suns | Regulatory | Revenue | South Dakota | States | Wyoming