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PointsBet Moves Into U.S. Horse Racing Market With Purchase Of Premier Turf Club ADW

PointsBet USA Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of PointsBet Holdings Ltd., has announced the premier global online gaming and racing operator has agreed in principle to acquire Premier Turf Club, LLC, an advance deposit wagering company licensed by the Oregon Racing Commission. The agreement is set to initially position PointsBet within the U.S. online horse racing market as the company continues its rapid expansion across the country.

“PointsBet is very pleased to join forces with Premier Turf Club,” noted PointsBet USA CEO Johnny Aitken. “The combination of Premier Turf Club's excellence in the space with PointsBet's mature market Australian racing expertise favorably positions us as we prepare to enter the U.S. horse racing market. Today's noteworthy acquisition complements our in-house approach while growing our premier product suite, and we are excited to welcome Premier Turf Club to the PointsBet team.”

Premier Turf Club, known as “Racing's Best Kept Secret,” has been in business over 13 years and operates the website BetPTC.com. The company is overseen by general manager Todd Bowker, a longtime industry executive who will become vice president of racing for PointsBet USA. Bowker previously served as general manager of AmericaTab Ltd, where he led the start-up of the company and oversaw the operational management of what grew to become the fourth largest Advance Deposit Wagering company licensed in Oregon. Premier Turf Club's highly experienced staff will also be joining the PointsBet team.

“As Premier Turf Club was exploring options for how we might enter the sports betting market, we realized early on that we wanted to partner with a highly regarded and experienced operator,” said Bowker. “PointsBet's history in racing in Australia made them an ideal choice, and we are excited to join their team. We look forward to be able to offer sports wagering to our customers in jurisdictions where legal, and to expose PointsBet's customers to the excitement of betting on racing.”

Premier Turf Club's extensive industry expertise and relationships, customer-focused operations, and excellent reputation will be of immediate value to PointsBet as the company looks to continue its proven track record of entering new markets with premium products while accelerating client value and growth in the United States.

For the operators able to execute on the opportunity, horse racing has a unique role to play alongside sports betting entertainment and content in the United States. The horse racing industry in the U.S. generates over $12 billion in handle annually, with only half wagered through ADW products legally available in 38 states. PointsBet aims to be at the center of innovation and growth in U.S. horse racing, and the addition of ADW adds to PointsBet's growing proprietary wagering product set which already includes a fixed odds sportsbook, PointsBetting, and online casino.

About PointsBet
PointsBet is one of the fastest growing sportsbooks in the country and is rapidly expanding its U.S. footprint, currently bringing its best-in-class proprietary technology, modernized and premium brand mentality, expert trading practices, and proven growth marketing strategies to the burgeoning sports betting markets of Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, and New Jersey. Originally founded in Australia, PointsBet is a cutting-edge online gaming operator that prides itself on having the quickest and most user-friendly app (iOS and Android) while also providing the best content and experience for sports bettors. PointsBet is the only U.S. sportsbook to offer PointsBetting – a unique and innovative way to bet – and has also introduced a slew of well-received, bettor-first initiatives. PointsBet offers the most markets on all four major U.S. sports (NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL) and PointsBetting in the world. For more information, visit www.PointsBet.com.

About Premier Turf Club
Premier Turf Club, LLC is a U.S. based pari-mutuel account wagering provider regulated in the state of Oregon by the Oregon Racing Commission. Staff includes horse owners, bettors and industry professionals that have been involved in advance deposit wagering and simulcasting since their inceptions. PTC has developed a business model that benefits the players, the horsemen and the race tracks, while offering an extensive racing menu where customers can wager on over 200 Thoroughbred, Harness and Greyhound race tracks.

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Michael Copeland Named Chief Commercial Officer Of Woodbine Entertainment

Woodbine Entertainment announced Tuesday that it has appointed experienced sports executive Michael Copeland as its Chief Commercial Officer as the organization eyes growth opportunities.

Copeland joins Woodbine Entertainment after holding several leadership positions in the Canadian sports industry. Most recently, Copeland founded and led his own consulting business focused on issues of growth and transformation in sports and entertainment. Prior to that, Copeland was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Toronto Argonauts (2015 to 2018), who under his leadership won a Grey Cup championship in 2017. Before joining the Argos, Copeland was the President and Chief Operating Officer of the Canadian Football League for nearly 10 years (2006 to 2015).

“With a unique opportunity for substantial growth of our business on the horizon, we are excited to add Michael and his wealth of experience to our senior leadership team,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “In addition to his extensive background in sports and business, Michael is a strong, visionary leader, making him an ideal teammate to lead our commercial efforts as we look to realize those opportunities for growth in a rapidly changing sports marketplace in Canada.”

As Chief Commercial Officer, Copeland will oversee business development, digital strategy, marketing, sponsorships, broadcast and customer experience strategy. The Western University law and MBA graduate will also play a significant role as Woodbine Entertainment continues its efforts to participate in the emerging sports betting sector in Canada and embarks on the most exciting and ambitious real estate development project in the country.

