Bet365 Seeks U.S. 'Gold Medal' For Sports Betting, iGaming In Wake Of Michigan Launch
Bet365 Michigan launched on Friday. For Trip Stoddard, that represented just one element of a “hectic” day. Far more stressful for the gaming operator’s Head of Operations – the fickle spring weather found at the base of the Rocky Mountains in Denver.
“It was 75 degrees yesterday, and now it's dumping snow outside,” Stoddard told Bookies.com in an exclusive interview. “Sure, it will be all gone in 48 hours, but it's still . . . I wish I had brought a jacket. I wish somebody would've told me, but hard to blame someone that's not myself.”
While the local weather forecast might be tricky this time of year in Colorado, the future of online sports betting remains clouded by a blizzard of prediction markets.
Despite these real-world and metaphorical headwinds and snowdrifts, bet365 remains committed to “a broader US strategy to expand into all legal markets.”
For now, prediction markets remain a consideration, Stoddard said, but not a plan.
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Goal: No. 1 In Legalized Sports Betting Digital Casino
Instead, bet365 has a simple goal: Be No. 1 in legalized sports betting and iGaming.
We're looking at where we really could be the number one player in the legalized sports betting and digital casino space. I mean number one. I don't mean number three. I don't mean number five. This is our company’s DNA. We don't enter markets to say, ‘Hey, let's hang out in the background and see what happens.’ You saw us as a second mover. You saw us trying to figure out the U.S. Now if you look at our state launches, you look at our marketing partnership, you just open our app. I think everyone's aware that we're not looking for a podium, we're looking for a gold medal. - Trip Stoddard, bet365 Head Of Operations
Bet365 recently left the American Gaming Association and joined the Sports Betting Alliance, citing its “digital-first” focus. The SBA includes DraftKings and FanDuel, both of which have launched a prediction-based product in the U.S.
Currently, 39 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico offer legal sports betting. Of those, 32 have legalized online wagering. The latest being Wisconsin earlier this month.
“We're looking at every state that we can get into. With our US focus, with our (Denver) headquarters, we're pretty much trying to be in every new state day one and continue to enter all the other states that we're not,” Stoddard said. “Early on, we saw a lot of other European operators that tried to come into the market halfway. We didn't want to do that; we saw how it developed. We knew we wanted to be in New Jersey, but we really wanted to make sure we would be in the U.S. long term. We didn't want to bring a European product here, we didn't want to bring European marketing offers here.”
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Massachusetts Launch Up Next For Bet365?
With Bet365 Michigan. The company now operates in 17 U.S. states. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission reopened its application process after Bet365 expressed interest in obtaining one of the Commonwealth’s untethered online licenses.
Bet365 – or anyone else – has until May 15 to inform the MGC whether it plans to move forward.
“Massachusetts is a huge market. We know Massachusetts die-hard sports fans. We know how committed they are. We're thinking about going through that process. We haven't announced anything. We haven't decided if we're formally doing it, but it's just been nice to have that direct relationship with the Commission," Stoddard said. "We’ve got a competitor who's got a headquarters there. We know it's a very competitive market, but we also know that sports betting's in our DNA. I mean, we can talk about predictions and how we're monitoring that situation, but we're a sports-first company. We're globally number one.”
IGaming has yet to be legalized in Massachusetts, and Stoddard said its future in the Bay State played no part in his company's decision to potentially operate there.
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Michigan Partnerships Include Tigers, Red Wings
Bet365 Michigan assumed the online betting and iGaming partnership previously held by PokerStars via the Odawa Tribe. Bet365 has sponsorship deals with the Detroit Tigers, Detroit Red Wings, and 313 Presents.
The Red Wings partnership comes with mixed emotions, given that Stoddard bleeds Colorado Avalanche burgundy and blue. “The Red Wings are a great partner,” he said.
Those deals represented another toehold in Michigan before last week’s launch.
“We've been working for months. Michigan's a hard market to enter. All the skins are taken by either our competitors or by some of the tribes there that are trying to launch or are launching in-house products. When we got the deal done, we wanted to launch as fast as possible,” Stoddard said.
Bet365 Michigan flipped live in time for the start of the NBA. The Pistons own the top seed in the East. Bet365 partners with the St. Louis Cardinals in Missouri and the Cleveland Guardians in Ohio.
The naming rights for the Tigers’ home stadium, Comerica Park, could be up for grabs after the 2026 season.
Could we see a Bet365 Park in Detroit next season?
“We would look at everything. I mean, that's not on my list right now, but as I said, brand awareness is huge for us. So we'll evaluate everything that comes our way and every open sports opportunity.”
Bet365 Sees Advantage With World Cup
The 2026 World Cup begins 50 days from Wednesday across 16 sites in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. A Bookies.com study finds that Americans will legally wager $3.1 billion on the 48-team event. U.K.-based bet365 originally launched online in 2000. Soccer, and the World Cup specifically, happens on familiar turf.
“This feels like it's one of those rare moments where we have got a complete 25-year history of being the world's number one soccer app. We are incredibly excited for the World Cup to happen just because we think we're really positioned for a lot of hardcore betters that maybe haven't bet too much soccer, and for casual betters that are going to look at this and say, ‘This looks really fun. Let's see what the results are.’ I think it's going to be a really good time for Bet365.”
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