Super Group, parent company to Betway Sportsbook, is closing its US sports betting business, ending operations in Ohio and eight other states.
This exit is part of a greater trend across the country. As sports betting markets mature across the nation, a few specific operators are rising to the top, while others are falling by the wayside. And unfortunately for Betway, the latter has been its reality in recent months.
That being said, such Ohio sports betting exits aren’t a reflection of the Buckeye State gambling market’s overall quality. In fact, Super Group may even return to Ohio once online casinos are legalized.
Betway & parent company Super Group announce exit from Ohio & entire US
International gaming company Super Group recently announced that Betway operations would end in nine states, including Ohio.
Super Group is a European holding company that operates Betway and other gaming platforms. This decision came after a lengthy internal review concluded that Betway’s path forward in the United States was murky at best, and chances for profitability seemed to only be getting worse.
Although an official date for Betway’s exit has yet to be announced, the sportsbook’s days are numbered. The eight other states saying goodbye to Betway include:
- Arizona
- Colorado
- Indiana
- Iowa
- New Jersey
- Louisiana
- Pennsylvania
- Virginia
The financials support Super Group’s decision to conclude business in the United States. For the 2023 fiscal year, Super Group reported a total loss of $61 million — a whopping $24 million in losses during the first quarter of 2024 alone.
Super Group profits fell, despite a 44% spike in active customers
All of that profit loss came despite Super Group reporting strong revenue and EBITDA increases during its Q3 2023 earnings report. Revenue was up 16% year over year due to monthly active customers jumping by 44%. Even with those improvements, profits fell from $38.15 million in Q3 2022 to $11.59 million in Q3 2023.
It seemed the company knew this was coming, withdrawing its sports betting license request in Illinois and opting not to launch in Massachusetts. The company is also choosing this path forward despite knowing it will also cost quite a bit in fees and charges to remove itself from these markets.
Betway is not the only sportsbook choosing to abandon its market share and focus on other projects. This has been happening across the country as the sports betting market matures and the titans of industry emerge.
In Ohio, Betway is the second operator to shut its doors in the last month, with Tipico Sportsbook exiting on June 28.
Tipico was recently sold to MGM Resorts, which plans to use its technology to bolster its own offerings. Since its technology was the priority of the purchase, the actual sportsbook is being scrapped. That means yet another operator will vanish from the Ohio sports betting market.
Betway’s exit is no reflection on the state of Ohio’s sports betting market
While two operators leaving within a month of each other sounds like a potential red flag, the Ohio sports betting market is actually thriving.
In April, the state’s sports betting handle reached a lifetime total that exceeded $10 billion, making Ohio the fastest state to reach such a milestone. That’s truly a remarkable feat and shows just how strong the Ohio sports betting market is.
The May Ohio sports betting report displayed further year-over-year growth. The total handle in May was 38.2% improved compared to May 2023, and revenue also jumped by 11.1%.
Even with all that success, both Tipico and Betway struggled to gain market share. Tipico took just $4.8 million of wagers in May, while Betway took around $450,000. Combined, both operators represented under 1% of all wagers taken.
Despite a thriving sports betting market, Tipico and Betway were unable to gain market share. Fortunately, the Ohio gaming market is strong enough that Super Group could potentially return through its online casino platform one day.
Legal online casinos could bring Super Group back to Ohio
Super Group’s sports betting exit is just around the corner, but that does not mean every aspect of the company is ceasing operations. Spin, the company’s online casino arm, is still in operation.
While Super Group is leaving Ohio for now, it could return via Spin if the Buckeye state ever decides to legalize online casinos.
No immediate plans exist for legal online casinos in Ohio, but there is no denying that the state has seen great benefits from its sports betting market. Such profits could stimulate lawmakers to add online casinos to Ohio’s ever-growing suite of gaming offerings. Once that happens, keep an eye out for Spin as one of the possible operators.
