Colorado-based Century Casinos has just increased its sports gambling footprint in its home state. After the state officially stepped into the market at the beginning of the month, pending a major return of sports action around the globe, a number of sportsbooks have been issued licenses, including bet365. The two entities have now teamed up to offer online sports wagers, giving Century a home for its second of three online sports gambling licenses. Circa Sports picked up the first one, and the expansion into sports betting should prove to be a huge win for the casino operator’s bottom line. 

Century didn’t lay out the details of how much the deal is worth, asserting on that the agreement with bet365 “is a 10-year agreement that includes a minimum annual revenue guarantee and a percentage share of net gaming revenue payable to the Company each year, with an advance fee being paid on contract signing.” The timing of the agreement couldn’t be better, as NASCAR racing is back on track, golf is teeing up with a number of events and soccer’s kicking things up with a return of the Bundesliga. More sports organizations are expected to get back in the game starting next month. 

Being able to offer sports gambling options – especially mobile wagers – is going to help Century in a number of ways. Brad Boyer, an analyst with Stifel, is already getting optimistic about the company’s financial prospects, giving its stock (CNTY) a “Buy” rating with a price target of $12. That would be a nice run on the current numbers, which have been down considerably because of the coronavirus. On May 14, Century’s stock opened at about $3.17 and has climbed ever since, closing yesterday at $4.17. That range was already a huge improvement over the $1.08 the company saw at its lowest point to date this year, which happened on March 19 as casinos across the US were forced to close as a result of the global health pandemic. It’s also higher than the company has seen since it hit its high of $11.16 in 2006. 

Boyer adds, “The company’s current liquidity position is somewhat stretched relative to those of its peers, in our view, as net of cash needed to reopen the business, we estimate the company could endure a zero- revenue environment for an additional four months (August 2020). All told, we like the convenience-oriented nature of CNTY’s properties and expect the business to prove resilient on the other side of COVID.”

Shopify began with the idea of making it possible for almost anyone to get started as an eCommerce entrepreneur. The business model has worked extremely well over the years, and is now ready to kick things up a notch or two. In an effort to give its merchants more options, especially needed during the coronavirus pandemic, Shopify has introduced a new debit card program, a new payment installment plan and several other high-profile changes.

The upgrades to the platform were announced yesterday when Shopify held its Shopify Reunite, a company-led virtual showcasing event. Reunite was created to take the place of the fifth installment of Shopify Unite, which would have been a live conference that had been scheduled to be held earlier this month. After the coronavirus pandemic flipped the world upside down, the company decided to move its event online.

Shopify’s new debit card, called Balance, includes an account, a physical and/or virtual card and rewards. It is being managed with the help of a third party, which will be named when the program is released. The rollout will be seen first in the U.S. before being expanded elsewhere. Shopify Chief Product Officer Craig Miller explains, “They get access to the money that they’re earning from the Shopify store within the same day that they earn it.” He adds, “They will get a debit card in the mail that they can customize with their company’s brand on. As well, they’ll get a digital version that they can use to start spending online instantly.” Merchants will also be able to withdraw from ATMs. As for rewards, Shopify plans to offer merchants “cashback and discounts on everyday business spending like shipping and marketing.”

Shop Pay Installments should also be a hit with merchants. As with Balance, it will first only be available to U.S. customers, and will give merchants the ability to allow their customers to break up the cost of purchases into four equal payments. The produce cost has to range anywhere from $50 to $1,000 (tax-inclusive) and Shopify will carry the installments – the merchant gets paid immediately. Miller adds, “As we started looking at traditional banking, we also realized that there’s the consumer side as well. Today, with the unemployment numbers going up quite high, with people being concerned about potentially taking on debt, interest rates with traditional credit cards are actually quite high. That kind of led us to also try and get our installments product out there.”

The Hoosier State has a new sports gambling player. Caesars Entertainment has launched an online sportsbook in Indiana as it continues to work on building its portfolio ahead of the expected merger with Eldorado Resorts. Long having been an icon in the Las Vegas casino scene, the company is pushing its boundaries further out, and now has mobile sports gambling operations in four states – Indiana, Nevada, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. It’s no coincidence that these four states own bragging rights to the largest sports gambling handles in the country.

Caesars was approved to enter Indiana with its online gambling app this past Tuesday, bringing to seven the total number of options available to sports gambling fans. The app is powered by Scientific Games, and is running in conjunction with the Horseshoe Hammond casino and its license. The move follows work that has been going on for a year after Caesars announced plans to include a sportsbook at the venue in May 2019.

Caesars may have been late to the party with its online sports gambling option in the state, but better late than never. FanDuel and DraftKings, among others, have been live in the state for some time, but Caesars had decided to take a more pragmatic approach to its Hoosier State operations. With sports about to make a return, the timing of the online sportsbook couldn’t be better.

Indiana isn’t the last stop as Caesars continues to make its trek around the US. Next up is Virginia, where the operator has just secured a major deal with the city of Danville. A bidding war (minor skirmish) was held to choose a casino operator capable of wooing the public with a gambling project and, after sifting through the applications, Caesars came out on top.

The PGA Tour’s return is right around the corner, but golf fans don’t have to wait until the June 11-14 Charles Schwab Challenge as the two biggest American golf stars and two of the greatest NFL quarterbacks in history will face off in an exhibition match Sunday.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

It’s Tiger Woods vs. Phil Mickelson: Match II (technically The Match: Champions for Charity), but the unique twist of this version from the first time Tiger and Lefty played a similar event two years ago is that Peyton Manning will team up with Tiger and Tom Brady will with Mickelson. The exhibition is from Medalist Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Florida, and television coverage will begin at 3 p.m. ET.

Woods and Manning are -225 favorites with Mickelson and Brady at +170. These four guys have combined for 20 PGA Tour major championships, eight Super Bowl rings and eight NFL MVP regular-season awards. Of course, Brady is still playing in the league but is now with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Manning retired after winning his final Super Bowl title in SB 50 while with the Denver Broncos. Manning vs. Brady might be the best individual NFL matchup in history, but the two are friends.