Author: OnlineGamblingDaily

Ohio Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton said she is open to expanding online casinos if elected, while calling for strong regulation, protections for young people and restrictions on predatory advertising. Acton said online gambling could provide revenue to help fund proposals aimed at lowering the cost of living and supporting public services. Her comments came in an interview with Statehouse News Bureau. “Certainly, I see it as a source of revenue that can help fund the proposals that we need to help bring down the cost of living in this state and provide for the services we need to fund,”…

More than 600 people gathered at Benkhausen Castle to honour Paul Gauselmann, the founder of the Merkur Group, following his passing on August 21 at the age of 91. The gathering brought together Gauselmann’s family, friends, and business associates, alongside political and industry representatives, members of clubs and associations, and Merkur Group employees. The ceremony was also livestreamed so the group’s wider workforce could take part. Gauselmann founded the Merkur Group as a one-person business and spent 67 years leading its development into an international company employing more than 15,000 people. Speakers at the memorial reflected on his career, community…

PENN Entertainment will break ground on its future Hollywood Casino Hotel Council Bluffs in Iowa on 14 September, with the new land-based casino expected to open in 2028. The US gaming company said the $180 million to $200 million project will replace its adjacent Ameristar Council Bluffs riverboat casino, subject to customary regulatory approvals. The groundbreaking ceremony is set at 10 a.m. CT.  The new casino will feature approximately 1,000 slot machines and 25 live table games. It will also include two dining outlets: the first Shake Shack in the Omaha metropolitan area and Red Lotus, a fast-casual restaurant serving…

 September 11, 2026 Shares of Bally’s stock plunged more than 26% following disclosures in the company second quarter financial filings that raised substantial doubt about its ability to maintain debt covenants over the coming year. The market selloff dropped equity prices down to $10.31, extending year to date declines to 38% as investors focused on corporate leverage over positive revenue growth. In documentation submitted to federal securities regulators, Bally Corp management acknowledged that current forecasts indicate the operator may fail to satisfy liquidity maintenance requirements and consolidated net leverage ratio covenants linked to its revolving credit facility. The company ended…

Atlantic City could lose more than 8,100 casino jobs and nearly $1.3 billion in annual revenue over the next decade due to rising regional competition, according to a recent economic report released by the Atlantic County Economic Alliance. The study outlines significant challenges for Atlantic City, projecting that potential job losses could account for more than one third of current casino employment in the municipality. Revenue declines might top 44% if multiple competitive threats emerge simultaneously. Under a baseline scenario that excludes proposed expansion in North Jersey, the coastal hub still faces potential reductions of 5,100 jobs and nearly $815…

Caesars Entertainment has scheduled a special shareholder meeting for September 22 to vote on the Caesars takeover proposal submitted by Fertitta Gaming Holdco. The upcoming vote marks a pivotal moment for the casino operator, as approval of the deal would result in taking the major gaming company private. The agreement approved by the board of directors outlines a structure where a subsidiary of Fertitta Gaming Holdco merges with Caesars Entertainment. Under the terms of the transaction, Fertitta offers $31 per share in cash, evaluating the company at a total valuation of $17.6 billion. This sum includes $5.7 billion in equity…

Connecticut has ordered nine prediction market platforms to stop offering sports event contracts to residents as the state broadens its enforcement against what it considers illegal, unlicensed sports betting. The Department of Consumer Protection issued cease-and-desist orders to Polymarket, Coinbase, Crypto.com, Robinhood, ProphetX, Novig, Webull, Gemini, and Underdog Predict. The companies were directed to immediately stop advertising, promoting, or making available sports event contracts in the state and to allow Connecticut customers to withdraw funds held on their platforms. Failure to comply could lead to civil penalties under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act or criminal penalties under state gaming laws,…

Half of the Premier League’s 20 clubs now have sponsorship or advertising relationships with gambling companies that are not licensed in the UK, leaving a significant source of club revenue exposed to a proposed government ban expected next year. The number of top-flight clubs with commercial links to unlicensed operators has increased from six to 10 over the summer. The rise comes as the Premier League begins its voluntary ban this season on gambling companies appearing as front-of-shirt sponsors. An eight-week government consultation on proposals to prohibit sponsorship by gambling companies without UK licenses closed this week. The issue has…

