Big player in casino industry keeping close eye on effort in Minnesota to legalize sports betting

Legalized sports betting in Minnesota could potentially generate millions for casinos in the state.

But the casinos aren't the only ones waiting for the Legislature to take it up again this spring. So are the companies providing the backbone of the operations such as International Game Technology, or IGT, a London-based company behind lottery and casino gaming machines.

"It's something we talk to operators in Minnesota about when we see them, either if somebody goes up to Minnesota to see what's happening locally, or casino operators that travel to Las Vegas and we see them at industry conferences," said Joe Asher, IGT's president of sports betting.

As the industry consolidates, IGT has been adding steadily to its list of locations for its sports betting kiosks, particularly in the Upper Midwest.

This past summer, IGT became the new provider of sports betting systems at St. Croix Casinos in Turtle Lake and Danbury in Wisconsin. St. Croix is the first location for IGT's PeakBar Top machines, which have betting, poker and slot games all in one.

Sports betting legislation failed to pass this year, but Minnesota legislators are expected to consider it again in the 2024 session. If it becomes legal, sport book operators would join a maturing service industry that since 2018 has generated $22 billion of gross revenue on more than $265 billion in wages made nationwide.

IGT has deployed its PlaySports betting machines in 30 of the 35 states where betting is active and legal, along with Washington, D.C., including Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Illinois. More than 1,000 of those machines, which Asher said are similar to check-in kiosks at airports, are active across the country.

Anecdotally, St. Croix Casino operators said their sports booking area "is doing much better since we've been there," Asher said. Calls made to St. Croix Casino management were not returned.

IGT took over as a provider for St. Croix after the casino's contract with another provider expired, Asher said.

IGT's relationship with tribal properties in the Midwest and West Coast, which Asher said go back decades, would help the company expand into Minnesota, he said. Eleven federally recognized tribal entities in Minnesota own and operate 19 casinos in the state.

There is a downside to having a dominant, sole provider of betting systems, experts said. Competition, in most industries, is needed to spur innovation.

"More providers in a market or a region can encourage innovation and advancement in technology," said Adam Candee, managing editor at Legal Sports Report, a Las Vegas publication covering the sports betting industry.

IGT's products do, however, offer the simplicity most novice bettors want, Candee said.

"Kiosks often provide an entry point into sports betting that customers find less intimidating and more familiar than going to the counter at a sportsbook," he said.

Sports betting accounted for 5% of IGT's $4.2 billion in revenue in 2022, up from 4% in 2021.

Familiarity with gambling is leading to participation rising above pre-pandemic levels. Nearly half of the adult population in America — 102 million people — participated in gambling over the past 12 months, according to the American Gaming Association, and 20% of those people bet on sports. More than a quarter of adults — 26% — gambled at a casino in that period, per the AGA.

In Iowa, where IGT serves multiple casinos, sports gamblers placed $2.2 billion in bets in the 2023 fiscal year, according to the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission. Of those bets, $2 billion were placed online and $223 million were placed in person at casinos.

In the U.S., online platforms result in 90% of the wagers. That doesn't mean, however, that sport books at casinos are becoming obsolete.

"While the majority of wagers are placed online, the experience of watching a game at a sportsbook can't be replicated," said Dave Forman, vice president of research at the American Gaming Association. "No matter which wagering options bettors choose, what's most important is that they are betting legally and responsibly."

In Minnesota, gamblers can place bets through online offshore accounts and daily fantasy sports operators like FanDuel, which uses IGT for its retail sports betting across the country and its online business in Ontario.

At least two casinos in every state bordering Minnesota use IGT, meaning "there's a pretty good chance" that when gambling Minnesotans place sports bets in those states, they're touching IGT's devices, Asher said.

"I've always had a view that [sports betting] resonates even more in states where it gets cold and people spend more time indoors," Asher said. "You're watching more sports on TV, and that leads to more betting activity."