Chairman Payne, Chairman Kotik and Members of the Committee: My name is Dan Shapiro and I am the Director of Business

Transcription

1 Testimony of Daniel Shapiro, Director of Business Development for William Hill US, in Support of House Bill 1627 Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Gaming Oversight Committee November 10, 2015 Chairman Payne, Chairman Kotik and Members of the Committee: My name is Dan Shapiro and I am the Director of Business Development for William Hill US. We appreciate the opportunity to testify today in support of House Bill First, I would like to give you a short overview of William Hill and its U.S. business and then I will follow with why legalized and regulated sports wagering protects consumers, would produce important revenue for Pennsylvania and its citizens and helps to ensure the integrity of sporting events. 111 amh11! w W1ll1~m Hill US t ' :~ t~ H'~)() r ~.-1 '\,:ii :; iof; I.,, ;"'.,]11""!".1., ( ~ 11 I r.. 1 t/tul i5 ~ HL) r.j( r/\.).11 l!:l) J t q 1

2 William Hill is the leading sports betting company in the world. It has been in business for more than 80 years. Headquartered in London, William Hill is a public company traded on the London Stock Exchange with a market capitalization of approximately $4.5 billion and generates EBITDA of approximately $600 million per year. William Hill holds gaming licenses in the United Kingdom, Gibraltar, Australia, Italy, Spain and the United States and employs approximately 17,000 people worldwide. William Hill's US business is headquartered in Las Vegas and is the leading sports betting company in the United States, operating more than 100 sports books located within Nevada casinos. William Hill also operates the leading mobile sports betting application in Nevada, which permits customers to place bets from anywhere within the state, but not outside of Nevada's borders. We employ more than 400 people in Nevada. 2

3 Also, William Hill is the exclusive risk manager for the Delaware Sports Lottery, where parlay wagering on NFL football is permitted; while the product is limited, this is the only significant legal sports betting outside Nevada. Throughout Nevada, you can walk into any of William Hill's sports books and place a legal wager on a wide variety of sports. These sports books often have big screen televisions to show the games and the odds, seating and a counter where customers place bets with an employee known as a "ticket writer." If you win your bet, you are guaranteed to get paid. If you happen to have a dispute about your bet, you have the option of appealing to the Nevada Gaming Control Board. In most of the rest of the country, if you want to bet the game, your only option is to 3

4 seek out an illegal street bookie or an illegal offshore operator, where no consumer protections are in place. The vast illegal sports betting that exists throughout the US is a function of something called the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of commonly referred to as "PASPA" - an act of Congress that prohibits state-sponsored sports betting in all but four states: Nevada, Delaware, Montana and Oregon. These states were ' 1 grandfathered" because they had some form of sports betting prior to the enactment of PASPA. To illustrate the magnitude of the problem created by our current legal landscape, there have been estimates that the size of the illegal sports betting market in the US approaches $400 billion annually, meaning that the legal sports wagering activity in Nevada 4

5 represents about 1 % of that market. Obviously, no one really knows the size of the market, but it is huge. The popularity of sports betting has never been higher. In Nevada, a record $3.9 billion was wagered on sports in 2014 and casinos won $227 million of those bets. In addition to the millions of dollars in gaming taxes to the state's general fund, Nevada's sports betting business provides several thousand jobs, creates hundreds of millions of dollars in other economic activity each year, and helps bring more than 30 million visitors to Nevada each year. In Delaware, the NFL parlay product operated by the state lottery continues to grow each year. There, you can bet at the 3 racetrack casinos and more than 100 lottery retailers, in places such as Buffalo Wild Wings, sports bars and convenience stores. The enthusiasm for sports betting in Delaware is truly something to 5

6 see. The crowds of people who show up every Sunday are really amazing, as they are from all walks of life and all areas of Delaware and surrounding states. Not only do these customers make their bets, they spend money in Delaware on other things. Besides Nevada and Delaware, Oregon and Montana are the other states with exemptions under PASPA. In Oregon, sports betting is no longer permitted by state law. Montana offers a very limited sports fantasy product through its state lottery. In Nevada, our understanding is that there is a relatively small amount of illegal sports betting. It's hard to know for sure, but you just don't see it. Sports betting is out in the open and legal, so there is generally no need for illegal bookmakers. William Hill's customer base is as diverse as the population we serve. They work in just about any profession you can name and span every socio- 6

