• Subscribe
  • Magazines
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
Saturday 30 August 2025
  • zh-hant 中文
  • ja 日本語
  • en English
IAG
Advertisement
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Cambodia
    • China
    • CNMI
    • Europe
    • Hong Kong
    • India
    • Japan
    • Laos
    • Latin America
    • Malaysia
    • Macau
    • Nepal
    • New Zealand
    • North America
    • North Korea
    • Philippines
    • Russia
    • Singapore
    • South Korea
    • Sri Lanka
    • Thailand
    • UAE
    • Vietnam
  • Events
  • Contributors
  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
  • 中文
No Result
View All Result
IAG
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Cambodia
    • China
    • CNMI
    • Europe
    • Hong Kong
    • India
    • Japan
    • Laos
    • Latin America
    • Malaysia
    • Macau
    • Nepal
    • New Zealand
    • North America
    • North Korea
    • Philippines
    • Russia
    • Singapore
    • South Korea
    • Sri Lanka
    • Thailand
    • UAE
    • Vietnam
  • Events
  • Contributors
  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
  • 中文
No Result
View All Result
IAG
No Result
View All Result

OPINION: Does yesterday’s sports betting licence announcement point to a two-year extension to Macau’s casino concessions?

Andrew W Scott by Andrew W Scott
Thu 10 Jun 2021 at 07:24
OPINION: Does yesterday’s sports betting licence announcement point to a two-year extension to Macau’s casino concessions?
34
SHARES
850
VIEWS
Print Friendly, PDF & Email

It was mixed news for Macau SLOT yesterday morning with the issue of the Macau government gazette. It became public that Macau’s only sports betting operator, which has enjoyed a monopoly on online and retail sports betting since 1998, saw its license to operate extended for three years to 5 June 2024. It last had its license extended for five years from June 2016 to June 2021.

Any day a gaming concession or license is extended has to go down as a good day for your company, but the big news was the fact that for the first time in over two decades, Macau SLOT would no longer enjoy exclusivity for its product. At first one might look at this as a negative for Macau SLOT, but just think back to what liberalization did for Macau’s casino gambling monopoly incumbent 20 years ago. The industry liberalization led to the introduction of competition and a complete industry transformation which grew the gaming pie stupendously. As SJM came to learn, part of an enormous pie can be much bigger than all of a small pie.

This is a major shift in the Macau government’s approach and extremely noteworthy.

Three ideas immediately spring to mind:

  1. Casino sportsbooks such as those we see in Las Vegas
  2. Corporate bookmakers such as those Europe has made famous
  3. Daily Fantasy Sports, the new-century industry led by the likes of DraftKings and FanDuel

But hold your horses. None of these will be appearing overnight. There are lots of hoops to jump through and the Macau government is famous for taking its time, slowly working through systemic change in a methodical step-by-step manner. Given the historical raging success and the overall stability of our gaming industry, this one-step-at-a-time “salami slicer” approach to change is hard to criticize.

But here’s a thought to whet your appetite. The Macau government has already demonstrated a penchant for “lining things up.” Back in March 2019 the casino concessions for SJM and MGM were extended two years to 26 June 2022, nicely lining up with the expiry of the concessions of the other four operators, Galaxy, Melco, Sands China and Wynn Macau, on – you guessed it – 26 June 2022.

Could yesterday’s announcement of the extension of the Macau SLOT licence to 5 June 2024 be a hint of an extension of Macau six casino gaming concessions for two years, from 26 June 2022 to 26 June 2024?

There has been much talk in the past year or two of the ability of the government to extend the casino concessions for up to five years, and there is precedent for such an extension from last time the casino concessions were issued, around the turn of the century. Time certainly seems to be running out with June 2022 just a year away, and the global pandemic offering a very reasonable justification for such an extension.

Were this to happen, it would see not only Macau’s casino concessions all falling due in June 2024, but the sports betting license of Macau SLOT in the very same month. Clean slate, anyone?

And while, yes, in theory any eager new prospective sports betting operator could begin the process to enter the Macau market immediately, perhaps a 2024 clean slate offers the perfect opportunity for the Macau government to dangle the salivating prospect of Vegas-style casino sportsbooks in front of the concessionaires? At least some of Macau’s concessionaires have expressed their desire for such sportsbooks for as long as the past two decades.

Food for thought?

RelatedPosts

All your sports entertainment with SABA Sports – always fair and sharp since 1998.

All your sports entertainment with SABA Sports – always fair and sharp since 1998.

