Rhode Island Sports Betting Scheduled for Monday Launch

rhode island sports betting launch

Sports betting has come to Rhode Island. On Wednesday, Twin River Casino in Lincoln announced it would begin taking sports wagers on Monday, November 26th. The Twin River Tiverton sportsbook location is scheduled for a December launch.

Casino representatives told local media outlets the sportsbook would accept its first wagers at 3 PM on Monday at a temporary location on the second floor while finishing construction on the permanent sportsbook.

Early photos of the permanent sportsbook offered a preview of tables and chairs on the main sportsbook floor, stadium-style seating around the perimeter, and banks of TV screens along the walls.

Rhode Island Senate President Dominick Ruggerio committed to being on-hand to participate in an opening ceremony at 3 PM on launch day. House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello and Twin River chairman John Taylor also agreed to show up and help place the first “ceremonial” bets.

Neither revealed what they would be betting on, but Twin River officials promised to donate all winnings from wagers placed during the opening ceremony to a charity of the winners’ choosing.

Rhode Island sports betting became legal in June 2018 after Governor Gina Raimondo signed a budget into law that included a provision legalizing betting at brick-and-mortar casinos.

The RI sports betting bill did not include provision for mobile sportsbooks, although that does remain a possibility should voters approve a state-wide referendum approving online wagers. However, state officials made it clear that their focus in the early days of RI betting would be a successful launch of the state’s retail sportsbooks at casinos.

Until state law changes, Rhode Island casinos will remain limited to betting on-premises via teller windows at the sportsbook, betting kiosks, and mobile wagers for customers physically present on casino property.

Previously, Twin River stated it plans to launch self-service kiosks roughly 14 weeks after the launch of in-person betting. That timeline put the launch of betting kiosks sometime around early March 2019. Casino officials also estimated they would implement mobile wagering for guests on casino property several months after that.

Delayed Launch and Revised Expectations

The prospect of sports betting coming to Rhode Island first appeared in January 2018  when a measure added to the state budget included a projection of $23.5 million in new taxes derived from sports betting.

The projection at the time banked on the Supreme Court striking down the federal sports betting prohibition and then Rhode Island authorizing its casinos to begin taking sports wagers. As we know now, the Supreme Court did indeed strike down the prohibition in May.

Rhode Island officials originally planned a launch date of October 1st but had to delay those plans as discussions between the state and its betting services providers (IGT and William Hill) ran longer than expected.

The new start date resulted in Rhode Island missing the bulk of the NFL season, which in turn resulted in revised revenue projections. While the state originally predicted sports betting would generate $23.5 million in revenue for the state over the first year, analysts tampered down their projections to about $11.5 million.

The launch of sports betting on Monday makes Rhode Island the sixth state to commence sports betting since the Supreme Court overturned overturned the federal sports betting ban in May.

What About Online Sports Betting in Rhode Island?

Online sports betting in Rhode Island would greatly increase the convenience factor for fans and in turn would boost the state’s revenue prospects. However, current legislation in Rhode Island specifies that mobile wagers be restricted to patrons who are physically present at the casino.

The prospect of true, state-wide mobile sports betting may be a long shot without a public referendum specifically authorizing online betting. Even then, a successful referendum would not automatically bring online betting to the state. Lawmakers would still have to act in order to formally authorize online wagers.

Still, that doesn’t make online sports betting impossible. The referendum would likely be the biggest hurdle, but even that might not necessarily need to be the case.

In May 2018, DraftKings sent a representative to Rhode Island to support the state’s budget bill authorizing sports betting. DraftKings, which has no physical presence in Rhode Island, made the point that online betting may not need a referendum after all.

A series of referendums in Rhode Island have allowed the state to expand its gambling options over the years, including expanding the types of games that may be offered at RI casinos. One of those referendums was interpreted by the June budget bill to authorize sports wagers placed at local casinos.

The point that DraftKings made is that it all depends on where those bets are considered to occur. If it is determined that wagers placed through a mobile device actually take place at the casino where those wagers originate and are processed, then no new referendum is needed to authorize online betting in Rhode Island.

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