- Australian bookmaker BlueBet has secured market access in Louisiana in partnership with racetrack operator Louisiana Downs.
- BlueBet will operate in the US under the B2C brand name ‘ClutchBet’. They currently have market access in Louisiana, Colorado and Iowa.
- BlueBet has opened a US office in Denver and will launch their platform in Iowa within the next few weeks.
A slew of good news from BlueBet about their plans for US expansion coming out today. The Sydney based company has secured market access in Louisiana in a partnership with the Louisiana Downs horsetrack. Louisiana Downs has a retail sportsbook at their facility in Bossier City under their own brand. BlueBet has already secured market access in Colorado and Iowa. The agreement with Louisiana Downs is for ten years.
Here’s the press release from BlueBet announcing the market access deal:
In other news out of BlueBet, they’ve announced that they’ll enter the US market with a B2C consumer brand called ‘ClutchBet’. According to another BlueBet press release, the brand will launch in Iowa in the coming weeks. Here’s what BlueBet Chief Executive Officer, Bill Richmond, had to say about the new brand:
“We’re proud to provide a bespoke, mobile-first American wagering brand that will resonate strongly with the US customer. Our vision for ClutchBet is to be a differentiated player providing a unique and memorable betting experience. We believe the US sports betting audience is unique, but raw, and we want ClutchBet to grow with the market to connect with American bettors. ClutchBet will draw upon our sportsbook expertise and technological know-how to provide a best-in-class user experience.”
‘Raw’ might not be the word I’d use to describe the US sports betting market, but Richmond’s point is well taken. Here’s the BlueBet press release announcing the ClutchBet brand:
BlueBet is also planning to launch a ‘B2B white labeled ‘sportsbook as a solution’ offering as a secondary phase of entering the US market.
BlueBet plans to go live in Louisiana in late Q2 of fiscal year 2023 following the launches in Iowa (Q4 FY22) and Colorado (Q1 FY 23). The market access agreement in Colorado is with Black Hawk based Wild Card Saloon & Casino.
Good to see that BlueBet has found some momentum with their US plans. They were one of the sportsbooks (along with fellow Aussies PointsBet) screwed out of Arizona market access in that state’s highly suspect license awarding process. Good move for BlueBet picking up an office in the booming Denver area joining other sportsbooks such as PointsBet, Tipico, Betsson and MaximBet.
