It's high stakes for UK firms as sports betting starts to spread out in America.
From Tuesday, new guidelines on wagering came into result in Delaware, a small east coast state about two hours from Washington.
Neighbouring New Jersey could start accepting sports betting bets as early as Friday.
The modifications are the very first in what might end up being a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the way for states to enable sports betting wagering.
The market sees a "once in a generation" opportunity to establish a new market in sports-mad America, said Dublin-based financial expert David Jennings, who heads leisure research study at Davy.
For UK firms, which are grappling with combination, increased online competition and harder rules from UK regulators, the timing is especially appropriate.
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But the industry states counting on the US remains a risky bet, as UK companies deal with complex state-by-state regulation and competition from entrenched regional interests.
"It's something that we're actually focusing on, but equally we don't want to overhype it," stated James Midmer, spokesperson at Paddy Power Betfair, which recently purchased the US fantasy sports betting website FanDuel.
'Take some time'
The US represented about 23% of the world's $244bn (₤ 182bn) in gaming profits last year, according to a report by Technavio, external released in January.
Firms are wanting to tap into more of that activity after last month's decision, which struck down a 1992 federal law that barred states beyond Nevada and a few others from authorising sports betting wagering.
The ruling found the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not really legalise sports betting, leaving that concern to local legislators.
That is expected to result in considerable variation in how firms get accredited, where sports wagering can take place, and which events are open to speculation - with big implications for the size of the marketplace.
Potential profits varieties from $4.2 bn to practically $20bn yearly depending on factors like the number of states move to legalise, Oxford Economics approximated in a 2017 study for the American Gaming Association.
"There was a lot of 'this is going to be big'", said Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for specialists KPMG.
Now, he said: "I think many people ... are taking a look at this as, 'it's an opportunity however it's not going to be $20bn and it's going to be state by state and it's going to require time'."
'Remains to be seen"
Chris Grove, managing director at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, anticipates that 32 states will legalise sports betting wagering in some type by 2023, creating a market with about $6bn in yearly earnings.
But bookmakers face a far various landscape in America than they carry out in the UK, where betting shops are a regular sight.
US laws minimal gaming mainly to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip till relatively recently.
In the popular creativity, sports betting wagering has actually long been connected to a 1919 baseball World Series match-fixing scandal.
States have actually also been sluggish to legalise many forms of online gaming, despite a 2011 Justice Department viewpoint that appeared to get rid of obstacles.
While sports betting is usually viewed in its own classification, "it clearly remains to be seen whether it gets the kind of momentum people believe it will," said Keith Miller, law professor at Drake University and co-author of a book about sports betting policy.
David Carruthers is the former primary executive of BetonSports, who was jailed in the US in 2006 for running an overseas online sportsbook and served jail time.
Now a specialist, he states UK firms must approach the market carefully, selecting partners with care and avoiding missteps that could result in regulator reaction.
"This is an opportunity for the American sports betting bettor ... I'm not exactly sure whether it is an opportunity for organization," he says. "It really depends on the outcome of [state] legislation and how the company operators pursue the opportunity."
'It will be partnerships'
As legalisation starts, sports betting companies are lobbying to fend off high tax rates, as well as demands by US sports betting leagues, which wish to gather a percentage of revenue as an "stability charge".
International business face the included difficulty of a powerful existing video gaming market, with casino operators, state-run lottery games and Native American people that are seeking to safeguard their turf.
Analysts state UK companies will require to strike partnerships, providing their knowledge and innovation in order to make inroads.
They indicate SBTech's recent announcement that it is providing technology for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the sort of offers likely to materialise.
"It will be a win-win for everybody, but it will be partnerships and it will be driven by innovation," Mr Hawkley said.
'It will just depend'
Joe Asher, chief executive at William Hill US, is clear-eyed about the truths.
The company has actually been purchasing the US market considering that 2011, when it purchased 3 US firms to establish an existence in Nevada.
William Hill now utilizes about 450 people in the US and has actually announced partnerships with gambling establishments in Iowa and New Jersey.
It works as risk manager for the Delaware Lottery and has actually invested millions alongside a regional designer in a New Jersey horse racing track.
Mr Asher stated William Hill has actually become a family name in Nevada however that's not necessarily the objective everywhere.
"We certainly plan to have an extremely substantial brand existence in New Jersey," he stated. "In other states, it will just depend upon policy and potentially who our regional partner is."
"The US is going to be the biggest sports betting market on the planet," he added. "Obviously that's not going to occur on the first day."
