SugarHouse Casino begins Pennsylvania online sports wagering

Pennsylvania’s SugarHouse Casino has moved a significant step closer to becoming the state’s first operator to roll out an online and mobile sportsbook, after being given the green light to begin its venture this week by the region’s regulator, report local media outlets.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board allowed the property to take interactive sports bets on Tuesday 28 March for an eight hour period, states gaming board spokesman Richard McGarvey, with two longer test periods slated before full launch later this week.

The Kambi developed offering, which began land-based operations towards the close of last year, has been put through its paces for several days by regulators, with accounting systems, mechanisms to exclude underage gamblers and geo-location technology all analysed.

Evan Davis, general counsel for SugarHouse Casino, commented: “It’s just an unbelievable day for us at SugarHouse, and for sports bettors across the commonwealth. We see in New Jersey the appetite for wagering on sports online.”

Further properties located in the Keystone State are quickly expected to follow suit, with Parx Casino and Valley Forge Casino Resort mooted, as the NFL season curtain raiser in September forms a long-term target to be up and running by.

“It’s a big day for us,” stated Mattias Stetz, chief operating officer of Rush Street Interactive, a unit of the casino’s parent company, Rush Street Gaming, adding SugarHouse’s successful online betting operation in New Jersey, as well as a combined casino and sportsbook in Colombia, sped up regulatory approval.

After a solid sportsbook showing for April, the need for online operations to begin was highlighted across the border in New Jersey, where online action generates approximately 80 per cent of total bets.

Jessica Welman, sports betting analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com, said at the time of Pennsylvania’s latest financial report: “There is no question that the growth of the Pennsylvania sports betting market has been slowed by the delayed launch of online apps

“The launch of sports betting apps will give us our first true look at Pennsylvania’s potential as a market, which we believe should rival New Jersey and eventually Nevada as the nation’s largest market.”