“Woodbine Entertainment is already one of Canada's top sports and entertainment organizations with horse racing and the 50,000 jobs it supports at the centre of it all,” said Copeland, who was named a recipient of Canada's Top 40 Under 40 in 2008. “Yet, the opportunity for it to embrace a bold vision for the future and reimagine its position as a Canadian sports and entertainment leader has never been stronger than it is now.

“Through the years, I have developed a deep appreciation for the horse racing industry and the people within it as my wife's family was involved in the sport for decades. I am honoured to join an organization that has such a rich history, and an even brighter future.”

Copeland joins an experienced leadership team at Woodbine Entertainment that also recently added property development expertise by retaining the services of Collaborative Equities and its Managing Principal and prominent developer William Kohn Fleissig to lead its property development portfolio. Fleissig joins Woodbine as one of the most innovative land developers and community builders of the past 20 years.

“We have a tremendous opportunity in front of us that has the potential to modernize our business model, strengthen our brand, expand our reach and create new revenue streams that will support the horse racing industry for decades to come,” Lawson said.

Copeland starts his role with Woodbine Entertainment on May 10.

Woodbine Entertainment also confirmed today that Christina Litz, who held the position of Vice President, Media, Digital, Business and Revenue Development since December 2019, has departed the organization to join True North Sports and Entertainment in Winnipeg as its Chief Brand and Commercial Officer.

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Arizona Legislation: Major League Franchises, Tribes Get Mobile Sports Betting; Tracks Get Keno

Phoenix, Ariz., has four major league sports teams (MLB's Diamondbacks, NBA's Suns, NFL's Cardinals and NHL's Coyotes) and one minor league racetrack (Turf Paradise). In legislation signed into law last week by Gov. Doug Ducey, the four pro sports teams were among those given the opportunity to buy a license to offer sports betting at their stadiums as well as operate a mobile sports betting platform.

The same legislation gave Turf Paradise and other tracks in the state – along with fraternal organizations – the option to offer keno, a random numbers game offered by lotteries in many states.

The legislation did not address the state's absurd advance-deposit wagering law that requires horse racing bets be made by calling in by telephone to wagering providers rather than using a computer or smartphone apps.

Historical horse racing language was removed from the gambling bill prior to passage.

Powerful native American tribes in Arizona also get to offer sports book and mobile sports wagering, as will NASCAR and PGA Tour events. Up to 10 licenses will be issued for sports organizations and 10 to tribes.

Through the legislation and a new compact negotiated by the Ducey administration, tribes – which operate 25 casinos in Arizona including seven in the Phoenix area – can expand their table game offerings and increase the number of slot machines. The compact permits four new casinos in the Phoenix area.

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TIF Series: “Wagering Insecurity” Part 3 – Volponi

This is Part 3 of the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation's (TIF) series “Wagering Insecurity.”

Faced with remarkable competitive pressure from the rise of legal sports betting, horse racing is at a crossroads.

Confidence amongst horseplayers and horse owners is essential to the future sustainability of the sport. Efforts to improve the greater North American Thoroughbred industry will fall flat if its stakeholders fail to secure a foundation of integrity, along with increased transparency of the wagering business and its participants over time. Achieving this is growing increasingly difficult after the sport has neglected its core base–horseplayers –for decades.

“Wagering Insecurity” details some of that neglect, and the need to embrace serious reform. Fortunately, there are examples across the racing world to follow.

The major North American tracks, which are now vertically integrated companies controlling most of the major ADWs, tote companies, other service providers and even some of the high-volume betting shops like Elite Turf Club, have had little incentive to upgrade the oversight of wagering on the more than 30,000 annual Thoroughbred races on the continent.

The one entity which does offer some wagering security apparatus–the Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau (TRPB)–is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the tracks themselves, through the Thoroughbred Racing Associations of North America (TRA), a consortium of racetracks.

Despite several attempts from TIF, the TRPB's Executive Vice President Curtis Linnell declined to answer questions for this series.

What was once a robust organization, even called horse racing's own “little FBI,” is now a shell of itself, focused primarily on the microchipping of horses.

The headline of a 1960 piece in Sports Illustrated may offer that generation's perspective of where racing stood relative to security and integrity measures:

“The Best-Policed Sport of All.”

Today, the TRPB does offer its member tracks a tool known as the Wagering Analysis and Security Platform (WASP).

According to its website, the TRPB says: “this platform currently provides each Thoroughbred Racing Associations' member track officials with a robust integrity toolset for distributed betting networks. A variety of reports and modules are included which assist users with timely examination of wagering detail.”

This description suggests the tracks are mostly responsible for monitoring WASP themselves.

When TIF questioned a TRPB official in mid-2020 about a curiously low superfecta payoff, it was affirmed that the organization does not respond to individual questions about incidents, but only those raised by member tracks. If we wanted more insight, we would have to contact the track directly. The burden of dealing with a customer inquiry is on the racetrack.

North American racing does not have independent oversight of betting or wagering systems. The lone protection comes from a small office wholly-owned by the tracks, which gives them tools to monitor their own races.

This was not the plan when many in and out of racing recognized the need for radically improved wagering oversight in the early 2000s.

For the complete article, click here.

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