A Look at Nevada’s Legal eSports Wagering Industry

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Friday, December 9th, 2016 | Written by Stephen Smith

eSports is a growing segment of the online gaming industry, with major international tournaments drawing huge crowds of people to their venues to watch some of the world’s top players matching their video gaming skills against one another. As eSports become more popular, betting on them has become part of the fun, with wagering on different competitors providing the audience with more of a stake in the action.

While eSports competitions are completely legal in the United States, eSports betting has not been readily available for Americans. In the past, punters have therefore resorted to using illegal offshore sites to place their bets during large events, but in Nevada that is no longer necessary after William Hill last month became the first operator to legally offer eSports betting for events in the USA.

Off To Good Start

On November 19th, William Hill organized its first ever event in the US at the the Downtown Grand Casino in Las Vegas. Called the Oakland League of Legends Event, the competition took place at the Oracle Arena and included League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournaments. At the end of its two day run, the Unicorns of Love, a European team, eventually won the competition, as well as a top prize of $50,000.

Nevada Aims To Be At Forefront of eSports

The move to offer legal eSports betting in Nevada has been led by William Hills USA and the Downtown Grand Casino. When the two decided to partner up, they met with Nevada’s Governor Brian Sandoval to see how their proposed eSports tournaments would be viewed under the law, with the Nevada Gaming Policy Committee subsequently reviewing and ultimately approving their proposal. Afterward, Sandoval issued a statement saying that he now hoped Nevada will become a global center for eSports, explaining:

“By embracing this unique opportunity and incorporating innovation and technology into our gaming industry, we’re expanding the potential of one of our oldest industries.”

Legal eSport Wagering

William Hill USA is now able to offer eSports betting at all of the 108 Nevada casinos where they offer sports book. In addition to their offline eSports betting operations, the company also has an Android and iOS app for online eSports which is available for individuals in Nevada, although it can only be used while players are physically within the state’s borders.

As far as William Hill USA branching out into other markets is concerned, technically speaking, eSports betting is banned under the same laws as sports betting, so it is therefore legal to accept eSports bets only in those states where sports betting is completely legal. At this present time, only Nevada is able to offer full sports books, therefore it’s likely that federal sports betting bans will have to be lifted first before eSports betting can become a major form of gambling throughout the U.S.

30-day Request Required

One unusual stipulation concerning legal eSports betting in Nevada is that eSports governing bodies not wanting their competitions to appear on Las Vegas sportsbook must submit their request at least 30-days before their event get underway. Furthermore, they will also need to provide the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) with a valid reason for their request, with the final decision ultimately resting with the regulatory authority. As an email quote referencing NGC Regulation 22.120 states:

“Based on the merits of the request, the NGC would decide whether or not to grant the request.”

In the meantime, the Evolution Championship Series (Evo) seems adamant about keeping its eSports competitions free from wagering, with its co-founder, Joey Cuellar, saying that he intends to continue banning gambling from its events in the future. Other eSport organizations holding similar views includes Capcom and Riot.

A Burgeoning Industry

In the first week of December, XLIVE was held in Las Vegas, and also included an eSports gambling panel. Giving his forecast for the industry’s future, XLIVE founder Waco Hoover stated that eSports was expected to experience significant growth going forward, explaining:

“Some estimates put the global sports betting industry over $1 trillion and with the growing popularity of eSports the industry is looking to capitalize on gambling. Unheard of in traditional sports – crowd sourced prize pools in excess of $20 million demonstrate the extraordinary fan bases that exist with eSports and their leagues.”