Fans of the Washington Wizards and Team with No Name will soon be able to bet live on all professional sports with PointsBet (ASX: PBH) awarded a temporary supplier license by the Virginia Lottery to offer online sports wagering in the State of Virginia. 

The licence has been awarded via wholly owned subsidiary PointsBet Virginia LLC marking a success where other publicly listed competitors have failed. The awarding of the licence comes via an exclusive partnership with Colonial Downs Group, owners of the Colonial Downs Racetrack, to fulfil the intensive regulatory requirements prescribed by Virginia Lottery’s extensive licensing process. 

“Being awarded the opportunity to offer PointsBet’s market-leading speed and ease of use, unrivaled slate of betting options, and overall in-play excellence to the people of Old Dominion is a great achievement and responsibility,” said PointsBet USA CEO, Johnny Aitken. 

“Alongside Colonial Downs, PointsBet is proud to partner with the Lottery in Virginia for our first lottery-regulated market license award. 

“We couldn’t be more thrilled to further expand our exclusive relationship with NBC Sports – a staple to sports lovers in Virginia – and ultimately provide the great people in the state with the sportsbook they’ve been waiting for.” 

Since September, residents of Virginia have been reporting substantially increased advertising from PointsBet on mainstream media, especially around sports broadcasts where the State is home to large fan bases of the nearby Washington D.C teams; NBA’s Washington Wizards, NFL’s Washington Football Team, NHL’s Washington Capitals and MLB’s Washington Nationals. 

Such advertising has encouraged fans to download the PointsBet app where they can access live stats and browse betting lines, but not actually place bets. Until now. 

With that advertising, PointsBet will have secured a segment of the market already but will penetrate the State even faster via their exclusive $USD $500 million partnership with NBC. The deal has already generated more than 516,000 customer leads and is rising as more Americans sign up for free to enter tipping competitions that offer cash jackpots. 

Just last month, the NBC app launched a $1 million cash jackpot competition, a substantial jump from the $100,000 ones which are free for fans to enter as long as they share their contact details with PointsBet. 

Colonial Downs CEO, Aarom Gomes said,“We are pleased to help bring this gaming option, with an excellent reputation and track record in customer service and unique points of difference such as their ‘PointsBetting’ platform, to our loyal customers and other gamers in Virginia.” 

Washington fans have been up and about in recent weeks with the Washington Wizards fans something to cheer for after years of misery at the bottom of the league. In a change of fortunes courtesy of a savvy off-season trade, the Wizards sit near the top of the Eastern Conference starting the season with an 11-6 record. 

The success comes after the team traded marquee player Russell Westbrook to the Las Angeles Lakers, in return securing Montrezl Harrell and Kyle Kuzma who have excelled upon their arrival in Washington. Westbrook meanwhile leads the league in turnovers as the Lakers have struggled through their 9-9 start to the season. 

The launch of PointsBet’s services in Virginia comes just weeks after the Company was granted a licence in the State of New York – home to the largest US city by population.