Gambling in the USA
Gaming Americas Weekly Roundup – March 13-19
Welcome to our weekly roundup of American gambling news again! Here, we are going through the weekly highlights of the American gambling industry which include the latest news and new partnerships. Read on and get updated.
Latest News
Affinity Interactive (AI) announced that its affiliates have entered into a definitive agreement to sell Rail City Casino (Rail City) to affiliates of Truckee Gaming LLC (Truckee Gaming). The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
WynnBET, the online sports betting and casino app from the global leader in luxury hospitality, Wynn Resorts, announced that its online sports betting platform is live in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Players can download WynnBET on the Apple and Google Play Stores or register for an account at www.wynnbet.com/ma.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) announced that Tom Mungham, its current registrar and chief executive officer, has decided to retire from his current roles this fall. Tom will continue in these roles while the Board conducts its search for the agency’s next Registrar and CEO and will remain to support a smooth transition until that individual begins.
Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and the State of California have entered into a Tribal-State gaming compact as announced by Governor Newsom’s office on March 9, 2023. This will replace the agreement signed in 2012. The new compact increases the number of authorised slot machines at Graton Resort & Casino from 3000 to 6000.
Tiidal Gaming Group announced that it and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Tiidal Gaming Holdings, have entered into a share sale and purchase agreement with Entain Holdings (UK) Limited, pursuant to which Tiidal Holdings will sell all of the shares of the Company’s operating subsidiary, Tiidal Gaming NZ Limited (Sportsflare), to Entain.
Partnerships
Betplay has extended its partnership with Colombian football’s governing body Dimayor for a further six years. For the past three years, as a sponsor of Dimayor, the operator has held the naming rights to the body’s competitions, including the First Division (Betplay League), Second Division (Betplay Tournament), Colombia Cup (Betplay Cup), Super League and Women’s League.
The United Soccer League (USL) and global sports marketing agency SPORTFIVE have reached a new, long-term, expansive partnership to help the league grow its business globally. Under the agreement, SPORTFIVE will continue to secure key international media distribution partnerships across television and digital platforms for USL’s professional leagues, including the USL Championship and USL League One men’s competitions and the USL’s new professional women’s competition, the USL Super League, which will launch in August 2024.
Playtech has announced a landmark strategic partnership with Hard Rock Digital (HRD). Under the partnership, HRD will license a range of the company’s proven technology solutions and iGaming content to deliver the authentic experience customers have come to expect across Hard Rock’s global ecosystem of entertainment, hospitality and bricks and mortar casinos.
Elray Resources announced it has signed up its first operator, Maxibet Technology N.V., and is in the process of finalising the operator’s blockchain casino under the brand name Maxibet, licensed in Curaçao and to be operated globally.
Rush Street Gaming and Rivers Casino announced a partnership with MSC Cruises that grants Rush Reward Members at all Rivers Casino locations an annual cruise benefit that applies to most of the company’s sailings worldwide.
Gambling in the USA
Zula Casino Kicks Off its Spectacular 1-Year “Zula-versary” with a Month of Events and Promotions
Zula Casino launched its online social casino in the US exactly a year ago delivering more. More games. More rewards. More free-to-play entertainment through a personalized experience. Zula Casino marked its one-year launch by crossing the 1000 casino-game threshold – a milestone that positions it among the top platforms nationwide.
The month-long birthday bash intends to go over the top to give back to its amazing player community that helped make this first year so incredible. With its advent calendar format, players can unlock a special surprise each day ranging from a “Win-a-Vacation” event, a carnival event, free spins and new exclusive games, and a prize pool of over 25 billion Gold Coins (GC) plus 150,000 Sweeps Coins (SC) to be given out throughout the month. Over this period, Zula Casino will run other special events, including surprise happy hours with special coupons, various social media contests, and special giveaways.
“We’re incredibly proud of the player experience we’ve built over the last 12 months. The platform has garnered a substantial and loyal pool of players, and it’s not just because we offer one of the largest game selections from leading global providers, but also the exclusive experiences we’re providing, and the platform’s continued evolution with enhanced promotions, personalization, and seamless user experience,” said Tamar Laypan, Program Manager of Zula Casino.
