Published date: February 20, 2024, 02:18h.
Last update date: February 21, 2024, 11:09.
Intralot, which powers Washington D.C.’s underperforming mobile sports betting app, may remain in the nation’s capital longer than some city council members hope.
The Greek gaming company’s no-bid contract to run the GambetDC app on behalf of DC Lottery is scheduled to expire in July. However, it now seems likely that the lottery will renew the agreement. Under the terms of the original agreement, DC Lottery has the option to renew the agreement for up to five years after the initial term expires.
This renovation will probably take a year. However, this still delays GambetDC’s plans to potentially pair Intralot with a major national online sports betting operator in the hope of improving its performance.
“The length of the extension is not yet clear,” he said. Frank Suarez, president of the DC Lottery, said at a city council meeting last week.
Suarez believes that by extending the deal with Intralot, DC Lottery will buy time to find another gaming company to work with and potentially take over Intralot at some point. Big names like BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook and FanDuel operate retail sports betting sites in the District, but they are not allowed to offer mobile betting there.
There Are Many Questions
As stated by Washington City GazetteDC Lottery knew its contract with Intralot would expire in July, leading to criticism of its decision to slow efforts to find a suitable replacement for Intralot.
The result of this foot-dragging is that the DC Lottery no longer has sufficient time to initiate a competitive bidding process to run the GambetDC app; which means Intralot will linger in the city longer than before, much to the chagrin of the betters and councillors. many hoped.
“It will likely take months for the city to write a new request for proposals, gather responses, and then pick a winner. At least if the city chooses to back out of the Intralot deal, this mysterious new subcontractor could help it make more money in the meantime,” says Alex Koma. City Paper.
Under Intralot, GambetDC was a flop, failing punters during major events while generating disappointing tax revenue for the city. GambetDC has been so bad since its debut that today thousands of DC bettors still travel to Maryland or Virginia to place mobile bets.
It’s Probably Time to Send Intralot Packaging
DC Lottery signed a $215 million deal with Intralot before launching its Gambet sports betting platform. This was widely criticized because the contract was not put out to tender. Buyers’ remorse over this deal soon surfaced and has continued for several years.
Aspect City Paper He noted that it would make sense for DC Lottery to let its contract with Intralot expire and stop making payments to the company, while also beginning an extensive search for a replacement.
“But the longer the city continues to maintain the status quo with Intralot and the company, the further away real change looks,” Koma said. The Loose Lips (LL) column “can easily imagine a scenario in which the lottery marginally increases revenues and extends its agreement with its existing partners, especially if politicians are content to ignore the issue.”
