PointsBet Ends This Week Like it Did Last Week - On a High

Australia-based bookmaker PointsBet has been on a late-summer surge, just like some other sportsbooks looking to take advantage of the sports betting recovery in the US. At the end of last week, PointsBet announced a "transformational" mega-partnership with NBC Sports and the end of this week was marked by news that the book is about to go live in one of the more exciting new markets in the country, Illinois.

“I often joke that Melbourne is the sporting capital of the world,” PointsBet CEO Johnny Aitken said. “I get the same feel here in Chicago. As a sports-loving city, it’s as big as it gets. When we came to the U.S., we made a beeline for Chicago.”

PointsBet is slated to go live in Illinois with 4 locations that will be open by this time next week - in time for the start of the NFL season. Illinois becomes the fourth state, along with Indiana, Iowa, and New Jersey to welcome the PointsBet platform but based on the company's recent moves, it certainly won't be the last.

Johnny Aitken went on record saying as much and in a recent interview stating that: “With the weight of NBC behind us with that deal, we feel extremely confident about our position to win market access in the states we choose to enter".

Flooding Illinois

PointsBet has long identified Illinois as one of the states it was most looking forward to going live in. The reason? It is expected to immediately flood the Illinois scene with four retail locations including Hawthorne Race Course.

The four sites are in prime locations around Chicago where two MLB teams, 1 NHL team, and the NFL's Chicago Bears call home. All four locations are eager and ready to absorb the pent-up betting demand for clients in one of America's biggest cities.

“What we wanted to design was a catchment,” the PointsBet CEO said about the OTBs they chose. “So if you headed north of Chicago, northwest, southwest, or south, chances are you are going to drive past one of our four sportsbooks.”

Adding to the excitement is Illinois' stipulation that bettors will have to sign up in-person for any mobile betting app. That means some serious traffic is about to visit PointsBet properties in and around Chicago. Governor Pritzker is temporarily allowing remote sign-ups until September 19, then any new client will have to visit a retail location for the right to bet from the comfort of their home.

Foot on the Accelerator

Buoyed by their landmark NBC partnership and the $393 million in committed PointsBet marketing flowing to NBC, the sports betting provider figures to go full steam ahead right into the NFL season. The $200 million projected to be raised by PointsBet through retail and institutional stock offerings, only solidifies the notion that the betting provider is going all-in.

The NBC partnership brings with it more than 184 million viewers and an estimated digital audience of 60 million monthly active users. Like it or not, PointsBet is about to see an enormous increase in not only traffic to their locations and sites, but scrutiny as one of the biggest players in the US legal sports betting scene.

Perks

PointsBet in Illinois has some serious competition to deal with - the two big guns in the DFS space as well as BetRivers are already there. Wrestling dollars away from those already established brands will be a chore for PointsBet going forward.

But along with the typical bonuses at PointsBet locations, they will try to entice bettors with some favorable odds on Bears games. While not drastic, +100 or -105 instead of the standard -110 is certainly favorable to the wagering public.

PointsBetting, a unique betting concept by the provider also comes to Illinois. It is a “high-risk, high-reward” style of gambling that gives the bettors a chance of winning, or losing, more based on the number of points the bears win or lose by.

PointsBetting is just one of an incredible 220 betting options available with PointsBet – typical sportsbooks offer in the range of 60.