Virginia is known as the state where debates over legalizing different forms of gambling take decades. Now sports betting is officially going live in the state.

FanDuel went live in Virginia last week following the lead of BetMGM, DraftKings, Caesars and Rivers Casino Portsmouth.

The process of legalizing sports betting in the state took almost a year, since the General Assembly decided it on a 2020 session.

The move is the latest green light for gambling in the Commonwealth over the last three decades.

At the end of 2020, after the General Assembly session, it came clear that the official opening of sports betting would happen just in time for Super Bowl.

In the meantime, the Lottery Board announced having received 25 applications for wagering license approval between October 15-31. Back then it was not able to announce any of the winning bids. However, as promised, the Board announced the first licenses in the beginning of 2021.

Last week Virginia lawmakers announced that DraftKings was the second operator after BetMGM approved to go live in the state. DraftKings received only a temporary sports betting permit.

The Virginia Lottery first went live in 1980s, followed by Colonial Downs off-track betting in the late 90s. Considering this, the sports betting legalization is a huge move to benefit all sports fanatics.

Guidelines for Sports Betting

Mike Raffensburger from FanDuel explained that sports betting, just like any other mode of gambling operation, has guidelines that need to be followed.

He said that his company needs to get to know its clients. The operate almost like a bank does, by asking their customers to provide information about themselves, like an address and the last four digits of a Social Secutiry number, in order to use FanDuel.

He added: “…we use other databases to sort of confirm your identity and that you are of age and legally allowed to place a gambling wager in the state of Virginia,”

In Virginia, much like in many other states where sports betting is legalized, bets on in-state teams cannot be placed.

Many might want to place their bets, while others are not interested in doing so. This is what Brenda Hurt in Richmond is planning on doing – keeping her money close.

She said: “I need my money. I’ve got to pay bills, I can’t do nothing with gambling and giving away my money free,” she said.

Virginia is expecting several other exciting events these days like the project of a Richmond casino. The capital announced last week hiring a consultant agency to help sort through the submissions and choosing the right partner for the project. The interested parties include The Native American Tribe, the Pamunkey Indian Tribe, Cordish Group Inc. and Colonial Downs Group.

Source: “Virginia sports betting is live adding to the states list of gambling opportunities”, 8 News, January 29, 2021

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The ties between mobsters and the early days of Las Vegas are well-documented. There has been plenty of attention given to the subject over the years, and one of the figures said to have helped mob bosses get their hands dirty in Sin City was Jimmy Hoffa. At the time, he was in charge of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), having served as its president from 1957-71. He reportedly provided, illegally, millions of dollars in the way of loans using the union’s Central States Pension Fund and, when the heat got to be too much, suddenly disappeared in 1975, reportedly taken out by the mob itself. However, no one ever came forward to admit to killing Hoffa and the whereabouts of his body have remained shrouded in controversy. If two journalists from Fox News are to be believed, the search may be over. 

Hoffa has been the subject of multiple movies and documentaries over the years and was portrayed by Jack Nicholson in an eponymously-named filmed. The Irishman, a movie by Martin Scorsese in 2019, rekindled the interest in locating Hoffa’s body and the theories that surround his disappearance. Some say he was “offed” by a friend; others say he was “whacked” by a mafia hitman. However, at the core of all of the rumors is a link to Hoffa’s demise at the will of the mob. 

Eric Shawn and Dan E. Moldea of Fox began looking into Hoffa’s disappearance as part of a new documentary for the media outlet, and uncovered something they believe to be a positive identification of Hoffa’s location. Moldea was one of the first to document the controversial disappearance, publishing The Hoffa Wars in 1978. As part of the journalists’ investigation, they interviewed Frank Cappola, the son of the man who claimed to have buried Hoffa, Paul Cappola, Sr. Frank had been told where the body was buried, but swore secrecy and promised his father he would never reveal the location. However, perhaps knowing that his own demise was imminent, Frank broke that vow and shared his secrets.

Hoffa is reportedly buried just outside the property line of an 88-acre landfill in New Jersey – a landfill previously owned by the Genovese Crime Family mobster Phil “Brother” Moscato and Paul Cappola. He is said to have been shoved in a 55-gallon steel drum that was put in the ground before other drums were thrown on top. The journalists visited the site with ground-penetrating radar that reportedly detected a number of “round anomalies” right where Cappola said they would be. Moldea finds it difficult to contain his excitement, asserting, “Frank’s story is the best darn story that I have heard about this case in the 44 years since I first started investigating Hoffa’s murder.”

The man who financed Las Vegas may have been unceremoniously packed into a drum and disposed of like yesterday’s trash, but it still isn’t known for sure. Fox can’t dig at the location, due to New Jersey state laws that prohibit the excavation of 45-year-old mob-tied bodies, and is now hoping it can get some help from state law enforcement to proceed. Things don’t always move quickly in the Garden State, so it might take a while for the dump’s secrets to be revealed.

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The casino empire Las Vegas Sands continues with the plan to bring casinos in Texas even after the few set backs it experienced this year, including the death of its CEO Sheldon Adelson.

As Adelson passed away, many started questioning how much momentum remained behind the cause. Regardless of the sad event, Las Vegas Sands made it clear that the initial plan is still on the table and that Texas is a good enough opportunity for expansion.

Prior to Adelson’s death, the new state House speaker, Dade Phelan stated that casinos needed to be treated as a “long-term commitment” and not a short-term one meaning that a casino in Texas would bring profit.

A possible Sands casino in Texas will help with the state’s budget problems. But operating on Texas ground is a rewarding experience for the casino giant as well.

Andy Abboud, Las Vegas Sands’ senior vice president of government affairs said: “The possibilities for expanding Texas’ tourism offerings are exciting and we look forward to working with lawmakers this session to present the potential opportunities that exist for robust, long-term economic development and jobs for the state,”.

