Spin Cycle: Bills, Bills, Bills — Oh, And More Bills — Highlight Week In Gambling

Welcome to “Spin Cycle,” Casino Reports’ weekly Friday roundup of all things impactful, intriguing, impressive, or idiotic in the gambling industry. Pull up a chair, grab a stack of chips and a glass of your beverage of choice, and take a spin with us through this week’s news cycle …

Happy legislative season, everyone!

The holiday season is over (seriously, people, throw out your trees and take down your lights), and as everyone knows, the next season after holiday season is legislative season.

State legislatures are, or are about to be, back in session, and there’s been a flood of gambling bills filed or pre-filed. For the second year in a row, Maryland is trying to legalize online casino. Neighboring state Virginia has also caught the iCasino bug. Another effort is underway to pass sports betting in Minnesota — although the opponents of that effort have thrown the first punch. Lawmakers in Kentucky have proposed legalizing brick-and-mortar casinos. And in Alabama, one of just five states that doesn’t allow lottery play, that form of gambling is back on the table.

Whether any of these bills will pass is unclear, but if there’s one trend worth noting, it’s the sudden uptick in optimism for a new online casino state or two. It’s probably not a total coincidence that the inklings of legislative movement on that front coincide with the rise of so-called “sweepstakes casinos,” crypto casinos, and other forms of online gambling that exist outside the state-regulated sphere. (And budget deficits.)

Legislative season has arrived, and it figures to be an intriguing one. Now, seriously, take down the holiday lights and put ‘em back in the box in the garage.

And one more bill in New Hampshire …

New Hampshire differs from those listed in the previous section in that the Granite State is not trying to legalize a new form of gambling. Rather, it started the new year with a bill that would change a law regarding an existing form. The minimum age to sports bet is currently 18. Under HB83, it would be raised to 21.

New Hampshire is one of only seven states (plus Washington, D.C.) that allow 18-, 19-, and 20-year-olds to bet legally. All of the others have a minimum age of 21.

If HB83 passes, the sponsors of the bill estimate they’d be costing the state about $640,000 a year in revenue — but clearly feel that’s a worthwhile trade-off for the responsible gambling benefits of blocking younger bettors.

Leading Light

It’s time for Simon Johnson to update his LinkedIn profile. After more than seven years as an executive with global gaming company Light & Wonder, it was announced Thursday that Johnson has risen to the position of CEO of L&W’s iGaming business.

Prior to the move, Johnson was L&W’s senior VP and international managing director. In his new position, he will report directly to company president and CEO Matt Wilson.

Johnson, based in London, hasn’t been in gaming his whole career. He has also worked in investment banking, private equity, telecommunications, and financial technology. He’s a 1997 graduate of the University of Oxford.

CFTC-Ya!

A change is coming atop the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as Chairman Rostin Benham announced this week that he is stepping down on Jan. 20 (no, the date being Inauguration Day is no coincidence) after seven years with the CFTC.

“I am pleased to leave the CFTC and the derivatives markets stronger than ever,” Benham wrote as part of a lengthy thread on X. “Our staff has demonstrated organizational drive and operational effectiveness.”

What does this mean for the betting landscape? Benham was an opponent of permitting “prediction markets” tied to elections or sports. Depending on who is named to replace him, an expansion of such markets and their availability is highly possible — especially given X owner Elon Musk’s pronounced support of prediction markets and his demonstrated sway over the incoming administration.

House Rules: Insights from around our network

SWEEP DIVE: Paylines and blurred lines: In sprawling online casino ecosystem, consumer demand is the constant [by Brett Smiley]

FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS: DraftKings books a flight with Delta, but don’t bet on in-air gambling yet [by Jeff Edelstein]

‘UNORGANIZED CRIME’: Nevada’s tarnished gold [by Richard Schuetz]

ET TU, SEAT 6?: Caesars launches its first branded live dealer studio in Pennsylvania [by Jeff Edelstein]

SQUARES TAKE THEIR SHARE: Flutter lowers earnings guidance after FanDuel ends 2024 with ‘unfavorable US sports results’ [by Eric Raskin]

JUMP FOR JOY: Lottery winner caught on tape celebrating a $250,000 victory [by Jeff Edelstein]

CAN’T WYNN ’EM ALL: Manhattan community board goes all-in against Wynn Resorts’ casino ambitions [by Jeff Edelstein]

NO SHORE THING: Atlantic City could be primed for comeback, but hurdles are numerous [by John Brennan]

Low stakes and hot takes

Casino Reports is pleased to announced the arrival of the site’s new weekly podcast, Low Rollers, which debuted Thursday on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, RSS.com, and pretty much every other podcast app:

The show reunites me with my longtime former Gamble On co-host Jeff Edelstein for a weekly dose of news, analysis, and occasional unserious buffoonery. We welcomed professional gambler and Unabated co-founder Captain Jack Andrews as our first interview guest, and Jack did not disappoint. A taste: 

The Shuffle: Other news and views

BETTOR HALF: ‘I got divorced because of sports gambling’ [The Cut]

NIAGARA RISES: Seneca Niagara workers attempting to unionize [Niagara Gazette]

PEACHY KEEN: New poll shows most Georgia voters want to legalize sports betting [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

WORLDWIDE LEADER?: ESPN Bet hinders Penn Entertainment, Deutsche Bank analysts says [CDC Gaming Reports]

ROCKY OUTLOOK: Rivers Casino in Philadelphia hit with data breach [Philadelphia Inquirer]

MEET THE NEW BOSS: Evolution names new CFO as Kaplan steps down [iGaming Business]

PAY FOR PLAY: Ex-state trooper charged with taking kickbacks in his role with Pennsylvania skill games company [Pennsylvania Capital-Star]

CLEARING THE AIR: Sen. Weinberg: New Jersey must stop gambling with casino workers’ lives [NJ.com]

SEASON’S BEATINGS: Maryland casinos generate $69.8 million for state in December [The Southern Maryland Chronicle]

CONEY COMMITMENT: Developers behind proposed Coney Island casino promise $200M community trust fund ahead of public hearing [Brooklyn Paper]

The Bonus Round

Completing the Spin Cycle with some odds and ends and our favorite social media posts of the week:

• Congratulations are in order for longtime industry reporter Matthew Kredell, who remains in the gaming industry, but has gotten out of this lousy journalism racket:

• Speaking of industry journalists making career moves, the excellent Wayne Parry shared some news recently, though he has failed to get out of this lousy journalism racket:

• And one more notable career-change note: Norby Williamson, the longtime senior executive at ESPN, has landed at FanDuel Sports Network, the group of 16 regional channels formerly known as Bally Sports and recently rebranded by FanDuel.

• You know that old Sports Illustrated bit, “This week’s sign of the apocalypse”? Well, it may be this:

Actually, no, wait, I think it’s this:

• But let’s end on a happy note. Congrats to the eight winners who went 20-0 in the Circa Survivor contest and chopped the almost $14.3 million pot: