Kambi and Saginaw Chippewa Gaming Enterprises on Monday announced a partnership for Michigan sports betting.
Chippawa Gaming operates the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Mount Pleasant and Saganing Eagles Landing Casino & Hotel in Standish. Under the deal, the casino will open sportsbooks at the casinos and Kambi will also launch an online sportsbook, according to a news release. It will be the 15th online sportsbook in the state.
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The length of the deal was not released, but it is called a “long-term” agreement and no dates for the retail sports betting launch nor online sportsbooks were included in the news release. Kambi will provide kiosks, “Bring Your Own Device” technology and its Bet Builder product, the release said.
Kristian Nylén, Kambi’s chief executive officer, said a key part of the company’s strategy has been to partner with tribal market leaders “and Saginaw Chippewa Gaming Enterprises certainly fulfils that criteria.”
“Through its popular Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort and Signing Eagles Landing Casino & Hotel properties, Saginaw Chippewa Gaming Enterprises has established a formidable brand and a large customer database in Michigan,” Nylén said in the release. “At Kambi, we know what it takes to create a leading sportsbook product and we look forward to helping Saginaw Chippewa Gaming Enterprises deliver exciting sports betting experiences to its patrons."
Michigan is Strong Betting Market
Michigan has 26 casinos — 23 tribal and three commercial ones in Detroit. The state announced a record sports betting handle of $386.8 million for September, including $354.2 million in online wagering.
The state is expected to top those numbers when it releases October figures thanks to a full month of Michigan NFL betting and the Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans getting off to strong starts.
The partnership between Kambi and Saginaw Chippewa Gaming Enterprises will give sports bettors two options on-site at the casinos, plus the online sportsbook.
“We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Kambi Group. Our loyal guests and Soaring Eagle team have been anxiously looking forward to sports betting at our casinos,” Melinda Coffin, chief executive officer of Saginaw Chippewa Gaming Enterprises, said in the release. “We look forward to working with Kambi Group and providing a great experience for our guests."
About a year ago, Soaring Eagle announced it would add a sportsbook at its sports bar and entertainment venue. In May, it was announced it was partnering with GAN. Neither was mentioned in the news release from Kambi.