Real App has named FanDuel as its first Official and Exclusive Sportsbook and Prediction Market Partner. Real App is a social sports app built around live play-by-play, real-time statistics, and fan conversation. The partnership will bring FanDuel odds and contextual markets directly into Real’s live sports experience, giving members “another way to understand, discuss, and engage with the games they follow together on the platform.” The partnership will also position Real as a destination for FanDuel to connect with sports fans, according to a joint statement. FanDuel odds and related features will be optional, and members will be able to disable…

Michigan gaming regulators said Robinhood has agreed to stop allowing customers in the state to enter new sports-related event contract positions and to close remaining customer positions by October 9, as legal challenges involving prediction market operators continue in state and federal courts. “The Michigan Gaming Control Board welcomes Robinhood’s agreement to stop offering new sports-related event contracts to Michigan customers … and to close out remaining customer positions by October 9,” Lisa Keith, MGCB spokeswoman, told CDC Gaming on Wednesday. “This is a positive step for Michigan customers and for the integrity of our state’s regulated gaming market.” Under…

An Iowa federal judge has denied Kalshi’s request to prevent the state from regulating its sports-related event contracts under Iowa gambling law, dealing a setback to the prediction market operator’s argument that federal commodities law pre-empts state regulation. U.S. District Judge Stephen Locher denied Kalshi’s motion for a preliminary injunction, finding that the company was unlikely to succeed on its claim that the Commodity Exchange Act expressly pre-empts Iowa gambling laws. Kalshi filed a pre-enforcement lawsuit in March after a meeting with staff for Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird led the company to believe the state might take action against…

Illinois Republican Rep. Travis Weaver filed House Bill 5811 on September 2, seeking to repeal the state’s tax on “exchange wagers.” If passed, the bill would remove references to the prediction market tax from the Illinois Sports Wagering Act. Gov. JB Pritzker signed the tax into law in June, with the levy taking effect in July. The tax imposes a 1.75% levy on the value of any agreement, contract, transaction or swap offered, traded or executed on a prediction market or exchange tied to a sporting contest or event. The rate rises to 3.5% after 5 million exchange wagers. The…

Bet365 has confirmed the termination of 340 jobs across Stoke-on-Trent in the UK, Malta and Gibraltar. The reduction represents 3% of the gambling giant’s global workforce, which hinted that the layoffs were motivated by recent tax increases in the UK. Bet365 operates exclusively through digital channels, a structure that leaves it directly exposed to consecutive increases in UK online gambling taxation. The remote gaming duty rose from 21% to 40% in April, a change that applied to iGaming activity. A separate levy, the remote betting duty, is scheduled to climb from 15% to 25% in April 2027, with bets on…

UK Chancellor John Healey is considering an increase in Machine Games Duty on slot machines ahead of the government’s Oct. 28 budget, as the Treasury seeks additional revenue amid tight public finances, according to a report by The Times. The review follows proposals earlier this year from the Social Market Foundation think tank to double the tax on Category B machines from 20% to 40%. Such machines can have a maximum £2 ($2.71) stake every 2.5 seconds. “Increases in gambling taxes are definitely on the table again,” a government source told The Times. The source also suggested that adult gaming centres…

The U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals has denied Kalshi’s emergency motion for an injunction pending appeal, allowing Utah to enforce its gambling laws against the prediction market operator and potentially take legal action over its sports event contracts. The ruling marks another legal setback for Kalshi, which sued Utah in February seeking to prevent the state from enforcing its anti-gambling laws against the company’s event contracts. The appeals court’s decision came a little more than one month after U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby rejected Kalshi’s request for a preliminary injunction. In denying the emergency motion, the 10th Circuit…

Armenia will require telecommunications operators to block unlicensed online gambling and lottery websites starting February 8, 2027, under new rules from the State Revenue Committee (SRC). State news agency Armenpress reported that the SRC is developing the measures as part of a wider reform package intended to tighten oversight of illegal gambling operators. The provisions revise existing sections of the Law on Regulation of Gaming Activities governing the blocking of unlicensed operators that offer online gambling and lottery services. Telecommunications operators will carry out the blocking once the rules take effect. The SRC said the changes are necessary because offshore…