After not having a date set in stone, the state of Indiana finally announced its plans to roll out legalized mobile sports betting.
On Wednesday, the Indiana Gaming Commission allowed Chicago-based gaming company Rush Street Gaming, which partnered with French Lick Casino, to begin mobile sports wagering on Oct. 3.
State gaming officials declared Rush Street Gaming had met its needs, according to this statement:
“Rush Street has substantially demonstrated to the satisfaction of the commission that its mobile sports wagering operation meets the requirements of Indiana Code Article 4-38, the Commission’s Emergency Regulations, and all Commission Directives related to sports wagering activities.”
At the end of August, regulators said they did not receive an application to begin mobile sports betting. A month later, Indiana gaming officials have given Rush Street Gaming’s mobile platform the go and now have two additional requests for more business. Those two additional companies have yet to be named.
Rush Street Gaming is also the same company that operates online sportsbooks in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. If you’ve been following the latest news on sports betting, those two states have been raking in the money via online wagering. In fact, the majority of the money coming in for New Jersey and Pennsylvania is via the online method.
“I think you’re going to see more mobile sports wagering (platforms) from different providers in Indiana in the month of October,” said Sara Gonso Tait, executive director of the Indiana Gaming Commission.
Plenty To Bet On
With the NFL season getting into full swing, the state should expect a huge return in the first month of mobile sports betting in operation. Not to mention, the Midwest has one of the most loyal college football followings in the entire country. Now, these customers and fans alike don’t even have to leave the comfort of their homes.
French Lick Casino said that all the sports listed for wagering at their brick-and-mortar casino will be available on the mobile sports app. Some of these sports include professional/college/international football, basketball, baseball, hockey, golf, soccer, auto racing, boxing and Olympic events, among others.
They have been authorized to take in-person wagers since Sept. 6. In total, there are 13 retail locations in the state of Indiana that allow in-person sports betting.
Indiana hoped to have mobile sports betting available at the beginning of September, but there was a two-tiered approach it was trying to adhere to – establish retail betting first, and then move onto mobile betting.
Just as all states do, Indiana will be using geofencing technology to make sure bettors are within the state borders before placing their bets. Customers will need to provide personal information (social security number, date of birth, email address, etc.) to identify themselves in order to create an account and also provide a credit or debit card number.
When Indiana does go live with mobile sports betting, it’ll be the seventh state to do so, joining Iowa, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia.
