Operators in Macau in favor of sports betting

Casino operators said that they like the possibility of being able to offer sports betting to their clients.

Macau.- Sands China said during the Gaming Global Expo G2E Asia 2017 that the company could seek cooperation from the current holder of the only license to offer sports betting services in Macau, since casino operators would want to offer those services to their clients, as reported by Asia Gaming Brief.

Macau currently has a sports betting monopoly, as Macau Slot is the only provider in the territory. Approximately US$1 billion was collected by the operator in bets during 2016, a small number when compared to the figures that casinos make every year, but it still could represent a growing business if the casinos operators get the chance to promote the activity. The Asian Racing Federation revealed that approximately US$72 billion is illegally bet every year in only one province of China, and that is still growing in other countries in the continent.

Sands China President and Executive Director Wilfred Wong said: “What we may do is to try to see how we can cooperate with this operator because we agree that sports betting is prevalent everywhere and we would like to be able to provide this offering to our customers.” Moreover, MGM China chief operating officer, gaming, John Shigley, said: “Even in Nevada where it’s legal, the amount of legal betting is dwarfed by the amount that’s off the books. There’s a wide desire to bet on sports in Asia and it’s already huge business. We would love to have a piece of it and pay a whatever tax rate is most relevant to develop reinvestment and pay the best salary for our employees.”