(ADDS LEVY QUOTE IN 3RD GRAF)
The Indiana Gaming Commission approved theScore for mobile sports betting operations Wednesday, and the Toronto-based company will begin taking wagers as the second skin for Ameristar Casino in East Chicago on Thursday.
The book received its sports wagering license from the IGC in May and obtained “second-skin” access in Indiana through a July 2019 deal with Penn National Gaming, which took a $10 million equity stake in the company. Indiana is the third state in which theScore will conduct mobile sports betting, having launched in Colorado on Sept. 2 and in New Jersey in September 2019.
“This launch comes just weeks after we introduced theScore Bet to fans in Colorado, a huge testament to the best-in-class technology, multi-state infrastructure, and product development team supporting our ongoing expansion,” said John Levy, Founder and CEO of theScore. “Indiana is the first state we’ve launched in under our multi-state market access agreement with Penn National Gaming and we’re excited to showcase our incredible and unique combination of media and gaming to this passionate fan base.”
As the Hoosier State enters its second year of legalized sports betting, it has emerged as one of the more mature markets in the country thanks in large part to remote registration to make mobile wagering readily available. The IGC reported an overall handle of $1.2 billion in the first 12 months, with nearly three-quarters — approximately $886 million — originating through mobile and online wagers.
A tough second-skin act to follow behind DraftKings
Ameristar will be the second casino in Indiana to have two mobile sports betting skins, joining nearby Horseshoe Casino in Hammond. But unlike Horseshoe, which has two somewhat similar mobile offerings in terms of popularity with Caesars and Unibet, theScore will be playing second to DraftKings, which has been the dominant mobile platform in the state.
DraftKings accounted for slightly more than half of the $143.9 million mobile handle in the month of August, reeling in $73.7 million in wagers, and the online juggernaut has generated nearly $502 million in mobile handle since entering Indiana in October.
theScore will be the ninth mobile skin overall in Indiana and the second foreign-owned mobile skin following Malta-based Unibet’s launch in late July.