Online sports betting is set to return to West Virginia, as Penn National Gaming’s Hollywood Casino at Charles Town recently completed testing a sports wagering app with its partner DraftKings. Regarding the test, West Virginia Lottery Director John Myers said, “We are making sure that we can verify the player that has the account is the one playing and that the geolocation system works and those people are actually located inside the state of West Virginia.”
Myers said following testing, the Lottery will issue a letter of approval, then Hollywood Casino can train staff and launch its mobile app. It will be available for download without having to visit the casino, Myers said.
Delaware North operates two West Virginia casinos, Mardi Gras and Wheeling Island, where sports betting apps—including mobile sports betting–were launched in early December. However, due to a contract dispute with technology provider Miomni Gaming, Delaware North shut down sportsbook operations at both venues, including the sports betting app BetLucky, on March 6. Prior to that, Myers said the Delaware North mobile apps were beginning to outperform the on-site sportsbooks. Both casinos’ sportsbooks could remain closed until Delaware North’s breach-of-contract suit against Miomni is resolved.
Observers said it’s unclear whether Mountaineer Casino near Chester and the casino at the Greenbrier, owned by the family of Governor Jim Justice, plan to offer sports betting apps. Currently FanDuel runs the Greenbriar’s sportsbook and William Hill operates the sportsbook at Hollywood Casino for Penn Nation and at Eldorado Resorts’ Mountain Casino.
DraftKings also has a deal with Penn National to operate a mobile sports betting app at Charles Town. West Virginia will be the third state to offer online sports betting through DraftKings; it also operates apps in New Jersey and in Mississippi, although online sports betting there only is available on casino properties.
A 2017 U.S. casino industry study indicated the return of online sports betting to West Virginia could boost annual handle to $1.8 billion.
Besides sports betting, online casino gambling also is expected to launch in West Virginia in early 2021.
