It’s been a tumultuous year for sports betting in DC.
GambetDC’s poor performance led to FanDuel’s arrival as the only online sportsbook in DC, where it set all-time highs for the city’s wagering market right out of the gate.
Talks of expanding the marketplace to allow multiple online sports betting sites in DC then spurred recent regulatory changes that positioned BetMGM and Caesars to launch their mobile betting platforms in DC, which could’ve happened as early as July 15.
A lot has happened in the last 24 hours, though.
The DC sports betting market’s expansion is predicated on Mayor Muriel Bowser’s approval of the FY2025 budget, which is set to go into effect in October. Bowser refused to sign off on the budget proposal Tuesday, and sent a strongly worded letter to Council Chairman Phil Mendelson explaining why:
Breaking: Mayor Bowser returns budget unsigned to the D.C. Council. She calls for more cuts and criticizes new "mansion tax" and increased tax on businesses. https://t.co/8uGycQrLw0 pic.twitter.com/bMavmZzXNS
— Cuneyt Dil (@cuneytdil) July 16, 2024
In parallel, Axios’ Cuneyt Dil reported that FanDuel announced to users that it did not have authorization to keep running its app or its online wagering partnership at DC United’s Audi Field, and thus went offline leaving the DC sports betting market without its lone online sportsbook.
What’s the hold up?
Bowser blasted the current rendition of the FY2025 budget proposal, with heavy-handed exclamations of her disagreement with its tenets.
She even bolded:
“Let’s be clear: the Council’s fiscal decisions are setting the stage for additional tax hikes for our residents and businesses next year.”
She also asserted that she “cannot support a budget that needlessly increases our residents’ property and income taxes, raises the paid family leave tax to untested levels, or harms our public schools.”
She called the budget proposal “unsustainable” overall, accusing the Council of not recognizing the “reality of our fiscal environment.”
Do not pass go
Before the recent regulatory changes, FanDuel essentially operated a monopoly on the DC sports betting market in partnership with the city’s Office of Lottery and Gaming (OLG). Under this scope, FanDuel was the only online sportsbook in DC permitted to accept online wagers district-wide.
The caveat is that the pre-existing regulatory structure allowed other sportsbooks to partner with the city’s licensed sports stadiums. This allowed BetMGM and Caesars to launch retail sportsbooks at both Nationals Park and Capital One Arena, permitting both operators to offer their online sportsbook apps to patrons within a two-block radius of their respective retail locations.
Just 30 days ago, FanDuel threatened to terminate its agreement with the OLG if lawmakers passed a budget that would open the DC market to more online sportsbooks.
Bowser returning the budget proposal unsigned falls short of a veto, leaving the opportunity for the City Council to make provisions. The next moves by both the Mayor’s office and City Council could have more significant effects on DC sports betting's makeup.
