Twin River Worldwide Holdings is wasting little time building its NJ online sports betting footprint.
The Rhode Island-based company announced a multiyear partnership with Esports Entertainment Group ($GMBL).
This will pave the way for the latter to launch its proprietary mobile sports betting product. The timing remains a work in progress.
Twin River is in the process of purchasing Bally’s Atlantic City from Caesars Entertainment. And Twin River still needs licensing approval from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.
Here is what Esports CEO Grant Johnson has to say about the deal:
“We are excited to partner with Twin River [and] bring mobile sports betting to the New Jersey market.
“When we completed out IPO on Nasdaq earlier this year, it was with the intention of expanding our operations to the US. With this partnership, we’re delivering on that goal.”
Who is Esports Entertainment Group?
For Garden State bettors, Esports Entertainment does not have the same brand recognition as, say, FanDuel Sportsbook and BetMGM.
So who is this company?
According to its website, Esports Entertainment Group, which has offices in New Jersey and in Europe, is a “licensed next-generation online gambling company focused purely on esports.”
And this is where things get interesting.
Esports betting legislation is still in the works for New Jersey.
Earlier this year, the NJ State Assembly approved Bill A637 after it passed through committee. It is sponsored by Assemblymen Ralph Caputo (D-Essex) and Eric Houghtaling (D-Monmouth), who view esports as a skill-based competition that should be available for legal betting.
It still needs to be approved by the Senate and get Gov. Phil Murphy’s signature. For now, esports betting at NJ sportsbooks is approved on a case-by-case basis.
In 2019, the DGE permitted wagering on the League of Legends World Championship.
Should the legislation be signed into law, esports betting would become an actual thing. And that makes Esports Entertainment Group’s deal with Twin River and impending launch just a bit more intriguing.
Big NJ online gambling plans for new Bally’s
Twin River has yet to settle in at Bally’s. Yet the company is quickly lining up NJ online gambling partnerships.
PointsBet NJ has a deal in place to launch its online casino app under the Bally’s license.
The company currently has an NJ sportsbook app operating under the Meadowlands Racetrack license. But it’s safe to assume PointsBet customers would have access to a shared wallet between the casino and sports wagering products.
The Esports Entertainment platform adds another layer to Twin River’s iGaming plans.
Here is what George Papanier, president and CEO of Twin River, has to say about the Esports deal:
“Esports Entertainment will be a great addition to our growing partnerships with sportsbook leaders around the world, as we currently operate sportsbooks in Rhode Island, Colorado, Delaware and Mississippi.
“Bringing this new, unique offering to the AC market with a prominent gaming partner is one of the many exciting changes we have in store for Atlantic City in the months to come.”
Judging by that comment, Papanier and his team are far from finished with announcing Atlantic City plans.