On Monday, Parx Casino in Bensalem began live testing of its online and mobile sportsbook.
This marks the second online sportsbook to launch in the state of Pennsylvania after SugarHouse Casino launched its online sportsbook last month.
The testing of the Parx online sportsbook will continue on through to Wednesday 26 June. Monday’s test period ran from 4 pm to midnight while testing on Tuesday will run from 2 pm to midnight and Wednesday’s tests will begin at noon and end at midnight.
If the Parx sportsbook’s live test is successful and the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) is satisfied, the sportsbook will be cleared to operate 24 hours a day from Thursday onwards.
Both the Parx and SugarHouse sportsbooks use software provided by Kambi, meaning that these bookies will offer the same betting markets and point spreads. The main difference between the sportsbooks will be pricing.
Rivers online sportsbook will launch too
According to the PGCB, the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh also plans to begin testing its online sports betting site and app on Tuesday.
Rivers Casino is only required to complete two days of live testing which means that if everything goes smoothly, it will be able to launch online sports betting operations on Thursday.
The Rivers Casino is owned by Rush Street Gaming, the same company that owns SugarHouse Casino. As a result of this, Rivers is only required to complete two days of testing as it shares technology with SugarHouse, the first casino to launch online sports betting in Pennsylvania.
This testing period will begin on Tuesday and run from 4 pm to midnight and Wednesday’s test will begin at 2 pm and conclude at midnight.
Not available on iPhone
Just like the online SugarHouse sportsbook that launched last month, punters will be able to bet with Parx on any desktop computer or laptop. However, mobile betting via an app is currently limited to Android devices.
Earlier this month, Apple updated its App Store policy tightening the restrictions on real-money gambling apps.
According to guideline 4.7. “HTML 5 games distributed in apps may not provide access to real money gaming, lotteries, or charitable donations, and may not support digital commerce. This functionality is only appropriate for code that’s embedded in the binary and can be reviewed by Apple. This guideline is now enforced for new apps. Existing apps must follow this guideline by September 3, 2019.”
This means that gambling apps on the Apple App Store must be reformatted and will require approval from Apple.
Although it could still be a while until Pennsylvania’s sports betting apps are available on Apple devices, the betting sites can be accessed via internet browsers on the devices. However, it should be noted that the in-browser sites have not been optimized for use on a phone or tablet.
Potential boost to June handle
With two new online sportsbooks set to launch this month, it is likely that Pennsylvania’s betting handle and revenue could see a boost in May.
In May, the Keystone State saw a total of $573,163 wagered on SugarHouse’s online sportsbook in the last four days of the month. The launch of online betting at Parx and Rivers is likely to provide a similar boost.
June also marks the first full month of online wagering in Pennsylvania which is likely to complement the state’s land-based betting component.
It is still too early to analyze the state’s online betting figures as the market is still in its infancy and there is a limited choice when it comes to betting options.
For an in-depth look at each state’s sports betting statistics visit the BettingUS stats page.
