Getting to Know Your Bookie: Who are PointsBet?
PointsBet are a relatively new online bookmaker who are making a huge impact on the legal American sports betting industry. Founded in 2015 in Australia, PointsBet launched an innovative sports betting product PointsBetting* in their domestic market in February 2017.
They then added Fixed Odds Racing in September 2017 and Fixed Odds Sports in March 2018. At that point they were providing a full-service corporate bookmaker offering in Australia and their eyes were wandering further afield.
They were closely observing developments in North America. And when the Professional and Amateur Sport Protection Act (PASPA) was overturned in May 2018, PointsBet were quick to act.
US Expansion
They entered the US market in July 2018 through a partnership with Meadowlands racetrack in New Jersey. Wasting little time, they launched their app in New Jersey in January 2019 and by the middle of 2020 had gained 6.5% of the market. Considering the fact New Jersey has been setting handle records with $668 million in August and $748.6 million in September, this growth was significant for a company founded less than five years earlier.
In November 2020, PointsBet launched in Colorado. That means when Iowa allows remote registration for online sports betting accounts on January 1st 2021, PointsBet will be fully live in five states:
- New Jersey – Partnered with Meadowlands Racetrack, launched in January 2019
- Iowa: Partnered with Catfish Bend Casino in April 2019
- Indiana: Partnered with Hollywood Casino, Lawrenceburg, launched in March 2020
- Illinois: Partnered with Hawthorne Racecourse, launched in September 2020
- Colorado: Partnered with Double Eagle Casino, launched in November 2020
Next, PointsBet is due to bring its online sportsbook to Michigan in January 2021. In addition, it plans to bring a new in-house proprietary iGaming platform to players in both Michigan and New Jersey in early 2021. It secured its iGaming access in New Jersey through a partnership with Twin River Management group.
Sponsorships
PointsBet has also formed strong strategic partnerships with professional teams. These include the Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche, Colorado Mammoth, Detroit Tigers, Indiana Pacers, Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears.
Customer acquisition is obviously a primary goal. They have seen a 159% increase in active users in the US from 15,380 on Sept 30th 2019 to 39,816 on Sept 30th 2020.
This growth and the subsequent revenue gains should keep PointsBet US CEO Johnny Aitken and Group CEO Sam Swanell happy. Both men cut their teeth in Australia with well known bookmaker Tom Waterhouse.
PointsBet executives are bringing their Australian sports betting experience to their US operations
Big Name Competitors
The PointsBet story is quite a remarkable one because it has entered a market starting with no brand awareness. It has already taken a respectable market share vs well known DFS kingpins FanDuel and DraftKings and continues to expand. This is good news for sports bettors across the country because more competition means more customer incentives.
*PointsBetting
PointsBetting is a high-risk, high-reward form of betting that, as the name suggests, is currently unique to PointsBet. While using the PointsBetting platform, clients are either rewarded or docked by how right or wrong their wager was. Unlike fixed odds, each point of difference from the spread or total becomes a multiplier of the original stake, allowing a bettor to win or lose more and more based upon the outcome of their wager. In other words — every yard, every point, every run, every goal and every play matters.