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

From Tuesday, brand-new guidelines on betting entered into result in Delaware, a tiny east coast state about 2 hours from Washington.

Neighbouring New Jersey might begin accepting sports betting bets as early as Friday.

The changes are the first in what could become a wave of legalisation after the Supreme Court last month cleared the method for states to enable sports wagering.

The market sees a "as soon as in a generation" opportunity to establish a new market in sports betting-mad America, said Dublin-based monetary expert David Jennings, who heads leisure research at Davy.

For UK companies, which are grappling with combination, increased online competition and tougher rules from UK regulators, the timing is particularly suitable.

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But the industry says depending on the US stays a dangerous bet, as UK business face complicated state-by-state guideline and competition from established regional interests.

"It's something that we're truly concentrating on, but similarly we do not desire to overhype it," stated James Midmer, spokesman at Paddy Power Betfair, which just recently purchased the US dream sports site FanDuel.

'Take some time'

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

Firms are wishing to tap into more of that activity after last month's decision, which struck down a 1992 federal law that barred states outside of Nevada and a couple of others from authorising sports betting wagering.

The judgment discovered the law was an over-reach of federal power. But the court it did not actually legalise sports betting, leaving that concern to local legislators.

That is anticipated to result in substantial variation in how companies get certified, where sports betting wagering can occur, and which events are open to speculation - with big implications for the size of the market.

Potential profits varieties from $4.2 bn to nearly $20bn each year depending on aspects like how numerous states relocate to legalise, Oxford Economics approximated in a 2017 study for the American Gaming Association.

"There was a great deal of 'this is going to be big'", stated Will Hawkley, London-based head of leisure for consultants KPMG.

Now, he stated: "I believe the majority of people ... are looking at this as, 'it's a chance however it's not going to be $20bn and it's going to be state by state and it's going to take time'."

'Remains to be seen"

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

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

US laws minimal gambling largely to Native American lands and Nevada's Las Vegas strip until relatively just recently.

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

States have actually also been sluggish to legalise lots of forms of online betting, in spite of a 2011 Justice Department opinion that appeared to remove challenges.

While sports betting is generally seen in its own classification, "it plainly stays to be seen whether it gets the type of momentum people think it will," stated Keith Miller, law professor at Drake University and co-author of a book about sports betting regulation.

David Carruthers is the previous president of BetonSports, who was jailed in the US in 2006 for running an offshore online sportsbook and served jail time.

Now a specialist, he says UK companies ought to approach the marketplace thoroughly, selecting partners with caution and preventing mistakes that could cause regulator backlash.

"This is a chance for the American sports betting wagerer ... I'm unsure whether it is a chance for service," he says. "It actually is reliant on the outcome of [state] legislation and how business operators pursue the chance."

'It will be collaborations'

As legalisation begins, sports betting companies are lobbying to ward off high tax rates, along with requests by US sports leagues, which want to collect a portion of profits as an "stability charge".

International business face the added challenge of a powerful existing gaming industry, with casino operators, state-run lottos and Native American tribes that are looking for to defend their grass.

Analysts say UK firms will require to strike partnerships, providing their expertise and innovation in order to make inroads.

They point to SBTech's recent statement that it is supplying innovation for Kentucky Derby operator Churchill Downs as an example of the sort of deals likely to materialise.

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

'It will just depend'

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

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

William Hill now uses about 450 people in the US and has actually revealed partnerships with gambling establishments in Iowa and New Jersey.

It works as threat supervisor for the Delaware Lottery and has actually invested millions alongside a regional developer in a New Jersey horse racing track.

Mr Asher stated William Hill has become a household name in Nevada however that's not always the goal everywhere.

"We definitely mean to have an extremely substantial brand existence in New Jersey," he stated. "In other states, it will just depend upon guideline and possibly who our local partner is."

"The US is going to be the greatest sports betting market in the world," he added. "Obviously that's not going to happen on the first day."