Delaware is reporting solid mobile sports betting numbers in early 2025. The First State legalized mobile sports wagers at the end of 2023, and ever since then it has been reaping its rewards.
To offer regulated mobile sports betting, the Delaware State Lottery needed a partner from the gambling industry. The lottery chose Rush Street Interactive, which owns and operates BetRivers. The two parties agreed on a five-year contract, with the option to extend to a total of 10. At the time, Delaware became the 29th state to offer legal online bets on sports.
Delaware State Lottery Pleased with the Progress
Just recently, Helene Keeley, Director of the Delaware State Lottery, shared that the corporation is pleased with the online sports betting numbers. “We’re very happy with these numbers, and we feel that we have the right partner,” said Keeley.
She also noted that four days after the launch of mobile sports betting in Delaware, the total betting handle reached US$700,000. But now for the first half of the fiscal 2025, sports wagering has brought in US$121.2 million. This is a huge improvement over the US$8.8 million from the first six months of the fiscal year 2024.
Here’s what else Keeley said on the regulated online sports betting market in Delaware:
“People have the ability to choose which way they place their bet,” Keeley said. “Tracks are still taking bets at their facilities, but it’s not as significant as it was before the online option became available.”
Since locals can bet on sports online, some residents don’t feel the need to visit one of the three available racetracks to wager. The existing locations are the Delaware Park, Harrington Raceway, and Dover Downs Hotel and Casino. But with the digital option, many residents place their bets online.
Another positive of the online expansion is that the BetRivers app offers single-event wagering. This is not the case for land-based locations, which offer the usual parlay options.
Mindful about Gambling Addictions
It’s no surprise that online sports betting is getting more popular by the day, as the offering is also heavily advertised. According to Keeley, every local cable is airing mobile sports betting ads.
However, the lottery remains cautious about the risks of gambling addictions among residents.
Keeley explained that the state doesn’t want to expose people to too many ads and push them into spending more than they can allow on gambling.
She reckons gambling advertisements are done in a conservative and considerate form, which allows individuals to enjoy their programmes and not overcommit to betting.
Under a Five-Year Contract
As noted earlier, under the current agreement between the Delaware State Lottery and Rush Street Interactive, the two will partner for five years. But the contract can be renewed for an additional one-year years for up to five, depending on regulatory approvals. Since the launch of online sports betting in late 2023, locals can be on sports via the lottery’s website or BetRivers’ app.
RSI is a leading digital casino and sports betting company, running brands like BetRivers, PlaySugarHouse, and Rush Bet. At the moment, the corporation is up and running with mobile sports betting and casino options in 15 states. Some of those jurisdictions are Pennsylvania, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and more.
However, its operations don’t end with the U.S., as it previously expanded internationally in Ontario, Canada, and Colombia and Mexico.
Starting Early But Eventually Falling Behind
For almost a decade after 2009, Delaware was the only state east of the Mississippi to offer parlay betting on NFL matches. This was possible thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Delaware in the 70s legalizing sports lottery for a short period. In that period, Nevada was the only other state to offer the whole sports betting package.
However, things changed drastically in 2018 when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed U.S. states to offer full-scale sports betting. Thus paving the way to the large sports betting expansion across the country.
The First State was quick to act after the U.S. Supreme Court decision and greenlit the expansion of its sports betting options. However, neighbouring states quickly caught up and even overshadowed Delaware’s market by offering more competitive online betting products.
Today, Delaware’s gaming options feature video poker, roulette, and blackjack games, powered by 888. The state also offers slot machine products from renowned providers like 888, SG, NextGen, and Lightning Box. Despite its early actions, Delaware seems to be falling behind in a quickly evolving gaming industry.
Partnering with Scientific Games
In October 2023, the Delaware State Lottery announced a partnership with Scientific Games. Via the collaboration, the two sides launched the Delaware Lottery Players Club, a new player loyalty program and mobile app.
The new app provides premium benefits, ticket scanning, point-earning, and biometric login for users. The initiative was part of the lottery’s user enhancement plans, allowing players to redeem points for prizes and earn extra rewards for completing achievements.
