Tribal sports gambling ops in Michigan get a boost

Michigan lawmakers signed off on sports gambling bills last December, eager to welcome an enterprise that could eventually add millions of dollars in much-needed revenue to the state. The Michigan gaming control board (MGCB) was only getting ready to issue the first three licenses to commercial casinos – just days before the NCAA's March Madness – when the sporting world ran into a brick wall because of the coronavirus. If things get cranking again, those locations will have some increased rivalry, due to a recent deal between gaming tech company GAN and the Chippewa Indians' Sault Tribe, which runs five tribal casinos in the state under the Kewadin Casinos brand in the Upper Peninsula Area of Michigan.

The agreement was concluded in the last week of March and will see GAN providing the tribe's facilities its electronic gaming network and operating services as well as an unspecified, undisclosed casino operator. The latter relationship is kept under wraps until all legal barriers are raised. The CEO of Kewadin Gaming Authority, Allen Kerridge, said in a statement, "The Chippewa Indians' Sault Tribe is excited to take this crucial step with gan and our joint partner to deliver all retail sports to our customers in short time at our five casino locations, in addition to the day-one internet gaming casino when first approved by the state of Michigan. We choose GAN and our joint partner on the basis of their market-leading technologies and shared extensive expertise servicing online and offline gaming customers."

Hopes are strong for Michigan sports gambling activity. Before the law was enacted, and not anticipating a significant global pandemic, the state's iGaming industry was expected to pull in gross revenues of about $377 million in the first year of operations. according to GAN and a report undertaken by regulus partners, the amount was projected to rise to about $836 million within four years. The proceeds were supposed to be invested in the development of the state. The whole world is waiting for the lifting of quarantine measures.

GAN, which already operates in Indiana, New Jersey and more, is ready to take Michigan by storm, and its CEO, Jeff Berman, says of the new alliance, "Michigan has long been an exciting market, with both online sports and internet casino gaming already regulated... We are extremely excited to bring real money internet gambling to Michigan, which remains at the center of our mission, strategy."

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer shut down commercial casinos until April 13, with most likely an expansion of the order coming in. Kewadin casinos have brought their activities to a halt in response, planning to rebuild early May.