Barstool becomes Tennessee's 9th sportsbook operator

Following Penn National’s Barstool Sportsbook receiving approval from the Tennessee Education Lottery on Sept. 8, and social sports betting app Wagr on Aug. 31, Tennessee now has a total of nine sports betting platforms in the state.

The approval marked Barstool’s fifth launch in the month of August, something parent company Penn National said would happen in anticipation of the NFL season, kicked off on September 9.

On the other hand, Wagr’s Tennessee approval marks the platform’s first launch. The social sports betting app has a system that requires two people to place a bet and choose one side of it, but both bets are placed with Wagr itself.

While somewhat similar to P2P betting, by being placed within the platform, the bets count to adjusted gross income that can be calculated the same as other sportsbooks. Wagr also sets the odds, another key differential factor from peer-to-peer betting. It is backed by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian’s fund Seven Seven Six, the Manning brothers, and Tinder co-founder Justin Mateen.

And they're off! 🏇 @withwagr is creating a social, safe, and inclusive experience designed for all sports fans 👆

Learn more in Wagr's blog: https://t.co/ss3HvSatMQ

— 7️⃣7️⃣6️⃣ (@sevensevensix) June 17, 2021

Sports betting in the state of Tennessee was legalized on November 1, 2020, becoming one of the fastest-growing states in terms of revenue: according to analyst Sports Betting Dime, Tennessee became the fastest state to record $200 million in a month in January 2021.

Other platforms approved in the state include Action 24/7, Churchill Downs-owned TwinSpires Sports, and industry giants DraftKings Sportsbook, Caesars Sportsbook, BetMGM Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, and WynnBET Spoortsbook.

Since launch, Tennessee sportsbooks have taken $1.56 billion in bets, with $135.6 million in revenue. July’s handle fell to $144.5 million, the lowest since the first month of sports betting, something contemplated in what is typically a slow month. This will mark the first complete season for sportsbooks in the state, which missed most of the college football season and half of the NFL season.

LADIES AND GENTLEMAN OF TENNESSEE WE ARE LIVE pic.twitter.com/gpRZ64VliZ

— Barstool Sportsbook (@BSSportsbook) September 8, 2021

Following the latest approval, Barstool Sportsbook is now live in nine states: Pennsylvania, Colorado, New Jersey, Virginia, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Arizona and Tennessee. The brand is also set to adopt Genius Sports’ exclusive official sports content, following an agreement with parent company Penn Interactive on Thursday.

“Delivering official data to our growing, loyal audience will provide tremendous wagering opportunities for our users,” said Jon Kaplowitz, Head of Penn Interactive. “We also look forward to reaching sports fans who may not yet have experienced the Barstool Sportsbook through access to marketing inventory on NFL digital properties from Genius Sports.”

Via the agreement, the company is set to adopt content including NASCAR’s full suite of official data-powered in-race betting markets, as well as access to the NFL’s real-time statistics, proprietary Next Gen Stats and official sports betting data, as well as portfolio from other world leagues.