Nevada Gives Preliminary OK to Roar Digital to Open Shop in State

The joint venture between MGM Resorts International and GVC Holdings has been cleared for a launch in Nevada where Roar Digital will now set a digital sports betting shop.

Nevada Gaming Commission Clears Roar Digital for Nevada

On Wednesday, the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) gave a preliminary approval to Roar Digital, a 50/50 joint venture between MGM Resorts International and GVC Holdings, a UK-based company, to set up shop in the state. The regulator has yet to sign off on an official permission.

The original partnership between the two companies was struck back in July, 2018 with the objective of expanding the companies’ sports betting footprint across the United States in light of the repealed PASPA 1992 federal prohibition law.

Roar Digital has already been cleared by the New Jersey Department of Gaming Enforcement (DGE), the Garden State regulator, where it offers sports betting and online gaming, and specifically poker.

Meanwhile, as per the original partnership, Roar Digital will focus on mobile and online sports wagering in Nevada. To mark the transition, the MGM-owned PlayMGM app will be rebranded as BetMGM should the Nevada Gaming Commission proceed and sign off by the end of January.

A Unique Opportunity for Roar Digital

Commenting on these developments, Roar Digital CEO Adam Greenblatt said that Nevada provided the company with a unique opportunity. Thanks to MGM Resorts’ established footprint and 10 resorts in Las Vegas, Roar stands to benefit from access to a healthy player base.

Roar Digital will be a service provider to MGM, Mr. Greenblatt said, specifying that the model of how the joint venture operates will change from one state to the next. For example, in Tennessee, Roar has sought a direct license to run a sportsbook on its own, rather than collaborate with another entity.

To make the company a reality, both MGM and GVC each invested $100 million back in 2018, and the entity has since signed with sports leagues, teams and other businesses, and famously the Buffalo Wings restaurant chain.

MGM Resorts Chairman and chief executive, Jim Murren, has also praised the expansion of sports betting, saying that it has brought a significant windfall for the company. Mr. Greenblatt confirmed Mr. Murren’s forecasts, noting that MGM alone attracts 7 million people to Las Vegas.

Roar Digital’s List of Successful Partnerships

Roar Digital has long had the go-getter attitude, managing its partnership well. One of the cornerstones deals the company landed was with Yahoo, a media and Internet giant.

Through that partnership, Roar has focused on mobile sports betting as well as boosting its awareness among sports fans throughout the United States. So far, MGM has struck deals with multiple sports leagues:

• The National Basketball Association (NBA)
• The National Hockey League (NHL)
• Major League Baseball (MLB)
• Major League Soccer (MLS)

In fact, the only sports league the company hasn’t signed up with is the National Football League (NFL), which has other sports betting partnerships nevertheless. 

Roar is also teamed up with Boyd Gaming Corp. granting the company access to the casinos owned by Boyd. With Nevada now on the list of states Roar is expanding into, the financial windfall should only go up.