William Hill launches enhanced mobile sports betting services in Iowa

After effectively shedding its in-person registration requirement on the first day of the new year, William Hill US made quick work of launching its enhanced William Hill Sports Book App and website in Iowa.

The Hawkeye State was one of the first Midwestern states to authorize both online and retail sports betting, which launched in August 2019 just 94 days after Governor Kim Reynolds signed the enabling legislation. However, gamblers in the state looking to place a wager online were required to first establish an account on-site at the licensing property before they could do so.

Streamlined proscess:

Now available for registration and use from anywhere within the state’s borders, the William Hill mobile app (and companion website version) offer a “seamless betting experience that makes it easy and quick to find your favorite markets, and to make and track one’s bets.”

In Iowa, the company is currently responsible for sportsbooks at half a dozen casinos throughout the state, including Prairie Meadows Racetrack & Casino, Lakeside Hotel & Casino, Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo, Isle Casino Hotel Bettendorf, Horseshoe Council Bluffs and Harrah’s Council Bluffs. 

The sports betting app is built on William Hill’s proprietary platform while offering sports fans a wide array of markets and bet types including live in-play betting. It [the app] also presents a seamless registration process and a broad range of deposit and withdraw (funds) options such as approved debit cards, online banking, Paypal, eCheck, PayNearMe (deposits only) within the state, cash at retail sportsbooks, and the William Hill Prepaid Play+ card, according to the official press release.

Mobile betting landscape:

In addition to Iowa, sports fans are now able to access William Hill mobile sports betting apps in seven US jurisdictions of Illinois, Colorado, Indiana, West Virginia, Washington, D.C, New Jersey, and Nevada. Additionally, mobile sports betting in Rhode Island is conducted by the Rhode Island Lottery, which is powered by William Hill on an IGT platform.

Along with the UK-based operator, there are currently eight mobile sportsbooks in Iowa:

• BetRivers
• DraftKings Sportsbook
• Elite Sportsbook
• FanDuel Sportsbook
• Hard Rock Sportsbook
• PointsBet
• Q Sportsbook

Forward-looking:

Without the in-person registration requirement limiting the state’s online sports betting market, multiple new sportsbooks are looking to enter the state, according to Brian Ohorilko, Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission Administrator, who stated on December 30, 2020…

“We are processing license applications or are aware of applications that appear to be imminent for up to an additional ten new online sports companies. It is more likely than not that our market will look very different by summer once this new wave of applications subsides.”

Last holdouts:

Now, only Illinois and Nevada require sports bettors to register at a land-based casino. In the former, the remote registration requirement was suspended by Governor JB Pritzker in June, only to be rescinded and then suspended again in August, which is still in effect.

Meanwhile, Nevada appeared to be coming around when casinos were shut down due to the coronavirus and sportsbooks were forced to hold drive-thru registrations and deposits. However, a public workshop scheduled for November 5, 2020, to discuss the possibility of allowing mobile sports betting registration throughout the state was canceled by the Nevada Gaming Control Board just two days prior to the planned meeting.