William Hill has opened its full sportsbook at the Capital One Arena in Washington DC.
The Caesars Entertainment-owned sports betting giant William Hill has opened its full sportsbook at the Capital One Arena in Washington DC.
This comes after Caesars completed its acquisition of William Hill last month, taking control of the UK bookmaker’s US assets.
William Hill’s new sportsbook
William Hill has now opened its complete land-based sportsbook at the DC sports venue marking the first sportsbook to open in a professional US sports facility.
The sportsbook operator inked an agreement with the arena’s owner, Monumental Sports & Entertainment in October 2019, to construct and operate a land-based sportsbook in the facility.
In July 2020, the operator opened a temporary sportsbook space inside the facility, complete with self-service betting kiosks and betting windows.
The new 18,000 square foot sportsbook takes up two floors, featuring sports memorabilia and headlines reflecting the biggest sports moments in the nation’s capital.
As well as betting windows and kiosks, the William Hill sportsbook app can be used within a two-block radius of the facility.
The sportsbook also features a new restaurant which is run by Nicholas Stefanelli, chef, and owner of the Michelin-starred restaurant Masseria.
Tom Reeg, Caesars’ chief executive said: “This is really a groundbreaking moment for Caesars and for the sports betting industry in general.
“This is the first integrated sportsbook in a physical stadium in the country. This is the new paradigm, this is where it’s going. We ask our employees at Caesars to blaze new trails, to create unique experiences. As you walk this property and you see what’s here, this is exactly what we’re talking about.”
Ted Leonsis, founder, and chief executive of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, added: “I think this is the first step, you’ll see lots of other arenas and lots of other leagues pushing on the gas to do this.
“Because of that, we know we’re an exemplar and everyone is going to be watching how we execute. We’re very committed to making this a very successful experience for our fans, that our partner prospers, and arenas become a natural home for sportsbooks around the world.”
Sports betting in DC
In 2019, Washington DC’s mayor signed the proposed sports betting bill into law. Under the district’s sports betting law, bettors will be able to place bets via an online app run by the DC Lottery, at select sporting venues, and at licensed bars.
The DC Lottery launched its betting app Gambet DC in May 2020 making it the first mobile betting product available in the capital. William Hill went on to launch its limited betting app in July 2020 and has since dominated the market.
Although the DC Lottery holds a monopoly over the capital’s online betting market with its Gambet DC product, William Hill’s limited sports betting offering has consistently outperformed the Lottery’s offering.
The DC sports betting market is expected to become slightly more crowded this year after BetMGM announced a partnership with the Washington Nationals which will see the operator open a sportsbook at the team’s National Park home ballpark.
