CT Lottery close to awarding sports betting contract

Connecticut’s race to launch sports gambling for the start of the football season is making progress, with the Connecticut Lottery Corp. in final negotiations with a vendor to run the operation.

According to the lottery board minutes of earlier this month, at least four vendors were finalists for the sportswagering operation, which still hinges on approval from the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs, and on completion of state rule-making.

One operator was chosen but has not yet been named publicly because final negotiations are underway.

Under the gaming law adopted by the General Assembly an signed by Gov. Ned Lamont, the lottery corporation has the right to operate internet-based lottery games and as many as 15 sports betting locations including in Hartford and Bridgeport.

Sportech, the New Havenbased operator of Connecticut’s 11 parimutuel off-track betting locations for horse races, lobbied hard to be included as a sports betting participant under the law. It’s unclear whether Sportech is the winning finalist in the lottery board’s deliberations and a company official was unavailable for comment.

“The governor charged everyone involved to do their best to get it up in time for football season,” said Tara Chozet, director of public relations and social media for the lottery corporation, a quasi-public state agency. We’re pretty optimistic, but we’re doing everything we can to meet that time line.”

The winning contractor could be announced within weeks for the sports-betting portion of the state’s new wagering programs, which also include online casino gambling and internet lottery games. Sports betting alone is projected to raise $19.3 million in state revenue during the budget year that started July 1, and nearly $25 million a year by June 30, 2026, according to the General Assembly’s nonpartisan Office of Fiscal Analysis.

State Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, whose district includes the two tribal casinos, led the passage of the bill in the Senate, said Thursday that she expects the vendor to be announced very soon, and that temporary regulations have been drafted by the state Department of Consumer Protection for review by Gov. Ned Lamont and a vote in the General Assembly Regulation

Review Committee in August.

“I have not seen them as yet, and I have reminded people that there are a couple steps that have to happen including that the tribal nations should see the rules and regulations, which also have to be reviewed by the legislative attorneys,” Osten said in a phone interview. “Things are moving along, but they need to be approved and voted on in August.”

The lottery is also planning to issue requests for bids to create the online components, including computer applications and ancillary services. Online lottery draw games are projected to generate $2 million in tax revenue in the current state budget year and $19 million by the end of June 2026. Online keno could bring the state $2 million a year by then.

It’s all part of a deal that includes sports betting at the state’s two tribal casinos and satellite locations throughout the state.

Online casino gambling is estimated to bring in $8.6 million in the current fiscal year, growing to more than $28 million by June 30, 2026.

An apparent victim of the expansion of gambling was a satellite casino project in East Windsor, aimed as competing with the MGM Casino in spring.