Puerto Rico evaluates the regulation of online sports betting
The Gaming Commission of the Government of Puerto Rico has opened the evaluation period of the applications submitted for the acquisition of the license that allows online sports betting to operate on the island. Being a commonwealth associated with the United States, the large North American bookmakers would be among the main contenders, in addition to operators known to the Spanish public as Betsson, Betcris or Sportium.
Very soon in Puerto Rico it will be possible to legally access the world of online sports betting through the apps of FanDuel, DraftKings or Sportium. ©MariamS/Pixabay
In January of this year the then governor of Puerto Rico Wanda Vázquez Garced signed the 1534 Bill that legalized sports betting, including e-sports , while accommodating existing registration laws that required in-person registration to the online modality. The law was by no means a new idea, but it has been this year that there has been a renewed interest on the island to legislate online betting as a source of income for the battered Puerto Rican economy .
The deadline for submitting applications opened in November
The public notice of the publication of the application forms for sports betting operators it was done through social networks. It specified that the submitted applications will be evaluated by the Sports Betting Bureau of the Gaming Commission . So far it seems that large North American operators such as FanDuel, BetMGM or DraftKings would be in the race to acquire one of the licenses to be granted, along with online casinos of the range of Betcris, Betsson or Sportium.
CIRSA, which owns Sportium, does not have direct interests in Puerto Rico yet, but it does have them in the neighboring island of Hispaniola, where it operates several casinos in the Dominican Republic, as well as in Panama or Costa Rica. In the third quarter of this year it seems that CIRSA would have managed to consolidate its operating profit after a period of poor results. If a license is obtained on the island, CIRSA would see its expansion in Latin America reinforced, as would also be the case of Betsson, which in the recent Gaming Intelligence Awards 2021 it has been awarded as the best online igaming operator in Latin America.
Hopes are pinned on tax collection
The elVocero newspaper of Puerto Rico it echoed the economic estimates what is expected from the electronic betting segment on the island: about 18 million dollars in the first year, that could reach the 6 million monthly collection for the government . The regulation includes sports betting, e-sports and fantasy contests.
The organic law itself of July 2019 he was referring to the impact of the betting industry in the Puerto Rican economy. According to the numbers presented by a market study commissioned by the Government, the projection estimated about revenue of $29 million for the year 2020, $51 million in 2021 and $68 million in 2022 .
The guarisms take into account bets in physical and online premises, and most of the fact that that sports betting be legalized in places such as hotels and casinos on the island . According to the consultants who would have advised the government, the legalization of gambling would attract a clientele to these premises that is not the usual one in casinos, thus favoring spending and stimulating tourism.
Foxwoods The San Juan Casino opens its doors on Isla Verde Beach
Less than a month ago the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation located in the state of Connecticut and operating the Foxwoods Resort Casino, a vast hotel complex that includes 6 casinos with more than 250 blackjack, roulette, poker and craps and around 5,500 slot machines, announced the reopening of the historic Fairmont El San Juan Hotel in Playa Isla Verde converted into a luxurious casino operated by the American tribe . Although he officially welcomed the public in November, the grand opening is scheduled for January 2022.
This is the first time that a tribal casino has ventured into Caribbean territory, whose impressive resort integrated in the town of Ledyard, Connecticut, the largest on the American East coast, has been recognized for the third time as the best casino in the United States by readers of USA Today . It is expected that the economic impact of the launch estimated at 22 million dollars and the creation of 150 direct jobs help the economic development of the island and boost the growth of tourism and investment.
