Twice weekly, we’ll comb through as many articles, tweets and podcasts as we can find related to the world of sports betting and daily fantasy sports, and publish the good stuff here.
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A congressional committee plans on introducing new legislation to address “obsolete” federal gambling laws that include a ban on sports betting.
“The laws need a wholesale review to see how they can actually work together and create a fairer playing field for all types of gambling, both online and offline, including sports betting and daily fantasy sports,” said Pallone, the ranking Democrat in the House Energy and Commerce Committee. “At the same time, we must ensure the laws are actually creating an environment of integrity and accountability, and include strong consumer protections. I plan to continue discussions with the key stakeholders and then will introduce comprehensive legislation to finally update these outdated laws.”
DraftKings and FanDuel will have to pay a total of $8 million to $12 million in a settlement with New York’s attorney general over false advertising claims. Both companies are said to be short on cash and are having difficulties with operating costs.
DraftKings and FanDuel are so short of cash, according to the two people familiar with the negotiations, that they have asked Mr. Schneiderman’s office if they can pay the final settlement in installments, and they have conceded that they are having difficulty meeting their day-to-day obligations.
Within the past three weeks, the New York-based FanDuel has laid off more than 60 people, and both companies have acknowledged that they are months behind in their payments to vendors, especially to the array of public relations and lobbying firms that they have employed across the nation to persuade individual state legislatures to legalize daily fantasy games — the most critical component of rebuilding their business.
The bookie in the UTEP basketball betting scandal plead guilty last week.
A former UTEP student pleaded guilty Friday to a charge stemming from an illegal bookmaking operation that took bets from three Miner men’s basketball players, including an admission that he unsuccessfully attempted to recruit a player to fix a game.
UTEP coach Tim Floyd said the incident is in the rearview mirror and he has nothing else to say about it.
El Paso FBI Special Agent in Charge Douglas E. Lindquist said, “The El Paso community should be proud of the actions taken by UTEP officials in this particular case. Any prudent university should follow the example of UTEP once it becomes aware of alleged criminal activity involving its athletes.”
The Indians-Cubs World Series could be the most wagered Fall Classic of all time, according to Las Vegas bookmakers.
“It has a chance,” William Hill sports book director Nick Bogdanovich said, “because the sports betting handle is at an all-time high and the Cubs are involved.”
The scene opens Tuesday in Cleveland, where the Indians own home-field advantage. But in Las Vegas, the Cubs are minus-210 favorites to win a best-of-7 series that has history written all over it. The first 24 hours of wagering inflated the price on the Cubs.
William Hill’s possible merger deal with Amaya is off.
In the update announcing the end of talks with Amaya, William Hill set out its current strategy:
“The Group has continued to focus on the four priorities set out by Interim CEO Philip Bowcock – online, technology, efficiencies and international – to deliver value for shareholders and will also continue to consider strategic alternatives where they have the potential to create shareholder value.”
A closer look at William Hill’s “alternatives” shows that future mergers and acquisitions cannot be written off, although they may not be headline makers like the huge proposed deals of the last year.