There’s still one sportsbook operator that hasn’t launched in New York.
Earlier this year, Bally’s Chairman Soo Kim said that Bally Bet Sportsbook would launch its NY online sports betting app sometime in April.
But that isn’t expected to be the case.
In late February, on the company’s latest earnings call, CEO Lee Fenton said Arizona and New York would launch in H1 2022. What does that mean exactly? That leaves May or June for a Bally Bet NY launch.
Read More: Still Waiting: Bally Bet Could Launch NY Sports Betting App In Time For NFL Season
What has delayed Bally Bet NY launch?
The company has been nothing if not patient after the New York State Gaming Commission selected Bally Bet NY as a legal online sportsbook in the Empire State. Part of that stems from Bally’s continuing to update its Bally Bet 2.0 sportsbook technology.
“We do not need to be first to market with an inferior product,” Fenton said in late February.
Bally’s has said it wants to launch Bally Bet 2.0 in Arizona before New York, and that hasn’t happened yet.
Eight of nine NY online sportsbooks are already up and running. The big four — FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars and BetMGM — have dominated the market share. Overall, online sports betting in New York has generated $4.68 billion in handle. That has resulted in $314.6 million in total gross gaming revenue (GGR) and $160.4 million in tax revenue for the state.
Bally Bet NY focused on making strong first impression
During the week ending March 27, New York online sportsbooks had their lowest full week since the Jan. 8 launch. The total of $327.8 million in handle represented a 23% drop from the previous week. That may be because of a lesser amount of NCAA Tournament games and/or promotional spend continuing to decrease.
For Bally Bet, that only emphasizes the importance of rolling out a pristine product rather than rushing to get the NY betting app live.
“Customers will always have choices and your first impression is more important than timing of launch,” Fenton said. “We will launch when the product is right and we’re willing to miss short-term gains to build long-term trust and value with our customers.”
“With the continued irrational spending in full flow, we have concentrated our focus on building betting products that are US-centric and easy to use for the mass market.”
