The Nevada Senate Bill 240 amends pari-mutuel betting legislation to include competitive gaming and other events such as award shows. It was signed by Nevada Governor, Brian Sandoval, on Saturday and will be enforced from July 1.

While esports is not directly mentioned in the amendment, it is technically included under “other events” and betting on the available markets is now legal in the state.

While gaming regulators in Nevada already offer esports markets – bookmaker William Hill was granted permission in November –, the bill formalises the activity and allows clarification for sportsbooks. It may even increase the number of markets on offer for punters interested in esports betting.

The bill was first introduced on March 23 at a Gaming Policy Committee meeting. Here, esports athlete, Johnathan ‘Fatality’ Wendel, used his own experiences as a professional gamer in his testimony. He detailed the tough training regime and the league’s similarities to athletic competitions as reasons why esports should be considered a real sport.

It is likely his evidence gave the bill a push since Governor Sandoval and Nevada Gaming Commission Chairman, Tony Alamo, both said they were impressed with Wendel.

Chairman of the Gaming Control Board, AG Bernett, also made a comment during the hearing stating he wanted esports events to be held at the T-Mobile Arena – where huge pop stars perform and major sporting events are held – on the Las Vegas Strip.

“Ideally, you would have people coming from all over the globe to compete, with people paying to come in and bet on that event like you would a sportsbook,” he said.

Nevada has been aggressively trying to become one of the main destinations for esports, in terms of holding events and betting on tournaments.

There are already a number of esports venues in the state including the 15,000 square feet arena opened by Millenial Esports – the Halo Championship Series and Madden NFL Championships have both been held here. The Luxor is also planning to open a multi-tiered esports arena.

As the esports events are becoming more frequent and more popular, and now that quality betting regulations are in place Nevada could get its wish.

UK Gambling Commission partners with Esports Integrity Coalition

The UK Gambling Commission has signed an information sharing Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Esports Integrity Coalition (ESIC) to help regulate?the industry. It is not unlike how the Nevada regulator monitors esports tournaments held in Las Vegas.

The partnership will see?esports grouped with traditional sports, including football and cricket, in terms of detecting and preventing match-fixing and other betting malpractice in sport.

The UK Gambling Commission’s Sports Betting Intelligence Unit (SBIU) will work with ESIC to focus on betting corruption in eSports.

ESIC will be able to use intelligence from both the UK Gambling Commission and Nevada’s regulator too.

“This MOU is a significant step for ESIC and the esports community,” ESIC Commissioner Ian Smith, said.

“The Gambling Commission has significant resources and powers that will be invaluable in helping to combat any emergence of organised crime or serious fraud within our rapidly growing sector.

“As esports continues to grow successfully, so will the inevitable attempts to profit on the back of that success through illegitimate means.

“This agreement will help protect all the individuals, teams and companies working so hard to make esports successful for players and fans alike.”

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The UK Gambling Commission wants parents to be aware of the dangers of eSports skin betting.

A Commission paper released this week has revealed the growing number of unregulated third-party websites which allow gamers to wager on video game tournaments using in-game items, such as digital guns and knives. These are known as skins.

The Commission’s CEO, Sarah Harrison, commented on the findings, stating it is worrying parents could be giving money to their child to play a computer game when in fact they are gambling.

She noted the rise of gambling sites using skins as a betting currency.

“Gambling on eSports with in-game-items is growing and we need to make sure all gambling is fair, safe, crime-free and protects the young and vulnerable,” Harrison said.

Undersecretary for the Department of Media, Culture and Sport, Tracy Crouch, supported the Commission’s findings.

“eSports is a phenomenon that gets bigger every day and is enjoyed by millions, but it is a concern that there are unlicensed websites jumping on the back of popular video games and encouraging children to gamble,” she said.

“The Gambling Commission has shown that it will take action and prosecute but it is important that parents are vigilant too and know about this risk to their children.”

Crouch is referring to the case the Commission took against a pair of eSports gambling site promoters. The pair pleaded guilty last month, paying ￡265,000 in fines and court costs.

The Commission has also been proactive in terms of regulation, requiring any site which provides betting on eSport matches to have UK Gambling Commission licence. Licences are also required if a site allows virtual goods to act as a “de facto virtual currency.”

