Penn National Gaming, Inc. on Monday said it signed a 20-year strategic partnership with Capital Region Gaming, LLC d/b/a Rivers Casino & Resort.
Rivers Casino & Resort is located at Mohawk Harbor near downtown Schenectady, NY. It features 1,150 slots, 67 live table games, a 16-table poker room and a live sportsbook.
The two parties said the deal will provide Penn Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of Penn National, “second skin” access to the mobile sports betting and online casino market in the Empire State.
The agreement is subject to legislation being enacted and regulatory approvals, they noted.
“Gaining potential access to what could become one of the nation’s most lucrative sports betting markets has been a major priority for our company,” Jon Kaplowitz, Penn National’s SVP of Interactive Gaming, said in a statement. “We are hopeful that the New York State Assembly will follow those leading revenue producing states that allow for multiple skins for mobile sports betting.”
Penn Interactive currently offers online sports betting in two states – Pennsylvania and Michigan – and said it anticipates operating its Barstool Sports mobile sportsbook app in at least 10 states by the end of 2021.
Penn Interactive launched its Barstool-branded online casino in Michigan on 1 February. Kaplowitz said the company is very encouraged by the initial results it has seen in Michigan, including registering more than 48,000 new customers and generating total handle of $27.5m during the first 10 days of operation.
Penn National operates 41 properties across 19 states. Its wholly-owned interactive division, Penn Interactive, operates retail sports betting, as well as online social casino, bingo and iCasino products.
Earlier this month, Penn National entered a partnership with Barstool Sports, in which Barstool will exclusively promote Penn's land-based and online casinos and sports betting products, including the Barstool Sportsbook mobile app, to its national audience.