Zula Casino has added over 1000 games across all categories over the past 12 months, including slots, jackpots, fish, table, plinko, megaways, crash, hold and win, tumble games, and more. These additions include top games like Big Bass Vegas and Fire Stampede, as well as branded exclusives like Gold Gold Gold 5000, supplied by Booming Games, and Sweet Bonanza 1000 by Pragmatic Play. With recent additions, Zula Casino now boasts 25 game providers, including Relax Gaming, Habanero, Evoplay, Pragmatic Play, RubyPlay, Gamzix, Let Us Entertain You Inc., to name a few.
Zula Casino flourished in a tough and highly competitive market, launching its proprietary-integrated platform in September of last year. With an average TrustPilot score of 4.6 and almost 9K reviews, the online social casino is among the highest-rated free-to-play sites in the market.
Zula Casino was also previously shortlisted for the prestigious Global SBC Awards in the category of “Rising Star in Casino”.
Diana Goode
NCPG Welcomes Diana Goode to the Board of Directors
NCPG has announced the appointment of Diana Goode to the National Council on Problem Gambling’s Board of Directors. Diana, who has served as the Executive Director of the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling (CCPG) since May 2018, brings over 25 years of nonprofit leadership experience to this role.
In her time with CCPG, Diana has championed initiatives that address problem gambling and promote responsible gaming across Connecticut. Additionally, she has played an active role on the NCPG Affiliates Committee, contributing valuable insights from her years of experience.
Before joining CCPG, Diana held executive roles in nonprofits focusing on poverty alleviation and financial literacy in Connecticut. Her academic credentials include a degree from Dartmouth College and an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the University of Connecticut. She resides in the Greater Hartford area, where she remains deeply engaged in her community.
Diana will serve an interim appointment in the Affiliates seat on the NCPG Board of Directors until Spring 2025.
Gambling in the USA
Gaming Executives Positive on Current Business Conditions, Cautious on Future Growth Expectations
Overall Balance Sheet Health, Access to Credit Continue to Improve
In the face of slowing revenue expansion, gaming industry leaders continue to hold an overall positive view of the current business situation, with a notable improvement in credit conditions, according to the latest American Gaming Association (AGA) Gaming Industry Outlook.
The majority of respondents (88%) view the current state of the gaming industry as either good or satisfactory. Meanwhile, executives have a more conservative outlook on future business conditions, with respondents split on whether they expect conditions to improve over the next three-to-six months (3% net positive) and many expecting a decrease in customer activity (28% net negative).
“After years of very strong consumer gaming spending growth, expectations around customer activity over the next three to six months have cooled considerably,” said AGA Vice President of Research David Forman. “Still, gaming businesses remain well positioned, with executives touting strong balance sheets and more viewing access to credit as easy than restrictive for the first time in two years.”
Gaming Executive Panel
Since Q1, gaming executives’ sentiment has shifted, with a greater number of respondents now expecting a decline in customer activity over the next three to six months (28% net negative, up from 4% net negative in Q1). Despite this, panelists foresee improvements in overall balance sheet health (34% net positive).
Additionally, more executives reported access to credit as easy (19%) rather than restrictive (3%) for the first time in two years, and fewer cite interest rates as a major limiting factor than in the spring.
Hotel (56%) and food and beverage facilities (56%) continue to be the main and growing focus of capital investment among operators, followed by live entertainment (28%) and casino floor slots (22%).
Meanwhile, gaming equipment suppliers now believe their pace of capital investment and game sales will decelerate (13% net negative).
These expectations are impacted by evolving macroeconomic challenges, with uncertainty of the economic environment vaulting to the top of executive concerns (56%, up from 34% in Q1), followed by state regulatory concerns (31%), and inflationary or interest rate concerns and geopolitical risk (both 34%).
The Current Conditions Index
The Current Conditions Index for Q3 2024 was 97.3, which is consistent with real annualized contraction of 2.7 percent. The Current Conditions Index measures real economic activity in the industry, as measured by gaming revenue, employment and employee wages and salaries.
The Future Conditions Index
The Future Conditions Index, a leading indicator of changes in industry conditions, measured 98.9 in Q3. This indicates an environment in which real economic activity in the gaming sector, after controlling for underlying inflation, is expected to moderately decrease over the next six months (1.1% annualized rate).
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