Two new sportsbook operators have been given the approval to launch in Tennessee but will not do so before the Super Bowl.
Last week, the Tennessee Education Lottery gave William Hill and WynnBet formal approval to launch their sportsbook products in the state.
Wynn and William Hill to enter Tennessee
During a board meeting of the Tennessee Education Lottery last week, Wynn Resorts’ sports betting brand WynnBet and William Hill were given the necessary approvals to offer sports betting services in Tennessee.
However, for several reasons, both operators will not be live in the state before the National Football League’s (NFL) Super Bowl this coming Sunday.
Once both operators go live, the total number of sports betting apps in the state will rise to six. Churchill Down also received approval to offer sports betting but has yet to outline its plans to launch in the state.
ZenSports, another operator with a pending license for the state of Tennessee, has yet to receive approval to operate in the state.
Tennessee records solid first two months
Since launching in November, Tennessee’s sports betting market has reported incredibly strong figures for such a young market.
In December, sportsbooks in the state processed $180.9m in sports bets and held onto $13.9m in revenue.
This marked a significant increase on the $131m wagered on sports during the market’s debut month in November, where operators held onto $13.2m.
However, the state report does not include specific data, instead, it only includes handle, payout, and tax revenue. This makes it near impossible to determine how the state’s operational sportsbooks are performing on an individual basis.
Sports betting in Tennessee
In late May 2019, Tennessee became the fourth state to legalise sports betting. Governor Bill Lee allowed the state’s sports betting bill to pass into law without his signature, despite being opposed to the expansion of gambling.
The Tennessee sports betting market is so far the only US state to limit sports betting to online and mobile devices.
Tennessee’s sports betting market launched on 1 November with DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM and Tennessee Action24/7.