7 economic group. They all just want a bet on the game to make it a bit more interesting and it is entirely socially acceptable. If recent events involving the unregulated proliferation of daily fantasy sports betting websites and changes in attitudes expressed by professional sports leagues tell us anything, however, it is what those of us in the legal and regulated sports wagering industry have known all along: legalization, regulation and oversight of sports wagering is the best way to protect consumers while, at the same time, creating an economic engine that provides jobs and revenues to a state and it helps to ensure the integrity of the games. Certainly, the attitudes of some of the professional sports leagues, the original proponents of PASPA when it was enacted, have changed as gaming has spread throughout the country. Last year, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver wrote an op-ed for the New 1

8 York Times calling for the legalization of sports betting. Commissioner Silver was the first of the major sports commissioners to publicly call for bringing sports betting out of the underground and into the sunlight. He acknowledged that the outdated framework of PASPA has created a vast illegal market of, "illicit bookmaking operations and shady offshore websites." In New Jersey, there is ongoing litigation around PASPA. In 2011, Governor Christie endorsed a public referendum to legalize sports betting that passed by a 2-1 margin. New Jersey subsequently enacted a bill in 2012 to legalize sports betting at racetracks and casinos. The sports leagues sued and were granted an injunction to stop sports betting, as the court held that the New Jersey law violates PASPA and upheld the constitutionality of that statute. The ruling was upheld by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals by a 2-1 vote. The Third Circuit held that PASPA only prohibits state sponsored sports betting, so New Jersey was free to repeal its 8

9 prohibitions on sports betting; it just couldn't affirmatively authorize it. In response, New Jersey passed a law in October 2014 that removed the state's prohibitions against sports betting for casinos, racetracks and former racetracks. The sports leagues sued again and the District Court granted an injunction to prevent implementation of the new law, ruling it violates PASPA. In August, in a 2-1 decision, New Jersey again lost its appeal in the Third Circuit. However, just last month, the Third Circuit vacated its ruling and granted New Jersey's request for an en bane review. That hearing is expected to occur in February. So, New Jersey's efforts to have legal sports betting are very much alive. 9

10 I'd like to speak for a moment about the regulatory oversight we have in Nevada. As a non-restricted gaming licensee in Nevada, William Hill and its senior executives must undergo thorough background investigations. We are subject to full oversight, scrutiny and audit by the Nevada Gaming Control Board, operate an approved computerized betting system with full reporting capabilities that allows for monitoring of all wagering activity, maintain video surveillance of all transactions, and utilize an auditing staff that reviews transactions daily for compliance purposes. At the same time, William Hill is subject to federal oversight under Title 26 and 31 of the US Code, including reporting requirements for cash transactions and suspicious activities, registration of our employees with the IRS and continuous submission of required reports to mandated federal oversight agencies. We pay monthly taxes to both the State of 10

11 Nevada and the Internal Revenue Service, submitted under the penalty of perjury. These layers of regulatory oversight for legalized sports wagering are the reasons why consumers can be provided a safe and fair product with appropriate levels of protection, how revenues can be remitted to benefit citizens, suspicious activity can be reported and investigated, and how any attempted manipulation of sports contests can be uncovered. On the integrity of the game point, we are required by law to report any suspicious wagering activity and we also have an economic incentive to do it - it's our money at stake. The illegal bookmaker isn't going to pick up the phone and call the F.B.I. or the Gaming Control Board. We do. And, it is worth nothing that millions 11

12 of dollars are bet legally on American sports in Europe without any negative effect on sports integrity. The success of sports wagering in Nevada illustrates the depth and breadth of the market for legalized sports wagering when viewed against the much larger market that currently exists solely for the benefit of illegal operators. When given an option, most customers will opt for a legal operator. I would like to give you a feel for the size of the potential market for legal sports wagering in Pennsylvania. We estimate the sports betting handle in a mature Pennsylvania market could be upwards of $6 billion a year, resulting in total revenue of approximately $400 million annually. In addition to the gaming taxes generated, legalized sports wagering would also result in significant millions in ancillary revenues to Pennsylvania. For 12

