When bet365 launched mobile operations in Colorado at the start of this month, it certainly raised eyebrows in boardrooms across the sports betting landscape, even in the executive suites of giants like FanDuel, DraftKings and Caesars Sportsbook.
For years, bet365, the most successful operator in the United Kingdom, has been viewed as a sleeping giant in the U.S., a private company that keeps its cards close to the vest while potentially creeping up on the major operators.
Colorado gave the company a second U.S. foothold, along with New Jersey, and it has been approved for a license in Virginia, perhaps just the first few dominoes to fall in the company’s North American strategy.