Perhaps because New Jersey online gambling sites are entry points for most US operators who test their betting mettle here, shutdowns aren’t a huge surprise. However, two within eight days? That does require a doubletake.
On Oct. 17, Fubo Sportsbook ceased operations “effective immediately.”
Today, Vie.gg ended its tenure as the first US esports betting operator.
Fubo, Vie.gg Sites to Return User Balances
Vie.gg users who noticed the site’s shutdown notice today also saw they had more time to withdraw their money. The website that allowed gamblers to bet on video gaming partnered with Bally’s Atlantic City Hotel and Casino for a skin on its license.
The New Jersey online gambling operator notified bettors:
We have made the difficult decision to close Vie.gg. The site will remain open until November 1, 2024. Until then, you will be able to log in to close your account. Any accounts remaining open at that date will automatically be closed and any remaining balances of $1 or more will be returned by check, sent to the address registered on the applicable account.
Any further questions need to head to customer support for Vie.gg, which was live in New Jersey for a little more than six months.
Meanwhile, Fubo, on the Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City license, is giving sports bettors until Nov. 17 to gather their funds.
The Fubo Sportsbook site says:
New Jersey customers can withdraw funds through Trustly, VIP Preferred (ACH), or by requesting a physical check.
New Jersey Online Gambling Site Vie.gg Explains
Vie.gg isn’t the only New Jersey online gambling platform from its Malta-based esports betting and iGaming owner.
New Jersey online gamblers know Esports Entertainment Group (EEG) outside of Vie.gg. EEG brand BetGround held an esports betting player-versus-player event this year at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Atlantic City.
In its recent earnings report with a Hoboken dateline, the company explained recent cost-cutting that went beyond shutting down Vie.gg.
EEG CEO Grant Johnson told NJGamblingSites today:
[Regarding] NJ … esports was categorized [the] same as sports. So the skin [costs] seven figures a year, which is waay [sic] too much for esports in its current stage as an evolving vertical.
Had the market not turned so radically, we had anticipated raising capital and then adding a sportsbook. But by the time we were approved, clearly, the world had changed.
We are restructuring to last through to more stable markets. [And] at this time NJ, Spain, and the UK are all jurisdictions that we don’t have the required capital to stay active in. So we are reducing our burn and putting some cash back in the bank.
These are stressful times and companies need to make difficult decisions. This falls into the difficult but necessary category.
Fubo Sportsbook Debuted in Iowa
Fubo Sportsbook didn’t opt to test its abilities as a New Jersey online gambling operator. Instead, it first launched in Iowa during November 2021.
So on Oct. 17, sportsbooks in Arizona, Iowa, and the Garden State closed.
For New Jersey, the shutdown came about a month after its Sept. 7 launch.
FuboTV, a New York City-based “sports-focused live TV streaming service,” originally announced Fubo Sportsbook as a brand overseen by FuboTV subsidiary, Fubo Gaming.
Now both Fubo Gaming and Fubo Sportsbook are gone.
FuboTV announced on Oct. 17:
Following our previously announced strategic review, we have concluded that continuing with Fubo Gaming and Fubo Sportsbook in this challenging macroeconomic environment would impact our ability to reach our longer-term profitability goals. Therefore, we have made the difficult decision to exit the online sports wagering business effective immediately.
FuboTV plans to piece out the explanation during its upcoming Nov. 4 earnings call.
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