The eSports Position Paper

The position paper focuses predominantly on gambling in eSports. When it comes to social gaming the Commission’s stance is there is no “persuasive case to pursue further regulatory
intervention at this stage.”

It maintains the view gambling sites which offer virtual currencies must have a UK Gambling Commission license, since it’s just another form of money.

The paper says since interpreting legislation is up to the courts, it “seeks to balance an interpretation of the legal framework” to assess “where interactive entertainment has crossed or is in danger of crossing boundaries into licensable gambling activities.”

The Commission said it will penalise any unlicensed gambling facilities which present “a risk of harm to children is and will remain a significant aggravating factor.”

It noted while a “zero-tolerance approach” will be taken when it comes to unlicensed gambling operators, the Commission “will also liaise with games publishers and/or network operators who may unintentionally be enabling the criminal activity.”

When it comes to skin betting the Commission said it has been proactive in engaging with global regulators to ensure consumers, particularly children, are protected.

It also added skin-betting is “a by-product of the manner in which games have been developed and in-game economies incorporated for commercial benefit.”

Despite the Commission revealing it was unable to find any evidence “of any direct commercial benefit to games publishers from the illegal gambling facilities” it says they indirectly benefit since “it is the games publishers who are the ultimate source of in-game items acting as a de-facto central bank.”

The paper addressed the concerns over the integrity of eSports events but found no evidence to support the trepidation.

But the Commission said it “will continue to work with those committed to raising awareness and addressing integrity risks within eSports including exploring memorandums of understanding where appropriate.”

eSports statistics

The paper also revealed only 8.5 percent of adults surveyed via its gambling participation surveys had wagered on eSports in the last year. Of the small group of eSports punters, 58 percent of eSports gamblers were male, while 42 per cent were female, but women were found more likely to bet using in-game items.

When it comes to betting currency, 90 percent bet using in-gaming items, 88 per cent used real money, and 78 percent used both.

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The underground world of eSports gambling just took a big from UK gambling authorities.

YouTube and eSports star Craig Douglas pleaded guilty alongside his business partner, Dylan Rigby, for running an illegal gambling ring.

They both admitted their roles in prompting eSports players to bet on their own and other pro gaming matches using an in-game FIFA currency called FIFA Coins.

They created a website called “FUTGalaxy”, on which users could bet using the currency and engaging in lottery and slot-like games to win additional coins.

The site generated a pre-tax profit of ￡96k in less than a year from July 2015, with thousands of registered users on the site, many under the legal gambling age in the UK.

While both men were spared jail time, Douglas was fined ￡16,000 and ordered to pay ￡75,000 after he admitted his role as an “advertiser and a promoter” of the service.

Rigby received a much harsher penalty, ordered to pay a ￡24,000 fine and ￡150,000 in court costs after admitting to have been a “prime mover” in the operation of the site.

District Judge Jack McGarva said both men were clearly aware that children were accessing the site.

“At the very least, you both turned a blind eye to it,” he said.

Legal proceedings began against the duo in late 2016 when the UK Gambling Commission accused them of running an unlawful gambling syndicate.

They accused Douglas of promoting illegal gambling activities via his YouTube page, where he has more than 1.3 million subscribers, many of whom are minors.

The pair had initially entered not guilty pleas, but changed their pleas leading into a hearing. Douglas had feared jail time, telling his followers there was a probability that he would not be walking out of court on Monday morning. “[And] that’s scary,” he said.

Governments around the globe are working to reign in the growing underground eSports gambling industry, which mostly deals in in-game skins, video games currency, and tokens.

A popular scene is occurring with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Team Fortress 2, with developer, Valve, sending cease a desist letters to a number of illegal gambling operations.

These sites generally allow users to bet either in or for in-game currency, with certain items being extremely rare in the game and therefore demanding a high real currency cost.

eSportBet’s opinion: This has been a long time coming, and it raises interesting questions not just about the influence of “influencers”, as they are called, but also the relationships they have with audiences. Recent laws passed in Australia and current laws in the US force YouTubers, Streamers and other online personalities to disclose any promotions. In this case, even disclosure would not have mattered as the act was illegal. We don’t have an issue personally with the use of in-game currency as a betting currency, but it is clear it needs to be regulated and managed in a way to avoid it being used to exploit minors.

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