The Connecticut Lottery Corp. has gotten 15 proposals from sports betting operators interested in operating retail or online sportsbook in the state. The lottery hopes to begin accepting wagers by September. The names of the firms were not released. Nevertheless, it is widely expected that FanDuel, DraftKings, William Hill, BetMGM and Penn National will be among the applicants.
Once Governor Ned Lamont and the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes reached an agreement in March on how to divide sports betting in the state, the Lottery April 12 issued a request for qualifications (RFQ.) The tribes operate the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino.
Lottery board of directors Chairman Rob Simmelkjaer commented in a news release: “We are pleased to see significant interest from companies who would like to partner with the CLC to bring our online and retail sports betting offering to market.”
He added, “Our staff and board will now begin a process of carefully reviewing the qualifications of the submitting parties as we work towards choosing the right partner in this important initiative for our state.”
Besides the casinos themselves, the Lottery envisions two large retail sportsbooks at Bridgeport and Hartford, the state’s largest cities. The request for qualifications stated: “Other locations may be within existing off-track-betting (OTB) locations of the state’s current OTB operator; and others may be coordinated within existing lottery-licensed locations.” Such retail operations can include actual sportsbook windows, kiosks or a combination.
The tribes have already announced their sports betting partners: DraftKings for the Pequots and Kambi for the Mohegans.
A September opening is envisioned, to take advantage of the NFL season.
Although the governor and tribes did reach an agreement, the legislature still has to turn that agreement into legislation. It must also be approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