Strict Gambling Laws

Texas is known for its strict gambling laws, maybe the strictest in the US. There are few exceptions though, where the practice is allowed, such as bingo, the state lottery and at horse or greyhound dog races.

According to a court decision, made in 1980s, three federally recognized Native American tribes operate casinos in Texas but only with limited games. Those are Eagle Pass, El Paso and Livingston casinos.

No efforts to expand pass this legislations were made so far. Abbott said in 2005 that he fully supports the Texas law. In the meantime he ordered the state’s lottery officials to stop exploring sports betting games.

Earlier this month, more information on the Sands future expansion in the state came to light. According to finance reports from January 15, Adelson gave $500,000 to Abbott in October last year. Such a move made Adelson the second largest donor for the reported period of the second half of 2020.

While waiting for the Texas casino to become reality, Las Vegas Sands made an attempt to enter online sports betting industry. Late Sheldon Adelson had strong opinion against such a move, but after news broke that he had passed away, his deputy Rob Goldstein decided to give the idea some serious thought.

According to some, the decision will be based on the result of the current coronavirus pandemic that brought significant losses for the whole industry. The Las Vegas casino giant makes no exception.

Source: “Casinos in Texas? Las Vegas Sands gambling empire pushes forward with goal”, KXAN, January 26, 2021

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Germany is putting together its plans for online gaming and a recent effort by finance ministers in the country resulted in new tax proposals that are already causing problems. They suggested a tax of 5.3% for online poker stakes and 8% for online slots, just for a gambler to pull the handle. The Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE) studied the data and came to the conclusion that the tax rates would have an adverse effect on Germany’s gaming efforts, leading to more gamblers taking their business underground. 

The Deutscher Sportwettenverband and the Deutscher Online Casinoverband, two gaming operator associations, asked DICE to conduct the study to determine if the tax rates were feasible. The economics group returned its diagnosis, asserting that higher taxes would be detrimental to Germany’s regulated gambling market and, as a result, could possibly create a larger illegal gambling market. Eliminating underground gambling is one of the key reasons governments move to legalize gambling in the first place.

DICE explained that the 8% slot tax would make payout ratios potentially smaller and suppress competition. These two problems, combined with forcing players underground, would create a trifecta of issues that would keep Germany’s legal gambling market from flourishing. Not only would this harm the revenue possibilities, according to DICE, but it would also make it more difficult for the country to offer gambling protection and addiction programs. That is the second key reason many governments have been willing to legalize gambling.

DICE believes that the finance ministers settled on their proposed tax rates without looking at the bigger picture. They assumed that the volume of illegal gambling wouldn’t grow; however, the economic group points out that this is contrary to what has already proven to have occurred in other countries and that the assumption is “unrealistic and incorrect.” It also asserted that there isn’t much of a need to include a higher tax rate in order to offer greater player protection since the existing framework is being crafted in such a way to offer security against addiction. 

The tax implications would not only affect online gaming operators, but physical casinos, as well. DICE explains that all casinos would be forced to alter their return-to-player (RTP) rates to compensate for the additional fees, which would have all operators re-evaluating their position. Physical casinos would operate at a loss if they didn’t adjust the RTP in accordance with the new rate, which translates into an obligatory adjustment to avoid failure. To avoid any major shakeups and possible increases in illegal gambling, DICE offers an alternative. It suggests that the taxes should be fixed against gross revenue, ranging anywhere from 15-20%. However, there hasn’t been any indication of whether policymakers are taking the recommendations into consideration. Germany’s new online gambling market is still expected to go live this July.

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Super Bowl LV is right around the corner. On February 7, the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers will battle to determine for the NFL championship in what is expected to be a highly competitive game. It will also be the biggest Super Bowl in terms of sports gambling, and everyone is looking to make things as exciting as possible. VSiN, the network dedicated to sports gambling, is ready to kick things up a notch, promises to offer the “deepest Big Game coverage ever available.”

VSiN has been covering the Super Bowl for five years and continually introduces new ways to enjoy the event. This year, it will offer extensive coverage of the Big Game, including dozens of sports gambling pros, analysts and personalities, as well as NFL insiders and bookmakers. VSiN founder and CEO Brian Musburger explains, “Sports betting in the U.S. has exploded since we hosted our first Super Bowl special in 2017. Four years later, VSiN has assembled our strongest lineup and a team with unmatched sports betting expertise to cover sports betting markets across the country and around the world.”

To keep football – and gambling – fans entertained, VSiN has put together the Super Dashboard, which will provide access to stats tied to Super Bowl markets. This includes line movements, where sports gambling money is being spent and more. In addition, Brent Musburger will host Betting The Big Game with Brent Musburger, a one-hour show that will include exclusive insights and analysis. It will air all next week and will be available on demand as of next Tuesday.

Sports gamblers will want to check out VSiN’s live BetCast during the Super Bowl. This will be hosted by the network’s gambling experts, who will analyze the game from a gambling perspective as it happens. In addition, VSiN plans on having its in-house crew running live events for the network’s halftime show, which will give an update on how the gambling markets are running. These shows are expected to be held at the South Point Hotel & Casino, Circa Resort, and Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, MGM Grand in Detroit, BetRivers in suburban Chicago and the Borgata in Atlantic City.

For gamblers who want to get a head start, VSiN already has available its Big Game Betting Guide, offering “the best advice available for betting first-timers, those who only bet this game each year, and enthusiasts who could use a refresher ahead of this year’s matchup.” As the excitement begins to wind down after a champ is determined, VSiN will host a special edition of its Follow The Money show that will include a complete breakdown of all the game’s big plays, big bets and big winners.

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