PROVIDENCE – As competition heats up among states for a slice of the sports betting pie, the performance of one of Rhode Island’s central partners in the enterprise, Bally’s Corp., is tethered to the state’s revenue prospects.
But Rhode Island is far from the only interest for the Providence-based global casino company. In addition to a new casino planned in Chicago, Bally's has held a category 3 "untethered" license to operate its 'Bally Bet' mobile sportsbook app in Massachusetts since January 2023.
These licenses are limited to seven in Massachusetts and are reserved for sports wagering through a mobile application "and other digital platforms," according to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.
In 2024, Bally’s paid another $1 million to renew its Massachusetts its license in hopes of becoming its seventh sportsbook operator by May of this year. Bally Bet now operates in seven states, according to Bally’s website.
Now, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission is publicly pushing for answers on the delay, wondering whether it may be connected to Bally’s recent launch of iGaming in Rhode Island or the company’s operations in the Ocean State generally.
Some Mass. commissioners even speculated that Bally’s might be intentionally forestalling the launch to give an assist Rhode Island.
A spokesperson for Bally's could not immediately be reached for comment.
During a March 14 meeting, commissioner Massachusetts Gaming Commissioner Nakisha Skinner asked for Bally’s representatives to appear before the regulators on March 28 in order “to communicate what their intentions are.”
“It has now been quite some time since the license was granted,” she said. “I think we as a body owe it to Massachusetts to understand exactly what it is they have got planned for the Commonwealth.”
“Are they not operating in Massachusetts because they want to benefit Rhode Island?” asked outgoing commission chair Cathy Judd-Stein.
On March 29 Thomas Mills, spokesperson for Massachusetts Gaming Commissioner, said the panel had initially heard rumors that the company may not be intending to renew its license after the January expiration date.
Bally’s had said at the time they were not immediately prepared to to move forward after receiving its category 3 license, said Mills, but since then representatives have assured the commission they understand the steps that still need to be taken.
For Bally’s to move forward with its launch, “they still have a lot to do for us," said Mills, including regulatory vetting of internal controls, equipment inspection, among other items. He said state regulators are scheduling private meetings with Bally's in the coming weeks.
Since the Bay State legalized online sport betting in March 2023, Rhode Island’s take has steadily declined, particularly in the brick-and-mortar casinos operated by Bally’s Corp.
The R.I. Department of Taxation in its monthly report through February reported sports wagers dropped 58.5% at Bally’s Twin River Lincoln Casino and 69.2% at Bally’s Tiverton compared to the same time period in fiscal 2023.
Since 2019, International Game Technology PLC has run the Rhode Island sportsbook app in a revenue-sharing partnership with Bally’s Corp., reaping 32% of the wagering revenue. The state continues to receive 51% with the remaining 17% going to Bally’s.
Representatives from IGT did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In March 2023 R.I. Lottery Director Mark Furcolo said that sports betting revenue at Bally’s Twin River in Lincoln alone fell nearly 50% in the first 50 days since Massachusetts legalized online sportsbetting.
During the most recent meeting of the Joint Committee on the State Lottery, Furcolo said R.I.'s sportsbook handle was down $5 million over last year and revenue had dropped 30.1%.
“Our number will start to adjust year over year,” he said, citing cross-border competition.
While online wagering doubled between July 2023 and February of this year, total handle is short of the $532 million wagered in 2022 and the $413 million booked in fiscal 2023.
For fiscal 2024 the handle stands at $305.9 million, according to R.I. Lottery, which reported a 10% month-over-month drop in the sportsbook handle in the month of February.
Greg Pare, spokesperson for Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio, who sponsored both the original legislation legalizing online sportbetting and the 2023 amendment that expanded the law to include wagers on in-state collegiate teams during tournament play, referred all questions to R.I. Lottery.
R.I. Lottery spokesperson Paul Grimaldi on Monday confirmed that Bally’s requires permission from the agency in order to expand its sportsbook to Massachusetts, but he was unaware whether they had formally sought it.
Meanwhile, its boom times across the border. Massachusetts has collected nearly double the taxes during its first year of sports betting as initially projected, with more than $6 billion wagered and more than $100 million collected in state tax revenue.
According to data, more than 98% of sports-betting revenue and taxes for Massachusetts comes from online sportsbooks.
On March 28, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission included an update from the panel's sports wagering business manager Crystal Beauchemin on Bally's plans. She said the company indicated it now expects to launch sometime in July.
Commissioner Eileen O'Brien reiterated the regulators’ call for answers.
“I think all of us are interested in seeing them in front of us and getting a more concrete understanding of their timeline,” she said.
(SUBS 26th paragraph to add sports betting; MINOR EDITS)
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com
