William Hill begs favour as US Sports Betting Does U-Turn

Updated: 20/11/2024

William Hill has been “inundated” with business offers following the US Supreme Court's decision to rule an anti-sports betting law unconstitutional according to the company's CEO .
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William Hill Bookmaker partners with Las Vegas Lights FC .

US football fans will now be able to bet on the likes of Isaac Diaz of Las Vegas Lights FC following the club's partnership with William Hill.( Image: L.E. Baskow/ Las Vegas Lights FC )

Talking to Reuters on June 13, CEO of William Hill US Joseph Asher said that his squad has been contacted by dozens of athletics squads looking to forge a sponsorship deal .

Despite noting some early tension between betting operators, regulator and US athletics leagues regarding data sharing, induvial squads are ready to embrace sports betting .

” The leagues and the teams are interested in doing commercial deals ,” Asher told the media outlet .

Landmark Ruling Leads to Big Things for William Hill

Although the man in charge of William Hill's US division has declined to identify the teams he's been talking to, he did say there had been contact from” one of the most prominent franchises in the country .”

When the US Supreme Court ruled in favour of New Jersey governor Chris Christie in his lawsuit against the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act( PASPA ), it opened the door to nationwide regulation. Although individual states still have to decide whether they want to implement their own sports betting regulations, analysts expect the industry to grow rapidly .

For its part, the Garden State officially accepted its first legal athletics bet at 10:30 am local time on June 14. Taking place inside Monmouth Park racetrack, the wager placed by governor Phil Murphy will be the first outside of Las Vegas, Delaware, Oregon and Montana since PASPA came into effect in 1992.

Under the federal law, states outside of those listed were barred from offering any form of athletics wager. In practice, only Las Vegas has been allowed to offer true athletics betting over the last few decades, as PASPA merely dedicated Delaware, Oregon and Montana permission to offer athletics lotteries .

However, with the US constitution stating that states can't be forced to accept federal laws if they want to implement their own, the Supreme Court overruled PASPA .

William Hill Makes a Break for the Front

Although it's only been a few weeks since the ruling, many of the leading British bookmakers have already made a play for a slice of the US market .

William Hill was one of the first out of the gate on account of it already having a base in Nevada. With its brand known to Americans, William Hill announced a sponsorship deal with Lights FC on June 13.

The Las Vegas football team made its debut in the United Soccer League in 2018 and will now have the British brand as its official sportsbook partner .

However, as Asher has noted, this could be the first of many deals. As athletics squads look to cash-in and align with major betting brands, William Hill could mimic its success in the UK and become a resulting operator in the US marketplace .

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