BetMGM Launches Mobile Betting Within Mississippi Casino

The Gold Strike Casino Resort in Tunica, Mississippi, now offers mobile sports wagering from inside the gaming facility courtesy of BetMGM.

People inside the casino can wager using their phones to make moneyline, spread or totals bets including live in-play wagering. In Mississippi, mobile betting is only available inside physical casinos; bets cannot be made outside the facilities, limiting the state’s sports betting market.

MGM Resorts International owns the Gold Strike, a BetMGM casino on the border with Arkansas on the Mississippi River. The company’s M Life Rewards program is also available at the facility.

”We’ve had great success with the opening of the BetMGM Book Bar & Grill at Gold Strike and are thrilled to complement our retail offering with the launch of the BetMGM mobile app in Mississippi,” BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt said in a news release. “Sports fans at MGM’s world-class Tunica resort can now use their mobile devices to engage with the teams they love, while earning rewards for their gameplay.”

The BetMGM app is available for download at the Gold Strike Casino Resort, a facility that contains the 6,400-square-foot BetMGM Book Bar & Grill.

Mississippi Casinos Update

In late April, the Mississippi Gaming Commission allowed casinos in the state to drop their requirement that employees and customers wear masks inside the gaming facilities. The mask requirement was one of the measures that casinos took in the state to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Sports betting handle at the casinos in the Magnolia State hit its lowest point of 2021 in August, drawing $21.4 million. The sports betting revenue for the month was nearly $1.9 million, also the lowest figure of the year and lowest since July 2020, when casinos in the state and around the country were still reeling from shutdowns and limitations brought on by the coronavirus.

Revenue at Mississippi's slot machines and table games also fell in August compared to July. Slot machines in the state drew $2.560 billion in July but decreased 22.0% in August, to $1.998 billion. The handle, or drop, for table games in August was $151.0 million, down 20.0% from July ($188.6 million).