It's high stakes for UK companies as sports wagering starts to spread out in America.

From Tuesday, brand-new guidelines on betting came into effect in Delaware, a small east coast state about two hours from Washington.

Neighbouring New Jersey could begin accepting sports bets as early as Friday.

The modifications are the very first in what might become a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the way for states to permit sports betting.

The market sees a "when in a generation" chance to develop a new market in sports-mad America, stated Dublin-based financial analyst David Jennings, who heads leisure research study at Davy.

For UK companies, which are coming to grips with debt consolidation, increased online competition and tougher guidelines from UK regulators, the timing is especially opportune.

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But the market states depending on the US remains a risky bet, as UK business face complicated state-by-state regulation and competition from entrenched regional interests.

"It's something that we're really concentrating on, however similarly we don't want to overhype it," stated James Midmer, spokesman at Paddy Power Betfair, which just recently purchased the US fantasy sports website FanDuel.

'Take time'

The US accounted for about 23% of the world's $244bn (₤ 182bn) in video gaming income in 2015, according to a report by Technavio, external released in January.

Firms are hoping to tap into more of that activity after last month's decision, which overruled a 1992 federal law that barred states beyond Nevada and a few others from authorising sports wagering.

The ruling discovered the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not actually legalise sports wagering, leaving that concern to regional lawmakers.

That is expected to result in significant variation in how companies get licensed, where sports wagering can occur, and which events are open to speculation - with huge implications for the size of the marketplace.

Potential earnings varieties from $4.2 bn to nearly $20bn every year depending upon factors like the number of states relocate to legalise, Oxford Economics estimated in a 2017 research study for the American Gaming Association.

"There was a lot of 'this is going to be huge'", said Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for experts KPMG.

Now, he stated: "I think many people ... are taking a look at this as, 'it's a chance but it's not going to be $20bn and it's going to be state by state and it's going to require time'."

'Remains to be seen"

Chris Grove, handling director at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, anticipates that 32 states will legalise sports betting in some kind by 2023, developing a market with about $6bn in yearly earnings.

But bookies face a far various landscape in America than they do in the UK, where wagering shops are a regular sight.

US laws minimal gaming mostly to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip till relatively recently.

In the popular creativity, sports betting has long been linked to a 1919 baseball World Series match-fixing scandal.

States have actually likewise been sluggish to legalise numerous types of online gaming, regardless of a 2011 Justice Department opinion that appeared to get rid of obstacles.

While sports betting is typically viewed in its own category, "it plainly stays to be seen whether it gets the kind of momentum people think it will," said Keith Miller, law professor at Drake University and co-author of a book about sports wagering guideline.

David Carruthers is the former chief executive of BetonSports, who was apprehended in the US in 2006 for running an offshore online sportsbook and served jail time.

Now a specialist, he says UK firms need to approach the market thoroughly, selecting partners with caution and preventing bad moves that might cause regulator reaction.

"This is a chance for the American sports wagerer ... I'm not sure whether it is an opportunity for service," he says. "It actually depends on the outcome of [state] legislation and how the company operators pursue the chance."

'It will be collaborations'

As legalisation begins, sports wagering firms are lobbying to fend off high tax rates, as well as requests by US sports leagues, which want to collect a percentage of profits as an "stability fee".

International companies face the added challenge of an effective existing video gaming market, with gambling establishment operators, state-run lottery games and Native American people that are looking for to defend their grass.

Analysts say UK companies will need to strike collaborations, providing their knowledge and innovation in order to make inroads.

They point to SBTech's recent statement that it is offering innovation for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the type of offers most likely to materialise.

"It will be a win-win for everybody, but it will be partnerships and it will be driven by innovation," Mr Hawkley stated.

'It will simply depend'

Joe Asher, primary executive at William Hill US, is clear-eyed about the truths.

The company has actually been buying the US market since 2011, when it acquired 3 US firms to develop a presence in Nevada.

William Hill now employs about 450 individuals in the US and has announced collaborations with casinos in Iowa and New Jersey.

It works as danger manager for the Delaware Lottery and has actually invested millions along with a regional developer in a New Jersey horse racing track.

Mr Asher said William Hill has ended up being a family name in Nevada but that's not necessarily the goal everywhere.

"We certainly mean to have an extremely considerable brand presence in New Jersey," he stated. "In other states, it will simply depend on regulation and possibly who our local partner is."

"The US is going to be the biggest sports betting market on the planet," he included. "Obviously that's not going to happen on day one."