The North Carolina State Lottery Commission will have to ignore the sports betting law as it moves ahead in an effort to launch the directive. The law requires wagers to be accepted by January 8, well in advance of the Super Bowl.
Nope. Not going to happen, said Ripley Rand, chair of the commission. Rand confirmed that bettors won’t even make it to the Super Bowl. The reason: too many unfinished tasks.
It’s not for lack of trying. The new regulator for wagering has been busy preparing for launch. The commission published regulatory proposals on November 7, and approved wagering rules as well as a catalog of bets November 16.
“We see questions about whether sports betting will be up and running in time for the Super Bowl. It’s clear, however, with all the work remaining to be done and the timetable set out in state law, that unfortunately won’t be the case,” Rand told WSOC.
On another front, the commission approved the details of the applications to award licenses thus beginning the process, each required to ante up a $1 million licensing fee. The sports betting law allowed for 12 online operators with applications due by December 27, with a 60-day review period. That sets up a possible early March debut.
FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars and BetMGM all expect to apply to join the club, as is British bet365, which signed a deal on November 17 with the Charlotte Hornets to become its official sports betting partner.
