More TN Sportsbooks Approved, Will Launch After Super Bowl

The Tennessee Education Lottery has approved William Hill and WynnBet to launch in Tennessee.
Tennessee online sportsbooks have proven to be profitable, having secured over $180 million in total bets for the month of December.
The Super Bowl is traditionally this single biggest betting event of the year in the U.S.

NASHVILLE – Two more online sportsbooks in Tennessee have been approved to launch, but they will be missing out on the single biggest sports betting event of the year: The Super Bowl.

The Tennessee Education Lottery (TEL) approved William Hill and Wynn Sports to operate sports betting in the state during a committee meeting on Friday.

However, according to the Associated Press, Lottery CEO Rebecca Hargrove has indicated neither sports betting site will be ready to launch before Super Bowl 55. In addition, Churchill Downs’ online sportsbook TwinSpires (formerly known as BetAmerica) also won’t launch in time to capture SB 55 wagers.

The Current TN Sports Betting Market

For now, Super Bowl betting in Tennessee will have to be done through the four currently active online sportsbooks.

Those online sportsbooks are DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and Action 24/7.

However, even with just four options, sports betting in Tennessee is off to a historic start. In December alone, TN sportsbooks were able to generate $180,900,000 in total sports wagers and the state was able to capture $3,080,000 of tax revenue from those bets according to the TEL report.

This amount is expected to soar for the months of January and February as the NFL Playoffs and Super Bowl would have been in full swing. Betting on the NBA and NHL will also be in season so bettors will have their first chance to bet on teams like the Memphis Grizzlies and Nashville Predators.

Why The Super Bowl Deadline Is So Important

As mentioned before, Super Bowl betting draws in an enormous crowd each year, resulting in record amounts of bets each year.

For last year’s Super Bowl, the American Gaming Association estimated that one in ten Americans planned to bet on the Super Bowl. Those bets would result in an estimated $6.8 billion in handle. Now that more states have active sportsbooks like that of Tennessee, these numbers are only expected to be higher this year.

Some of the largest individual bets usually come right before the Super Bowl as well. For example, a BetMGM customer in Nevada recently placed a $2.3 million dollar bet on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to cover the 3.5 point spread against the Kansas City Chiefs.

While William Hill and Wynn Sports will miss the boat on these types of bets, there is still a bright future for both companies. March Madness is set to be played this year as well as the Summer Olympics, both high-profile legal sports betting events.

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Hasan Nabulsi

– In his career, Hasan has worked both local and state government positions—including the Attorney General’s Office in Florida. On top of being familiar with the legislative process, he has also been researching and writing on the legality of sports betting across the US. Outside of work you’ll most likely find him producing or playing music, playing sports, or working on creative writing projects. You’ll also catch him at Doak Campbell Stadium cheering on the Noles.