BetRivers continues to have a monopoly on Delaware Sports Betting

In Delaware, there has been a push for the state to expand its sports betting market. Despite interest, lawmakers have left the proposal on the table in 2024. Last week, their legislative session ended without discussing whether Delware’s sports betting market would expand. Currently, the betting market in the First State is controlled by the Delaware Lottery and Rush Street Interactive’s, BetRivers. They have the only partnership in the state. Sports betting launched in Delaware in 2018 and it wasn’t until December 2023 that BetRivers launched their online casino.

What legislation would have been in the proposed sports betting bill?

William Bush is a Delaware representative and introduced House Bill 365 in April. He was interested in creating a “competitive mobile sports wagering market.”  Bush’s bill would have assigned the state lottery to oversee the industry. There would also be a five-year, $500,000 initial license fee with a tax rate of 18%. Additionally, another 1.5% of the state’s sports betting revenue would help fund Delware’s horse racing purses. The proposed bill would have allowed each casino to partner with two sports betting operators. 

An initial hearing saw major industry operators like DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM support Bush’s initiative to have a competitive market. His bill followed a legislative study that started two weeks earlier. That happened because the lottery released a request for proposal (RFP) for a sports betting partner. Representative Frank Cooke sponsored and created this study group last year. Studies concluded that a competitive market would lead to more tax revenue in Delaware. He also noted that extra revenue could help provide additional resources for problem gambling in the state.

Only five states have a single sports betting operator controlling the market

Outside of Nevada, Delaware was the next state to offer traditional sports betting. The pair are not the only states with a single operator controlling the entire market. Single-operator markets include Florida (Hard Rock), Montana (SportsBet Montana), New Hampshire (DraftKings), Oregon (DraftKings), and Rhode Island (Sportsbook Rhode Island). Washington D.C. was on the list but they expect to expand their sports betting market shortly.