Hard Rock CEO: Open to Florida Partners
Hard Rock International and Seminole CEO Jim Allen told CNBC this week that his company is open to partnerships with commercial sports betting partners in Florida. Allen made the comments at the Global Gaming Expo (G2E) in Las Vegas.
“I would say whether it’s FanDuel or whether it’s DraftKings, we’ve actually developed a great relationship with them,” he said.
But any Florida partnership would require a commercial operator to pay 60 percent of its revenue to Seminole Tribe, per the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
The tribe has exclusivity for casino gambling in Florida through the 2021 compact, which interprets IGRA to say that bets may be considered placed where accepted. All bets in the state must flow through servers in Indian Country. In addition to the amount a commercial operator would have to pay the Seminoles, the compact also requires that tribal partners put their tech stack on the Seminole’s server.
Ho-Chunk Beloit Groundbreaking Set for October 25
The Ho-Chunk Nation will host a groundbreaking ceremony Oct. 25 at 11 a.m. for its Ho-Chunk Casino project in Beloit, Wis. Construction on the $405 million project is estimated to take 18 months. When completed, the casino will feature 1,500 to 1,800 machines and 44 tables, as well as an 18-story hotel, dining options and a conference center.
Having first purchased the land in 2009, the tribe submitted the application to the Department of the Interior in 2012. The land was placed into trust in May 2022.
“We are thrilled that this project is getting across the finish line,” said Beloit City Manager Jerry Gabrielatos, per the Beloit Daily News. “This development will be a game-changer for the City of Beloit. Many thanks to the Ho-Chunk for their investment in our community and bringing this project to fruition. The casino, hotel and convention center will galvanize more investment in Beloit.”
In other news …
Shape Games, a subsidiary of Kambi, and Oklahoma’s Choctaw Nation announced a partnership earlier this week. Shape Games will provide customer engagement solutions and front-end services for the tribe’s sportsbook and online casino platforms.
