DC Attorney General Opens Investigation Into Failed GamebetDC

It appears GamebetDC’s failure isn’t the end of the sportsbook’s story.

A report from AxiosDC showed that Washington, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb had opened an investigation behind GameBetDC’s failure. While the AG’s office has been unwilling to confirm or deny the report, they did demand documentation from Intralot, who operated the failed sportsbook. That stirred up rumors of an investigation, which the Axios report confirms.

Details around the investigation are being kept under wraps, but it is thought they are looking to see if the operator actually completed all the work they were paid for. That is due to the platform’s poor performance, which led to the market massively underperforming. Towards the end of the platform’s tenure, Caesar’s retail sportsbook was bringing in more revenue than GamebetDC.

The DC Lottery could also be in the crosshairs of investigators. They awarded Intralot the contract to run Distrcit’s sports betting market without taking bids. The massive failure has raised questions about why the DC Lottery didn’t accept bids and how Intralot was selected. 

DC has expanded its market to include BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, Fanatics, and FanDuel as online options for bettors. The result has been immediate and massive growth, showing just how much money GamebetDC cost the District. 

DC Sees Record-High Handle in October

DC's decision to expand the sports betting market continues to pay dividends. In October, the market set a record with a $65.8 million handle, continuing an upward trend after years of failure with GamebetDC.

The impressive handle benefited from the NFL and college football seasons, the MLB playoffs, and the start of the NBA and NHL seasons. The market also expanded to include Fanatics, which had a handle of $2.1 million in its first full month.

FanDuel continues to lead the way after getting a head start on the rest of the competition. The operator saw $36.6 million in wagers for October. The next closest was DraftKings, a distant second with $16 million.