13 casinos, sports betting would help generate increased visitation from customers, who, in turn, would spend on food and beverage and other forms of gaming. Major sporting events, such as the Super Bowl and the March Madness college basketball tournament, would become major events for the casinos. Regulating sports wagering activities is the only way to protect consumers from unscrupulous operators. Legalized sports wagering companies such as ours maintain an open and transparent relationship with regulators across the globe. Our operating philosophy is that any regulator, be it a representative of the Nevada Gaming Control Board or the federal government, is welcome in our office at any time to talk with us or review any document we have, so as to ensure the integrity of everything we do. 13

14 We hope to one day have the opportunity to work with you and the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board in a similar manner. I appreciate the opportunity to appear here today and welcome any questions you may have. Daniel Shapiro Director of Business Development William Hill US dshapiro@williamhill.us 14

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16 Overview of William Hill Leading sports betting company in the world, founded in 1934 Licensed and regulated in UK, Gibraltar, Australia, Italy, Spain, US - Additional operations in Bulgaria, Israel and Philippines Leading US sports book operatort licensed by Nevada Gaming Commission Operate 103 sports books; 55% of Nevada locations Nevada's leading mobile sports betting application - Technology provider to many major Nevada casinos Exclusive risk manager for Delaware Sports Lottery Board Member, American Gaming Association Listed on the London Stock Exchange (WMH.L) Market Capitalization $5bn FY14 Revenue $2.Sbn (+8%), FY14 Operating Profit $575m (+11%) A household name in the UK No. 1 operator of betting shops in the UK with 2,400 shops Leading online operator 17,000 employees worldwide; 400 in US

17 Major William Hill US Sports Books SLS LAS VEGAS LAKE TAHOE S1u7ER SEVENS HOTEL ~ CASINO,V ]>~ tai VIOAI DOWNTOWN GRAND - GRAND.lDORaDO HOTEL CASINO RENO ~ MOnTBLE;:U AliSORT CASI MO & SPA HOTEL & CASINO SIERRA RESORT AND CASINO ~ PRIMM VALLEY CASINO RESORTS lurralo llll' PRlllll VALLIY WHISlll\' PITl'S HOTEL CASINO RESORT LAUGHLIN

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19 The premier sports betting product Wide variety of betting options - Wide menu of sports - lnplay wagering using automated feeds - Large menu of parlay cards with the highest payouts - Extensive menu of proposition wagers - Popular contests - Accept customer wagering requests - Higher limits for the right players - Rewards Club program

20 Computerized Bookmaking Systems CBS,.,:;-..,r-_.,...,,... & W'\UlAM Hl..l COMPAN1' CBS technology is our wagering system business that is currently deployed at over 70 /o of Nevada race and sports betting locations Self-service kiosk product White label mobile offering BALLY'S. LAS VEGAS e..., \j. ~ :: ~' t ~ l:... >~~4" <A SARS PALA< L\~ \ ' (LA '1 7~.~f* Harrart J\~ft ~ STRATOSPHERE planet hollywood RESORT & C.. S I NO LAS VEGAS HUTEL I CAS I NO I TOWER s~~

21 Delaware Sports Lottery l., 7!5 ~ William Hill serves as the exclusive risk manager for the Delaware State Lottery Only significant legal sports betting outside of Nevada; re-launched in Wagering offered at 3 racetrack casinos and 102 lottery retailers in Offerings limited to parlays of three or more NFL games by Third Circuit decision Partnership with Scientific Games - -$37.9m 11 $,13.9m I 37% 2013 $31.Sm $11.2m 36 /o 2012 $25.4m $5.2m 20% 2011 $17.8m $4.Bm 27% Win Hold % Locations I $ $35.0 $30.0 $25.0 II) c: ~ $20.0 ~ $15.0 $10.0 Delaware Sports Lottery Sales & Revenue Sales Revenue 2010 $12.Bm $5.0m 39% 3 $ $10.Bm $3.5m 32% 3 $

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