Sports Betting Iowa is a Go as Six Casinos Activate Their Sportsbooks

On Thursday, August 15th , the first legal sports wagers were accepted in Iowa when six land-based venues opened their sportsbook for the first time after this gambling vertical got legalized in this state.

The sports betting market was opened at exactly 12 in the afternoon at the said properties that have previously obtained licenses needed for operating sportsbooks.

And We’re Off!

The six venues in question – Prairie Meadows Casino near Des Moines, Lakeside Casino in Osceola, Ameristar Casino in Council Bluffs, Catfish Bend Casino in West Burlington and Isle Casino Hotels in Waterloo and Bettendorf…

…are all commencing their sportsbook activities, while Prairie, Lakeside and Isle casinos in Bettendorf and Waterloo will be launching their William Hill-powered technology.

Mobile sportsbook offering will also be launched by Catfish Bend Casino. Their partnership with PointsBet should yield retail offering results, while Ameristar Casino, operated by Penn National gaming, will launch Kambi-powered offering.

Two More Casinos Have to Wait a While

Two other casinos – Elite Casino Resorts-owned Riverside Casino and Golf Resort in Iowa City and Rhythm City Casino in Davenport – were not permitted to run their sportsbooks as of yet.

Representative of Riverside Casino has reaffirmed the public that this venue DID receive their license and that the planned 6 PM launch was delayed due to final checks that took more than they should have. Rhythm Casino’s launch even was also rescheduled because the authorization they received was not entirely in order.

Both casinos will be launching their sports betting apps. Their retail sportsbook is provided by Bet.Works.

The of Sportsbook Business

Iowa’s sports betting was legalized with Governor Kim Reynolds’ signature that made legislation into law few weeks ago. According to the proposed bill..

…the sports betting revenue in this state will be taxed at a 6.75% rate, along with a federal excise tax of 0.25% that licensed gaming entities that offer sports wagering need to pay also.

According to some calculations and estimates, the combined tax revenue in Iowa could be worth between $1.8 million and $3.5 million that this vertical could bring to state’s treasury. Apart from the taxation, operators are also obliged to pay a $45,000 license fee which was a sum agreed upon after numerous amendments made to the bill by Hose and Senate of this state.

In Iowa, betting will be allowed on both professional and collegiate events…

…however, wagering will remain banned on player performances for athlete that represent their colleges. Also, fantasy sports contests betting will be banned until May 2020.

Source:

“Eight go live on first day of legal sports betting in Iowa”, igbnorthamerica.com, August 15, 2019.