Seneca Gaming Corp. has selected the Kambi Group as its sportsbook operator for casinos in Niagara Falls, Buffalo and Salamanca. The first bets could be placed by the end of the year.
“We are so excited to bring sports betting to our guests,” said Holly Gagnon, president and CEO of Seneca Gaming Corporation, in a statement. “Seneca Resorts & Casinos remains steadfast in providing the latest and greatest offerings to our customers in entertainment, resort experience, and of course gaming. This collaboration brings a whole new level of excitement.”
New York State Senator Joseph Addabbo said the new offerings will help the local community as a portion of the gaming proceeds go to education and to municipalities. “We also see these casino sites as job generators.”
Addabbo, who is also the chairman of the Senate Committee on Racing and Wagering, said that mobile sports betting remains the biggest point of contention in Albany and hopes that it can pass in 2020.
Mobile sports betting will allow anyone to gamble using sportsbooks in New York State. Advocates say it adds to New York’s revenues, though there has been push back from people like Governor Andrew Cuomo who said that it may be unconstitutional and require changes to the state’s constitution.
Addabbo said there’s no need to change the constitution if the servers that accept the bet are placed on the land where there’s a licensed casino in New York.
“If we take New York and New Jersey, we did $2.3 million in our New York Casinos sports betting without mobile betting in the month of September,” Addabbo said. “For the same month, New Jersey, with their mobile component, did $38 million.”
Brian Blessing, an advocate for sports gambling, said that when mobile apps become available in New York State, it will open more opportunities throughout the region.
“It absolutely has to happen,” Blessing said. “Even in Las Vegas, there may be a sportsbook within three miles of you. Just finding time to get there is the hassle. It’s transformed Las Vegas because of the convenience aspect. Instead of having to go to the sports book 40 times, you go once, put money in, and you can do it from home.”
