Virginia’s sports betting market went live last week with the launch of FanDuel and DraftKings.
Last week, Virginia’s sports betting market went live with the launch of FanDuel’s online sports betting product.
Virginia’s sports betting market went live on 21 January, a day after the Virginia Lottery awarded vendor licenses to 27 companies which would offer sports wagering-related services.
FanDuel launches in Virginia
FanDuel launched its sports betting product in Virginia on 21 January making it the first operator to launch in the state.
The daily fantasy provider turned sports betting giant became the first sportsbook operator to receive approval to operate in the state of Virginia after entering an agreement with the Washington Football Team.
The team is based in Ashburn, Virginia and is currently considering opening a new stadium in the state.
Under FanDuel’s agreement with the team, the operator will be able to use the team’s name and logos in its betting product and may build betting kiosks at the team’s future stadium in Virginia.
DraftKings also launches
Over the weekend, DraftKings became the second operator to launch in Virginia’s sports wagering market.
DraftKings Sportsbook launched on Sunday afternoon ahead of the NFL’s conference championship games started.
Jason Robins, co-founder and CEO, DraftKings said: “Just in time for Super Bowl LV, we are thrilled to bring the DraftKings sports betting experience to Virginia with an abundance of betting options for fans. With our customer-first approach, we hope to be the sportsbook of choice for Virginians who enjoy having skin in the game.”
Virginia marks the 12th state in which DraftKings offers online and mobile sports wagering.
BetMGM to launch soon
BetMGM, the joint venture between Entain and MGM Resorts International, has also received approval to offer sports betting in Virginia. However, there has been no word on the launch of BetMGM in Virginia from the operator.
The Virginia lottery has yet to announce which other operators have received approval to offer sports betting in the state.
Sports betting in Virginia
The state of Virginia legalised sports betting in April 2020 after the state legislature passed a sports betting bill that would allow sportsbook apps to launch by the end of 2020.
State representatives and Governor Ralph Northam signed off on legal sports betting in Virginia after a two-year process of study and drafting legislation.
Under the legislation, the state will have at least four sportsbook apps but no more than a dozen. As the bill also legalised five new casino locations, those casinos may take up to five of the 12 sports betting licences.
The law also allows for sports betting to take place at a major-league stadium that has yet to be built in the state.
