Indiana Gives OK to Rush Street Interactive to Start Mobile Sports Betting App Next Week

Posted on: September 25, 2019, 09:09h. 

Last updated on: September 26, 2019, 10:19h.

Steve Bittenbender Read More
Expertise: Legislation, Sports Betting, Horse Racing.

Indiana is a week away from launching its first online sportsbook.

The Indiana Gaming Commission announced Rush Street Interactive received approval to launch a mobile sports betting application – the first in the state – starting next week. (Image: WNDU)

The Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) announced late Wednesday that it approved Rush Street Interactive’s application to run an online sportsbook. The company’s application is scheduled to be available on Oct. 3.

Rush Street has substantially demonstrated to the satisfaction of the commission that its mobile sports wagering operation meets the requirements of Indiana Code Article 4-38, the Commission’s Emergency Regulations, and all Commission Directives related to sports wagering activities,” read the IGC’s order, signed by Executive Director Sara Gonso Tait.

Rush Street operates the retail sportsbook at the French Lick Resort in the southern part of the state. The app will be available statewide. Unlike other states, individuals will not need to register first at French Lick in order to download and use the application.

Indiana’s retail sportsbooks started opening on Sept. 1, with French Lick’s opening on Sept. 6. So far, of the 14 casinos, racinos, and off-track betting parlors to seek retail licenses, 13 have opened their brick-and-mortar locations. The only one that has not is the Rising Star Casino Resort in Rising Sun.

The Majestic Star Casino and Hotel in Gary, which is in the process of moving to an inland location, has applied for a sports betting license. However, its owners have said their plan is to just offer an online sportsbook.

Who’s Next in Indiana?

When Indiana goes online, it will become the seventh state to offer mobile sports betting, joining Iowa, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. Oregon, through its state lottery, may follow Indiana in releasing an app.

The question in the Hoosier State now becomes: how quickly will other apps follow Rush Street? From a retail perspective, William Hill, Caesars Entertainment, and FanDuel already have a presence in the state. BetAmerica will, too, once Rising Star opens its sportsbook.

Last month, the IGC approved a vendor license for DraftKings, which will operate an online betting application – sometimes referred to as a skin – for the Ameristar Casino East Chicago. The arrangement is part of a deal Penn National Gaming, Ameristar’s parent company, made with DraftKings and numerous other online sportsbooks in late July.

Under terms of the Penn National agreement, PointsBet and The Stars Group will also operate skins in Indiana. However, neither company has yet to receive its vendor license from the commission.

Another company planning to launch an online sportsbook in Indiana is England-based Smarkets. Earlier this month, the company announced a partnership with Full House Resorts that open the door for the company’s SBK online sportsbook to operate in Indiana.

Company officials expect to launch in time for the National Football League playoffs.

Not the First First for Rush Street

For Chicago-based Rush Street Interactive, Indiana will become the company’s third online sportsbook market. The company already operates mobile sports betting applications in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

The company has a tradition of firsts. It started the first online casino, PlaySugarHouse.com, in New Jersey three years ago. Two years later, it became the first company to offer a fully integrated online sportsbook and casino in the state.

In May, PlaySugarHouse became the first online sportsbook in Pennsylvania. In July, it launched the first retail sportsbook in New York at Rivers Casino and Resort in Schenectady.