On November 1, legal mobile wagering for sports betting went live in the state of Tennessee for the first time. Industry giants BetMGM, DraftKings, and FanDuel were amongst the brands launching their services here, in addition to the new local brand Action247.
This first day saw $5.1m in bets placed (approx. £3.85m), which resulted in revenue worth $800,000 (approx. £603,000).
In the next week, customers placed bets worth $27.4m (approx. £20.66m) which has then resulted in a brilliant amount of revenue for the state.
Operators in Tennessee are taxed at 20%. 80% of this tax revenue is given to the Lottery for Education Account, which funds various scholarships and after-school programs across the state.
15% will be given to local governments to distribute within their counties. The remaining 5% goes to the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. Here, it will be used to fund problem gambling services.
Rebecca Paul Hargrove, Tennessee Education Lottery president and chief executive, said: “These numbers are encouraging as we work to protect the consumer, promote fairness in sports and regulate this new Tennessee industry that provides critical funds for education, as well as local governments and problem gambling services.”
Affiliates searching for new markets should look into some of the options available in the Volunteer State. The introduction of mobile-only sports betting should provide some interesting leads and opportunities. With more and more states introducing some form of legal mobile wagering, we should see some excellent growth in these markets.
