It was recently reported that popular YouTuber turned professional boxer, Jake Paul’s Betr Sportsbook has secured a license to accept mobile betting wagers in Maryland.
However, the launch date has not been announced. So let’s take a closer look at the preliminary details and how this might impact top-rated sportsbooks in the region.
Prepare to Launch
The Maryland Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC) recently announced that Betr has received its blessing to begin taking online sports bets in the Old Line State. The market is heavily dominated by the nation’s two sports betting titans, FanDuel and DraftKings, but Betr management believes they can exploit a live-betting niche that will lead to success.
Betr will be required to complete a demonstration launch before it gets the green light to go live. As of this writing, neither the demo nor the launch date has been revealed. Maryland will be the company’s third active sports betting market, as it is currently available in Ohio and Virginia while also holding a license in Indiana but has not yet launched in the Hoosier State.
SWARC Chairman Thomas Brandt commented on the expanding industry during Wednesday’s meeting. “It’s been interesting to watch this industry evolve,” Brandt said. “Of course, there are the two big kahunas (FanDuel & DraftKings), as we sort of anticipated, but these guys seem to have identified a niche they want to try to exploit.”
Betr had launched in Massachusetts but exited in February after a series of poor results. The micro-betting brand will take the place of Betfred, which is in the process of winding down operations in Maryland while another new entry to the Maryland market, Veterans Services Corporation (VSC), is set to launch on July 1st. Bally Bet is another late arrival to Maryland’s mobile sports betting industry and its launch is expected at some point in July.
Investing in Betr
Betr’s entrance into the Maryland market comes shortly after another round of financing for the relative newcomer to the sports betting industry. Venture capital firms, Harmony Partners and 10x Capital were the primary drivers of $15 million in new capital for the company co-founded by Paul and Joey Levy.
“We believe that Betr has the product, management, and market opportunity that we saw in DraftKings in its early days with a significantly larger TAM and room for growth today,” David Weisburd, 10x Capital’s co-founder and head of venture capital, said in a statement.
10x Capital has a history of investing in the daily fantasy sports and mobile sports betting industry dating back to 2008 when it invested in a pioneer in the DFS sector, DraftKings. That proved to be a stellar investment, as the Boston-based company is one-half of the duopoly leading the mobile sports betting landscape.
Fuel Venture Capital is also another prominent Betr investor and its founder and managing director, Jeff Ransdell, is bullish on Levy and the brand. “I’ve been in this business for 31 years and I’ve never seen a company that has ‘BETR’ product market fit. It is one of the fastest-growing portfolio companies in our portfolio of 33 companies. We are extremely excited to be on this journey,” said Ransdell.
