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It's high stakes for UK companies as sports wagering starts to spread in America.
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From Tuesday, new rules on wagering entered into result in Delaware, a small east coast state about two hours from Washington.
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Neighbouring New Jersey could start accepting sports bets as early as Friday.

The changes are the very first in what could become a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the way for states to allow sports wagering.

The industry sees a "once in a generation" chance to establish a brand-new market in sports-mad America, stated Dublin-based financial analyst David Jennings, who heads leisure research at Davy.

For UK firms, which are coming to grips with consolidation, increased online competition and harder rules from UK regulators, the timing is particularly opportune.

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But the market states counting on the US stays a risky bet, as UK business face complex state-by-state guideline and competitors from established local interests.

"It's something that we're really concentrating on, however similarly we don't wish to overhype it," stated James Midmer, representative at Paddy Power Betfair, which just recently purchased the US fantasy sports site FanDuel.

'Take some time'

The US represented about 23% of the world's $244bn (₤ 182bn) in video gaming profits in 2015, according to a report by Technavio, external released in January.

Firms are wishing to tap into more of that activity after last month's choice, which struck down a 1992 federal law that disallowed states outside of Nevada and a couple of others from authorising sports wagering.

The judgment found the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not actually legalise sports wagering, leaving that question to local legislators.

That is expected to result in substantial variation in how firms get accredited, where sports betting can happen, and which occasions are open to speculation - with huge ramifications for the size of the marketplace.

Potential profits ranges from $4.2 bn to almost $20bn every year depending upon factors like how many states relocate to legalise, Oxford Economics approximated in a 2017 study for the American Gaming Association.

"There was a lot of 'this is going to be big'", said Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for specialists KPMG.

Now, he stated: "I believe the majority of people ... are looking at this as, 'it's a chance but it's not going to be $20bn and it's going to be state by state and it's going to take time'."

'Remains to be seen"

Chris Grove, managing director at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, predicts that 32 states will legalise sports betting in some form by 2023, developing a market with about $6bn in annual revenue.

But bookmakers deal with a far different landscape in America than they carry out in the UK, where wagering shops are a regular sight.

US laws minimal gaming mainly to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip until reasonably just recently.

In the popular creativity, sports wagering has long been linked to a 1919 baseball World Series match-fixing scandal.

States have actually also been sluggish to legalise many kinds of online betting, in spite of a 2011 Justice Department viewpoint that appeared to eliminate barriers.

While sports betting is generally seen in its own classification, "it plainly stays to be seen whether it gets the kind of momentum people think it will," stated Keith Miller, law teacher at Drake University and co-author of a book about sports wagering regulation.

David Carruthers is the former president of BetonSports, who was detained in the US in 2006 for running an overseas online sportsbook and served jail time.

Now a consultant, he states UK firms ought to approach the market thoroughly, choosing partners with caution and preventing mistakes that might result in regulator backlash.

"This is a chance for the American sports ... I'm unsure whether it is a chance for organization," he states. "It actually is reliant on the outcome of [state] legislation and how business operators pursue the chance."

'It will be partnerships'

As legalisation begins, sports betting companies are lobbying to ward off high tax rates, as well as requests by US sports leagues, which want to gather a percentage of profits as an "integrity cost".

International business deal with the added challenge of an effective existing video gaming industry, with gambling establishment operators, state-run lottery games and Native American people that are seeking to defend their grass.

Analysts say UK firms will need to strike collaborations, offering their knowledge and technology in order to make inroads.

They point to SBTech's current announcement that it is providing innovation for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the kind of offers likely to materialise.

"It will be a win-win for everybody, however it will be collaborations and it will be driven by innovation," Mr Hawkley said.

'It will just depend'

Joe Asher, president at William Hill US, is clear-eyed about the truths.

The business has been buying the US market considering that 2011, when it bought three US firms to develop an existence in Nevada.

William Hill now utilizes about 450 people in the US and has actually revealed collaborations with casinos in Iowa and New Jersey.

It works as threat supervisor for the Delaware Lottery and has actually invested millions together with a regional designer in a New Jersey horse racing track.

Mr Asher stated William Hill has actually become a home name in Nevada however that's not always the goal all over.
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"We definitely intend to have a very considerable brand existence in New Jersey," he said. "In other states, it will simply depend on regulation and possibly who our regional partner is."

"The US is going to be the most significant sports betting market worldwide," he added. "Obviously that's not going to take place on day one."