WynnBET Casino PA is likely to launch in the immediate future, perhaps within days, after regulators in Pennsylvania awarded the company a gaming operator’s license.
At its meeting on Wednesday, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) awarded a license to WSI US LLC, an entity associated with the WynnBET brand and parent company Wynn Resorts.
The license awarded by PGCB covers online casino gaming but not sports betting. WSI is not currently listed as an applicant for sports betting through the regulator, so a WynnBET Sportsbook appears some time off.
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Harrah’s Considered Likely Land-Based Partner
PGCB records show WSI applied for a license in July. The regulator had awarded WSI an interim authorization before Wednesday’s meeting.
WynnBET is currently live with online casino gaming in two states: Michigan and New Jersey. It operates under the tribal-owned Kewadin Casinos license in Michigan, while in the Garden State, it has market access through a partnership with Caesars.
In Pennsylvania, online operators are required to partner with a land-based casino. But since there is no limit on the number of skins a land-based casino may have, there isn’t a pressing need for WynnBET Casino PA to land a home.
That said, WynnBET’s partnership with Caesars in neighboring New Jersey suggests that the new online casino platform would be launched under the license of Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino and Racetrack, which Caesars owns.
WynnBET Casino PA would become the 19th online casino in Pennsylvania.
Although sports betting doesn’t appear set to launch as early as online casino gaming, WynnBET Sportsbook is currently live in nine states — Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, and Virginia.
A Massachusetts Launch Was Expected First
Wynn Resorts has been mostly quiet about expanding into the online casino vertical. The last time an executive said anything about it was with a degree of pessimism.
During a Q2 2022 earnings call on August 9, Wynn Resorts CEO Craig Billings said the company was, at the time, primarily focused on launching online sports betting in Massachusetts. A launch in that state has not happened yet.
“Massachusetts was always an important bootstrapping event for WynnBET and Wynn Interactive — as is any movement in iGaming, which we obviously don’t see at the moment, but I’m certain we will over the longer term,” Billings said.
But the CEO added Wynn Resorts planned to launch WynnBET products “in additional states,” including those where it doesn’t currently have a land-based presence — like Pennsylvania.
“We’re continuing to set the foundation to grow that business over time as the [total addressable market] grows and as our business grows.”
In a twist, despite Wynn Resorts prioritizing a launch of online sports betting in Massachusetts, it could very well be that WynnBET Casino launches in Pennsylvania instead.
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October Was a Record Month for PA Online Casinos
WynnBET Casino PA will enter a crowded field and become the state’s 19th online casino.
The Pennsylvania online casinos market had a record $122 million in gross revenue in October, according to data from the PGCB.
Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course led the field in revenue ($52.4 million) and market share (42.9%). That’s because it has five skins for online casino gaming — Barstool, BetMGM, DraftKings, PointsBet, and its house brand, Hollywood Casino.
Harrah’s was among the smaller licensees, with $2.8 million in revenue and a 2.3% market share in October. That could change quickly if WynnBET joins Caesars Casino PA on the Harrah’s license.
