New Jersey’s online gamblers have yet another option following the launch of Churchill Downs Inc’s new BetAmerica online sportsbook and casino.

On Thursday, Churchill Downs (CDI) announced the launch of BetAmerica.com, CDI’s new online real-money sports betting and online casino platform in New Jersey. BetAmerica piggybacks on the online gambling license of Atlantic City casino operator Golden Nugget (which also hosts Betfair and PlaySugarHouse).

The Kentucky-based CDI launched its BetAmerica brand last August at its two Mississippi casinos, but that state permits only land-based wagering. The Mississippi wagering operations are powered by SBTech, following a deal the two companies struck last May.

CDI CEO Bill Carstanjen said his company hopes to “exceed our [New Jersey] customers’ expectations” by drawing on the company’s long experience running its highly successful advance deposit wagering site TwinSpires.com. In CDI’s Q3 earnings report, TwinSpires booked revenue of $72m compared to just $41m generated via land-based race betting.

Betting and sports were the most popular topics for Kenyans’ Google searches in 2018, according to a new report.

An internet search report prepared by Hootsuite and We Are Social showed 11 betting-related subjects in the top 20 Google search queries by Kenyans in 2018. Kenya’s leading sportsbook SportPesa topped the list, an honor the company has enjoyed for several years now.

Just so you understand this was no fluke, ‘SportPesa Login’ also appeared on the chart in 10th position. Other betting operators making the grade include BetPawa (5), Betin (7), Betika (9) and Forebet (13). Also featuring prominently on the chart were sports data sites Livescore (3), Prediction (8), Livescore CZ (17) and SportPesa Livescore (19). The list also included English Premier League teams Arsenal (12) and Chelsea (16).

Betting sites also scored highly in terms of the nation’s website traffic, with the Kenyan domains of SportPesa (9), Betin (10), BetPawa (17) and 1xBet (20) appearing on the top-20 Alexa Website Ranking.

Nevada’s controversial sportsbook supplier CG Technology (CGT) plans to launch operations in New Jersey through a partnership with the Meadowlands racetrack.

On Thursday, CGT announced that its new subsidiary CG Technology NJ LLC had reached a deal with New Meadowlands Racetrack LLC to launch a new online and mobile sports betting product at some point this year, preferably before the start of the new National Football League season.

CGT CEO Parikshat Khanna said the company was looking forward to bringing its “decade-plus of experience” to New Jersey. Khanna claimed the company, which operates eight sportsbooks at seven Nevada resorts plus a mobile betting app, had “always envisioned national expansion that would give American consumers more product options.”

Meadowlands CEO Jeff Gural was equally impressed with CGT’s experience, claiming the company would bring “some new and inventive offerings” to tempt New Jersey’s online and mobile bettors.

The UK racing industry is at a standstill after an outbreak of equine influenza forced the suspension of all racing activity.

On Wednesday, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) announced that racing would be shut down at all British racecourses on Thursday. The decision was made after the Animal Health Trust identified three confirmed cases of equine influenza among vaccinated horses at an active racing yard.

Horses from the infected yard raced Wednesday at the Ayr and Ludlow courses, potentially exposing “a significant number” of horses across the UK and Ireland. The BHA said it was communicating with yards whose horses may have been exposed to the virus but admitted that “the full extent of potential exposure is unknown.”

On Thursday, the BHA announced that racing would not resume in Britain until next Wednesday (13) “at the earliest.” The BHA said a decision on whether to allow racing to continue on Wednesday would be made on Monday (11) following “further scientific advice and discussions with participants.”

UK online gambling operators are facing tough new rules for verifying the age of their customers and restrictions on demanding further identification before processing customer withdrawals.

On Thursday, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) released its new customer identity verification rules, which will take effect on May 7. The new requirements are part of the regulator’s three-year plan to ensure a ‘fairer and safer’ gambling environment for UK consumers.

The old rules allowed operators a 72-hour window in which to conduct age-verification checks. Operators must now ensure a new customer is of legal gambling age before allowing that customer to deposit funds into their account or make any bet, whether that bet is made using the customer’s own money or funds provided via a free bet or bonus.

The new age-verification rules similarly apply to the free-to-play gambling products on operators’ websites. The UKGC acknowledges that these products “are not technically gambling” but holds the view that there’s “no legitimate reason” why such products should be available to minors.