Just over a week ago sports betting in the state of Pennsylvania finally picked up when Penn National Gaming became the first licensed casino operator in the state to apply for a sports betting license. Now, according to an official statement released by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) on Monday, a second casino operator is looking to acquire a sports betting license.
The owner of Parx Casino, the operator in question, has reportedly applied for permits to offer sports betting services at the suburban Philadelphia casino as well as at an off-track betting parlor that it owns in Philadelphia. The licensing process for the Keystone State’s nascent sports betting industry is seemingly happening much faster than what was the case for the interactive gaming licensing process – it was just earlier this month when the PGCB approved regulations to allow sports betting in the state. The regulations also stipulated that the interested casino operators would have to part with $10 million for the licenses.
Long Time Coming?
While it is certainly not surprising that Parx has finally applied for the license, the fact that it became the second operator to apply was unexpected especially because it was the very first casino to roll the dice on sports betting through a partnership with British technology company GAN. However, according to both companies, if everything goes well, their sports betting offering should go live by the end of the year – perhaps the reason for the somewhat delayed application.
“By leveraging GAN’s platform, Parx Casino will have the opportunity to launch retail and online regulated sports betting together with online gaming in Pennsylvania later this year, subject to the regulatory approval of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB),” reads a statement that was issued by GAN at the time.
Both of the companies are going to reap major benefits from the partnership – GAN, for instance, will be provided with its first ever retail sportsbook by Parx. This implies that GAN will be able to transition into an omnichannel sports betting solution, something that will give it a great competitive edge not just in Pennsylvania but also in other states as sports betting gains wider adoptions and legalization.
“GAN has ably demonstrated its abilities with both its overall Platform and its integration capability for existing major clients,” said John Dixon, the chief technical officer of Parx parent company Greenwood Gaming & Entertainment. “By leveraging GAN’s Platform, Parx Casino will have the opportunity to launch retail and online Regulated Sports betting together with online Gaming in Pennsylvania later this year, subject to the regulatory approval of the PGCB.”