Sports Betting Back in Oregon


It has been a very long time since House Bill 3466 banned any sports betting within the state. Before then, they only had the limited option of placing paper-parlays on NFL games, but even that was no more. Now a new and bright future is looming for punters in Oregon. This week the Scoreboard application was finally due for launch, allowing punters to place their bets on a variety of sports with the comfort and ease of using their mobile devices. The Oregon Lottery has finally approved for the app to go live, and they are expected to tally up a total of $300 million in wagers placed in their first year after launch.

Brilliant Betting Options

The Scoreboard application will unlock a wealth of possibilities for punters within the state of Oregon. They will be able to place in-game bets on numerous games including the state’s NFL and NBA teams as well as the Portland Trail Blazers. The Trail Blazers and the Oregon Lottery are in a sponsorship agreement. Hence, they too are excited about the app finally going live after many hold-ups which prevented it from launching along with the opening of NFL season. According to Chris McGowan, the CEO of the Blazers, they are excited about the expansion in the fan base of the team among Oregonians due to the app. He further stated that they are also keen on expanding this existing partnership with the lottery.

Security Measurements

SBTech has been appointed as the preferred supplier to run the application. Their appointment was based on their extensive experience in sports betting services as well as the capability to enhance player experiences. This privately-owned company’s portfolio also includes Church Hill Downs. The insurance of accounts has been assigned to FDIC. Since players must have a funding account, these accounts will be insured by FDIC with a limit on these funding accounts of $250 000. Matt Shelby, the spokesperson for the Oregon Lottery, also stated that they are under no obligation to accept all wagers placed. If any bets alert some scrutiny, they will deny it.

Extensive Testing

The final testing on the application has been done this past weekend when six players were all allowed $100 to play on different device platforms including Android, desktop and iOS. The testing was done to ensure that any withdrawals, deposits and other actions on the app, from all three devices, ran smoothly. This was done successfully, and since then the director of the Oregon Lottery has met with the developers and gave his green light for the launch.

Geofencing

The app utilizes geofencing software to determine a user’s location. This is mainly used to protect the state’s lottery’s relationship with the tribal casinos within the state. The geofencing will ensure that nobody on the tribal lands will be allowed to place their wagers through the app. For the players who are on the property belonging to the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, Chinook Winds Casino Resort remains an option to place in-person wagers.