Fri 29 Aug 2025 at 18:57
Sands China celebrates 1.1 billion cumulative visitors to its Macau resorts

Sands China celebrates 1.1 billion cumulative visitors to its Macau resorts

Thu 28 Aug 2025 at 19:09
IAG names Grand Lisboa Palace Resort Macau as venue and SJM Resorts S.A. as Venue Sponsor for 2025 Power 50 Black Tie Gala Dinner

SJM reports widened 1H25 loss despite GGR growing almost 12% to US$1.90 billion

Thu 28 Aug 2025 at 18:54
Capital Punishment

SJM to relocate satellite casino gaming tables, slot machines to Macau’s famous Hotel Lisboa as part of US$68 million deal with parent company STDM

Thu 28 Aug 2025 at 17:35
Load More
Tags: Basketballfootballgaming concessionsMacauMacau Slot Co Ltdsports bettingsportsbook
Share14Share2
Andrew W Scott

Andrew W Scott

Born in Australia, Andrew is a gaming industry expert and media publisher, commentator and journalist who moved to Hong Kong in 2005 and then Macau in 2009, when he founded O MEDIA, one of Macau’s largest media companies, former and parent company of Inside Asian Gaming (IAG). Both O MEDIA and IAG were merged with US-based gaming media brand CDC Gaming on 1 January 2025, under new corporate parent Complete Media Group (CMG).

Andrew was appointed CEO of Complete Media Group upon the merger. CMG is now the parent of three gaming media brands: Inside Asian Gaming (focusing on land-based gaming in the Asia-Pacific region), CDC Gaming (focusing on land-based gaming in the Americas), and Complete iGaming (focusing on online gaming in the Americas and APAC).

Andrew continues to be Vice Chairman and CEO of IAG and now-sister company O MEDIA.

Current Issue

Editorial – Flipping the script

Editorial – Flipping the script

by Ben Blaschke
Thu 28 Aug 2025 at 12:30

This month represents an important milestone for Inside Asian Gaming as we launch IAG EXPO – an expansion of the...

Asia market roundup

Asia market roundup

by Ben Blaschke
Thu 28 Aug 2025 at 12:26

Inside Asian Gaming takes a deep dive into the state of Asia-Pacific’s key gaming markets: who’s hot, who’s not and...

Rewriting the rules

Rewriting the rules

by Newsdesk
Thu 28 Aug 2025 at 11:43

IAG EXPO, taking place at Newport World Resorts from 8 to 10 September, is not your usual trade show. IAG...

Test of character

Test of character

by Newsdesk
Thu 28 Aug 2025 at 11:28

Since its establishment in 1989, Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) has developed into the world’s most trusted name when it comes...

Evolution Asia
Your browser does not support HTML5 video.
Aristocrat
GLI
Nustar
SABA
Mindslot
Solaire
Hann
Tecnet
HKUST
NWR

Related Posts

All your sports entertainment with SABA Sports – always fair and sharp since 1998.

All your sports entertainment with SABA Sports – always fair and sharp since 1998.

by Newsdesk
Fri 29 Aug 2025 at 18:57

CLIENT PROMOTION Since 1998, SABA Sports has stood as the trusted backbone of the world’s most respected sports betting brands. Built on real-time intelligence and operational excellence, we have earned our reputation as the definitive partner for leading operators worldwide....

Newly appointed Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra expected to continue pursuit of legalized casinos

Thai casino bill dead in the water as Constitutional Court removes Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra from office

by Ben Blaschke
Fri 29 Aug 2025 at 18:44

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been removed from office for ethics violations after the Constitutional Court ruled 6-3 against her on Friday. She becomes Thailand’s sixth Prime Minister to be removed by a court or legal ruling since 2008...

Australia’s Star Entertainment Group says available cash halved in December 2024 quarter as liquidity crunch bites again

Star Entertainment Group falls to AU$471.5 million loss in FY25 as remediation, regulatory hurdles continue to bite

by Ben Blaschke
Fri 29 Aug 2025 at 07:38

Australia’s Star Entertainment Group has reported a statutory loss of AU$471.5 million (US$308 million) for the financial year ended 30 June 2025, impacted by a 29% year-on-year decline in group-wide revenue including a 37% fall in gaming revenue. Although the...

Resorts World Las Vegas – Lighting up the north

Recovery of VIP gaming business helps Genting’s Resorts World Las Vegas book improved revenues of US$180 million in 2Q25

by Ben Blaschke
Fri 29 Aug 2025 at 05:30

Resorts World Las Vegas (RWLV), the US flagship of Malaysian gaming giant Genting Berhad, saw revenues grow by 8% quarter-on-quarter to US$180 million and EBITDA by 80% to US$18 million in 2Q25, with the company pointing to improved hold and...

Your browser does not support the video tag.


IAG

© 2005-2025
Inside Asian Gaming.
All rights reserved.

  • SUBSCRIBE FREE
  • NEWSFEED
  • MAG ARTICLES
  • VIDEO
  • OPINION
  • TAGS
  • REGIONAL
  • EVENTS
  • CONSULTING
  • CONTRIBUTORS
  • MAGAZINES
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • ADVERTISE
  • 中文

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

No Result
View All Result
  • 中文
  • Subscribe
  • Newsfeed
  • Mag Articles
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Tags
  • Regional
  • Events
  • Contributors
  • Magazines
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • About
  • Home for G2E Asia

© 2005-2025
Inside Asian Gaming.
All rights reserved.

  • 中文
  • English