Superbook Sports Continues Shrinking Operations

Operator Will Leave Eight States, Stay In Nevada

Superbook exits eight states, remains in Nevada
Competition from FanDuel and DraftKings
Uncertainty for bettors with funds and futures

July 23, 20240 180 3 minutes readGambling News

Superbook at the Wstgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino 2020 — Ethan Miller/Getty Images/AFP

Bettors Are Screwed
Superbook is exiting eight states: What's Next?

Superbook Sports — which was operating in nine U.S. states — has announced that it will be leaving every state in which it was accepting bets besides Nevada. The news that Superbook is exiting eight states isn’t so surprising considering that the operator hasn’t been able to really gain much of a foothold in Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, New Jersey, Maryland, Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia.

Plus, with summer being a downtime for sports betting, upper management thought now was the right time to pull the plug.

On the other hand, the timing is questionable in that highly lucrative football season is just over a month away. Superbook Sports likely exited all those markets because the company’s internal numbers were even worse than publicly known.

Still, the company signed a few major partnerships in recent years — including one with the Baltimore Orioles — makes it seem like there was a longer-term plan in store. Now, it will only be able to accept NFL futures in Nevada.

It turned out to be too difficult for Superbook to compete with the big boys like FanDuel and DraftKings, as the market has become very saturated from the top down. Whether it’s the heavy hitters or the smaller operators, like Caesars, BetMGM, or ESPNBet, there are so many places for bettors to look to now.

Inevitably, companies like Superbook will get lost in the shuffle if they can’t distinguish themselves in any way. Superbook failed to stand out here.

We regret to inform you that SuperBook Sports will no longer be accepting bets or deposits in the following states: AZ, CO, IA, MD, NJ, OH, TN & VA.
Thank you for being a loyal customer of SuperBook Sports. pic.twitter.com/5uXpbU8pEx
— SuperBook Sports (@SuperBookSports) July 20, 2024

Bettors Are Screwed

A major consequence of Superbook exiting eight states is that bettors who relied on using the operator must withdraw their funds and take their business elsewhere. It is unclear what will happen to futures bets made by customers on their own or with promotional offers pushed by Superbook just days before the company announced that it was shutting its doors in the states listed above.

It’s not rare for a sportsbook operator to cease conducting business because other operators have done the same in various states over the past few months.

There wasn’t any forewarning given here, though, and it leaves many people in the lurch. Plus, Superbook opened a bar in conjunction with the Orioles just over a year ago which gave people — especially bettors in Maryland — at least some confidence that the operator was doing well enough to survive.

The summer presents challenges in the sports betting calendar, to be sure, but that doesn’t excuse giving such short notice regarding such a big decision. In that way, this is a disappointment not only to the overall sports betting market — which benefits from increased competition — but also to bettors who want to have optionality besides the biggest operators.

Consolidation is usually not good in this kind of industry.

Superbook is exiting eight states: What’s Next?

The sportsbook will continue to operate in Nevada as Superbook’s exit in eight states did not affect its ability to remain functional in the betting capital of the United States.

However, it does beg the question of how long Superbook can expect to be a viable option because it essentially admitted defeat in this many states. Of course, Nevada is its animal in terms of the legal sports betting market so it’s not completely fair to draw any connections between Superbook’s actions in other states to its actions in Nevada.

Still, it’s worth thinking about. What exactly should give people confidence that Superbook can thrive in Nevada when it couldn’t in other states, many with less competition than in Nevada?

This entire situation further proves how hard it is for smaller books that might not have the corporate connections of larger or even mid-size books to do well in the current sports betting climate.

With states legalizing betting left and right and so many operators trying to get in the mix, it’s incredibly hard to stand out. Superbook wasn’t able to do so outside of Nevada even with the partnerships the operator was able to forge.

Even if it was the best online sportsbook, Superbook probably never stood much of a chance in the long run. Now, a major thing to watch is whether any non-FanDuel or DraftKings operator can find a stable, permanent footing.