Eldorado Resorts and William Hill US said Tuesday the companies will launch sports betting in Iowa at two casinos as soon as next month.
Las Vegas-based William Hill will oversee the sportsbooks planned for Isle Casino Hotel Bettendorf and Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo, both of which are operated by Reno-based Eldorado. In a statement, William Hill said it expects regulatory approvals to take place in August and that customers at the two casinos will have access to the company’s mobile application, kiosks, and InPlay wagering menu.
William Hill and Eldorado signed a strategic partnership last year that gave the sportsbook operator the exclusive right to operate sports betting at all properties owned or managed by Eldorado in the United States and to operate mobile sports betting in states where Eldorado obtains a license.
“Expanding the William Hill relationship to include Iowa offers our loyal customers a full complement of gaming action and plays an important role in providing guests the unbelievable experience,” Eldorado President Anthony Carano said in a statement.
William Hill is currently operating sportsbooks and mobile sports wagering activities for casinos and racetracks in seven states – Nevada, New Jersey, Mississippi, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Rhode Island.
“These two Iowa destinations will offer sports fans amazing new opportunities to enjoy the games and teams they love in new and exciting settings.” William Hill President of Retail Operations David Grolman said in a statement.
Isle Casino Hotel Bettendorf is located on the Iowa-Illinois border in the Quad Cities region. The casino is three hours west of Chicago. The sportsbook will have 12 55-inch odds boards and eight 65-inch viewing monitors and a mix of high-top and standard tables.
Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo is located an hour and a half from Iowa City and two hours from Des Moines. The sportsbook will have eight 65-inch odds boards, 15 55-inch viewing screens totaling more than 46 feet of viewing monitors and both standard tables and high-top tables.
Under terms of the Eldorado-William Hill deal, Eldorado was given a 20 percent ownership stake in the sportsbook operator in exchange for a 25-year deal to operate facilities in the company’s casinos where sports betting in legal. The stake was valued at $50 million. Eldorado also received 13.4 million ordinary shares of William Hill US parent William Hill PLC, which is traded on the London Stock Exchange.
William Hill said in June it believes the partnership with Eldorado gives the company’s U.S. arm access to oversee sports betting at the Caesars Entertainment casinos being acquired in the two companies’ announced $17.3 billion merger. The cash and stock transaction will create the world’s largest gaming company with some 60 resorts in 16 states under one corporate name. The transaction is expected to close sometime in 2020.
Caesars operates its own sportsbooks in Nevada, New Jersey and Mississippi.
Caesars has a marketing agreement with the National Football League that doesn’t include sports betting, and agreements with Turner Sports and ESPN to place television studios focused on sports wagering in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace and the Linq.
In February, Caesars Entertainment signed a deal with daily fantasy sports provider DraftKings that will include market access for online gaming products, such as mobile sports wagering. Financial terms were not disclosed, and Caesars will receive an equity stake in the Boston-based DraftKings. It’s unclear how the Eldorado merger will impact the deal.
In addition to William Hill, Eldorado has a sports betting agreement with the Stars Group, which includes a presence on the planned Fox Sports Network’s sports wagering application.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgamingreports.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
