Digital Wager Wire highlights the most significant events affecting the domestic and international sports betting and gaming industries each week throughout the year.
And Then There Were Six
When New York announced it would be awarding three downstate casino licenses, the most powerful gaming and hospitality groups in the nation chose sides, planned a location, and spent millions of dollars to apply for one of the coveted New York City area licenses.
In total, a dozen groups formed to compete for the highly anticipated casino licenses, which required due diligence to win community support and ultimately convince the committee awarding those licenses that they were the best fit for operating a multi-billion-dollar project that would benefit all parties concerned.
However, it has been a long road replete with countless meetings and a bevy of red tape to cut through before getting to the finish line. One of those groups was spearheaded by hip-hop mogul Jay-Z’s Roc Nation in conjunction with Caesars Entertainment to build a casino resort in the heart of Times Square.
It was recently announced that a wave of community protest leading to a 4-2 vote against Jay-Z’s project by the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) had derailed those plans. It should also be noted that the Hudson Yards project, the Avenir, was similarly voted down, 4-2, by the local CAC, which means Manhattan’s West Side will no longer be considered for a state-of-the-art gambling palace.
This most recent round of voting has narrowed the field from what was a dozen candidates to only six. Of those, Mets’ owner Steve Cohen and his partnership with Hard Rock International’s Metropolitan Park, adjacent to the Mets stadium, Citi Field, appear to be a frontrunner for one of those three licenses.
The area’s two existing racinos are already equipped with the infrastructure to get a full-fledged casino off the ground in record time, which means Resorts World Casino in Queens and the MGM Empire City in Yonkers also have an inside track.
Sports Betting Soars in North Carolina
Bill Belichick’s UNC Tar Heels may not be breaking any records, but mobile sports betting in North Carolina has picked up considerably with the advent of the football season. Year-over-year revenues spiked more than 60% in August 2025 on an 11.3% hold rate, generating a handle of $54.1 million.
The handle was also up over 29% from the previous August and produced over $487 million in wagers. The state collected $9.7 million in taxes from the state’s eight sportsbooks in August, bringing the yearly total to almost $70 million.
The tax revenue is earmarked for 13 athletic departments of publicly funded state schools, with the notable exception of the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State. Those schools are exempt due to their already robust donor and booster donations.
The Department of Health and Human Services also receives a portion of the sports betting revenue for its gambling addiction education and treatment programs, while a pair of youth sports and outdoor organizations also financially benefit.
Lastly, a fund that was created to attract events to the state also gets a share of the money, as does North Carolina’s General Fund. Representative Zack Hawkins was largely responsible for bringing a mobile sports betting industry to the Tar Heel State and stated:
“The money North Carolina has raised from this growing industry has made a positive impact in so many ways. These grants have provided athletics equipment, fields and facilities, and leagues to get our children playing and competing.”
