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WynnBet conditionally approved for online sports betting in Tennessee

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Wynn Resorts’ online sports betting brand, WynnBet, has been conditionally approved to offer online sports gaming in the state of Tennessee.

The Sports Wagering Committee of the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation’s board of directors approved WynnBet to operate its online sports betting app in the state, pending the fulfilment of statutory and regulatory requirements.

Tennessee will become the ninth state in which WynnBet has secured market access, in addition to New Jersey, Colorado and Michigan, where the app is already live, and Indiana, Nevada, Massachusetts, Ohio and Iowa, where the operator expects to launch this year.

The operator has also submitted an application for licensing in Virginia.

In addition to the approval of its product launch in the state, WynnBet yesterday announced a new sporting partnership with National Basketball Association (NBA) team the Memphis Grizzlies.

The deal will see the organizations collaborate on producing and promoting high-impact experiences for their fans, the operator said.

WynnBet will gain integrations across several digital and broadcast programs from the Grizzlies and on-demand media platform Grind City Media.

The organizations will create cross-promotional campaigns to leverage the Grizzlies’ digital popularity, across social media, web and mobile applications.

The deal will also see the creation of a WynnBet-branded lounge within the Grizzlies’ home arena, and other live experiences and elements to be announced closer to WynnBet’s official launch in the state.

Sports betting in Tennessee launched in November last year, and the state became the first to allow mobile and online wagering without a land-based tethering requirement.

In 2019, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee allowed the bill legalizing sports betting to pass into law without his signature, despite having made clear his opposition to expanding gambling in the state.

Results published last month showed that Tennessee sports betting revenue grew 5.3% month-on-month in December, as players wagered a total of $180.9m on sports throughout the month.

Wynn Resorts suffered a $2.07bn net loss in 2020 due to challenges presented by the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, as total operating revenue for the year was down 68.3% at $2.10bn.

Yesterday, the operator announced that it expects to raise around $630.6m through the launch of an underwritten public offering of 5.5m common stock shares, with an option to purchase a further 825,000 shares.

The expected proceeds of $630.6m are based on a public offering price of $116.99 per share, Wynn’s closing share price at the end of trading on the Nasdaq exchange on February 5.