The District of Columbia Council has approved a controversial no-bid contract with Greek gaming technology supplier Intralot, under which Intralot will operate the district’s online sports betting and online lottery programs.
The council voted 7-5 to approve the contract despite concerns that there was no competitive bidding for the $215 million, five-year agreement. Critics complained that subcontractors hired by Intralot have connections to D.C. elected officials, and had previous contracts with the city government.
Intralot manages the D.C. Lottery currently, so the mobile and digital wagering on sports and lottery games completes a monopoly or the firm in the U.S. capital.
Bets will be taken online beginning as early as fall, and a smartphone wagering app is expected to go live next year.
But the day after the vote, it was revealed that the cousin of one of the councilmen was listed as the CEO of one of the companies involved in the no-bid contract. Although the cousin denies this, it’s just another questionable tie to public officials in D.C. Another councilman has close ties to a lobbyist employed by Intralot and the mayor has ties to a marketing firm that is profiting from the contract.
